>>571950I had zero gear, no immunizations, etc before the trip so I spent about four and half grand over all.
$1800 to the company arranging the trip
$1600 airfare
$600 immunizations
$500 gear
If I were to do it again, I could probably get the airfare down to $1000 during the good months and the expenses in Tanzania to $1200 since I now have the immunizations and gear. When I did it I was very limited on when I could go by my job so I ended up with higher airfare and went with a company that operates out of Canada instead of trying to find a local company in Tanzania in order to avoid the hassle of organizing. The national park fee is something like $800 so that's the absolute minimum before paying for a guide (which is required), porters (also required by the government), food, etc. $1200 is what I've heard is pretty standard if you're already in Tanzania and find a local company on your own.
If you do it, I recommend taking the extra days on the mountain to acclimatize yourself to the altitude. It's nearly 20,000 at the summit and the low oxygen will screw with you. Think the shortest route has something like a 20% success rate because so many people get altitude sickness. The longer route is only a day or two (optional day in the Karanga Camp) and has a success rate in the eighty or ninety percent range. Saving a few dollars by trying to a shorter route is false economy.
