Altitude sickness on Kilimanjaro: what to know

2026-03-22 · Trekking

What it feels like, what helps, and the symptoms that end a climb.

Almost everyone feels something

Headache, poor sleep, a dulled appetite and breathlessness on gentle ground are normal above about 3,000 m. Mild acute mountain sickness is not dangerous in itself and usually settles as you adjust.

What actually helps

Ascending slowly, drinking three to four litres a day, eating even when you do not want to, and climbing high then sleeping low. Our guides check oxygen saturation and pulse twice a day, every day.

Diamox

Acetazolamide genuinely helps many people acclimatise. It is a prescription medicine with real side effects — tingling fingers, frequent urination, flat-tasting fizzy drinks. Discuss it with your own doctor well before you travel, and never start it for the first time on the mountain.

When we turn you around

Confusion, loss of coordination, breathlessness at rest or a cough with frothy sputum are signs of HACE or HAPE, and both are emergencies. The treatment is immediate descent. Our guides will make that call, and it is not negotiable — the mountain will still be there next year.