I’ve put a year into this one, y’all. I. Am. Exhausted.

Will it be worth it? My goodness I hope so.

This trip came about when I mixed a dream of hiking Kilimanjaro before I’m 30 with finding a $650 roundtrip flight to Johannesburg. As I fixed the timing of the trip, I enrolled my brother and MBA friend to come with me.

Suddenly I’m looking at day safaris, Victoria Falls, how to pet giraffes, and cage diving with sharks. Flights were booked, changed, and changed again. Love made me fat and got me off track on my Kilimanjaro training. It took a ton of research and scheduling to cram 6 countries into the trip, and I ended up having to break my own rules. I’ll be taking closer to 11 or 12 days out of office… though I did make sure to book over President’s Day holiday.

So a few tips:

• Start with a timeframe
• Prioritize activities
• Determine whether or not a multi-city flight pattern is the better way to go (we screwed up! Ended up having to switch a flight to Nairobi and paid change fees. Otherwise, SO worth it)
• VISAS: I decided to get the Kenya and Tanzania visas up front since I live in DC and didn’t want to carry $150 in cash. Also saves time at the airport. Kenya has an e-visa that takes 2 business days, and Tanzania requires a photo so it’s worth taking care of. You CAN get these upon arrival, it just takes longer.
• Allow some time to recover from jet lag. In hindsight, going from 30 hours of flying to hiking Kilimanjaro was a horrible idea. Changing flights to a day earlier and allowing for recovery in Nairobi was the best decision ever!
• Spread costs over a long period of time
• Book excursions online with credit card as much as possible beforehand to limit the amount of cash you have to bring. We also screwed up in terms of how we pay for Kilimanjaro. READ FINE PRINT! There is a 4% charge for credit card if you pay 2 weeks before the trek, but otherwise cash only. So much cash. burning a hole in my wallet kind of cash.
• Talk to someone of your gender who has done the exact trip you’re about to do
• Buy altitude sickness pills after you arrive in Africa to save money
• If you’re a girl you may want a Freshette or she-wee to pee standing up on Kilimanjaro
• Luckily, BA and Kenya Airways allow 2 free checked bags. So we’re accruing and using miles where we can and saving on baggage fees.
• Tribe Hotel in Nairobi is an SPG hotel and we were able to use points to book it for free!
• Several restaurants require advance reservations and deposits. Research and book early!

We are now here and after our first day this trip finally feels real! We keep forgetting we are in Kenya. More to come soon…

Shaye