You may be thinking of climbing Kilimanjaro with your child and are wondering about the kinds of age restrictions Kilimanjaro has for its climbers. I did some research on the topic.
You will be allowed to climb Kilimanjaro if you are above 10 years old. Children below the age of 10 are ordinarily not allowed to climb past 3,100 Meters (10,170 ft) unless they have obtained special permissions from the Kilimanjaro National Park Authorities. There are no upper age limits to be allowed to climb Kilimanjaro. The youngest person on record to have climbed Kilimanjaro was 7 Years Old and the oldest was 89. Let’s take a deeper dive into what it takes for you to climb Kilimanjaro as a child and a few considerations for senior citizens.
Under 10 Years Old are not allowed to climb
Anyone under the age of 10 will not be allowed to climb to the summit Kilimanjaro. The highest you can go as a child on Kilimanjaro is 3,100 Meters (10,170ft). This altitude is lower than most of the lowest camps on Kilimanjaro. This means that there is no point in bringing your child to Kilimanjaro if they are below 10 and you don’t have the necessary approvals from the Kilimanjaro Park Authorities.
The Kilimanjaro National Park Authorities enforce the rules and will not allow a child below 10 to climb to the summit without special permission which must be granted ahead of your arrival to Tanzania.
Why are children not allowed to get to the summit
From what I have gathered, children don’t deal with high altitude very well and taking them up the highest mountain in Africa puts them in real danger.
According to The International Federation For Climbing And Mountaineering (Union Internationale des Associations d’Alpinisme (UIAA)), “…young children are not reliable reporters of symptoms, even when they can talk. In children under 3 years of age, travel to any new environment may result in alterations of sleep, appetite, activity, and mood. Some older children, particularly those in the age range 3 – 8 years old, and children with learning or communication difficulties may also be poor at describing their symptoms, making altitude illness difficult to recognize. In children 8 years and older, it is assumed that altitude illness will present in much the same way as it does in adults.”
I am obviously not an expert in this topic so I recommend that you listen to the podcast episode that Children’s Hospital Colorado did on how children deal with high altitudes
I would also recommend the following resources below to get you more informed the effects of altitude on children
- Travel to High Altitude with Young Children: An Approach for Clinicians (PDF from the Journal of High Altitude Medicine & Biology)
- Children in the mountains (US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health)
Requirements for Children Under 10 to be allowed to climb Kilimanjaro
From what I have gathered, for a child under the age of 10 to be allowed to climb Kilimanjaro, the following conditions need to be met.
- The child must be accompanied by the parents or official guardians.
- The child and parent have significant experience with multi-day trekking
- The child must have had experience with high altitude in the past and must not have presented symptoms of altitude sickness
- The parent needs to have experience hiking in high altitude and is known to acclimatize well
How to climb Kilimanjaro with a child that is under 10 Years Old
If your child is under the restricted age, you will need to start communicating with The Kilimanjaro National Park Authorities at least a year ahead of your climb.
In my research, I found that Ultimate Kilimanjaro (one of the leading climbing companies on Kilimanjaro) have a bit of experience in taking young children up the mountain. I would recommend first contacting them and telling them about your situation.
They should be able to give you the steps you need to take and probably facilitate the whole process.
What kind of training is needed for children preparing for Kilimanjaro
As mentioned earlier in the requirements and expectations for a child to be allowed to climb Kilimanjaro, the best way to prepare for an ascent of Kilimanjaro with your child will be to do a lot of hiking and trekking and preferably in high altitudes.
This will allow you to simulate similar environments to what you expect to find on Kilimanjaro and prepare your bodies for the challenge.
Doing a lot of hikes will also help you and your child figure out if you like hiking and if you will enjoy the entire experience.
What company should you use when climbing Kilimanjaro as a minor
As mentioned earlier, I would recommend Ultimate Kilimanjaro for the climb with your child. Based on the research I have done on them, it looks like they have lots of experience with this and would be able to give good guidance. They also seem to take the safety of their climbers really seriously and this will be an essential factor for you if you are planning to go with your child to Kilimanjaro.
The fitness level of the parent is critical too
As a parent, you will need to have a high level of fitness when climbing Kilimanjaro. Remember that you may have to carry your child for some portions of the trip and this means that you need to be very physically fit to carry your own day pack, and your child.
This means that you need to have a higher level of fitness than the average climber.
Things to consider when climbing Kilimanjaro with your child
- Fatigue: Summiting Kilimanjaro will take at least 7 days. You will need to have a plan to deal with fatigue and exhaustion both for you and your child.
- Mountain sickness: Affecting nearly half of the people that climb Kilimanjaro, you need to know how your body and that of your child is affected by high altitude before deciding to go to Kilimanjaro. There are no easy emergency evacuation methods for climbers so you need to be sure before you come that you will not develop complications with altitude sickness.
- Visit a pediatrician before climbing: It will be wise to visit a pediatrician before going to Kilimanjaro. You will get advice from a professional that is personalized for you and fits your unique needs.
- Route choice: Consult the climbing company you will use about route choice. Some routes are more technical than others and they all have different rates of success with reaching the summit.
Can I be too old for Kilimanjaro
Climbing Kilimanjaro as an older person is possible but will depend on your fitness levels.
The oldest person on record to have reached the summit of Kilimanjaro is Anne Lorimor who completed her climb at the age of 89.
Kilimanjaro is a challenging multi-day walk that will be difficult to do at any age. Preparing adequately ahead of time with training meant to create endurance will be critical for a successful climb.
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