Choose a Challenge レビュー 

Whilst we had an amazing Kilimanjaro trek, this was at no cost of CAC! The amount of money each of us paid to the company, we feel they have completely taken advantage of us as students, leaving us all wondering where our money has gone. We were informed that 100% of the money fundraised would be given straight MRF, later learning in their small print terms and conditions that its actually only 50%. The hidden costs that aren’t explicitly talked about such as kit and necessary jabs adds up to a further £1K on top of everything else. Following our missed connecting flight to Tanzania, CAC were impossible to contact and we were left unsure of our plan while in the airport for hours. We had to begin our trek after 48 hours of travelling and without a nights sleep in Moshi (which we had all paid for and not reimbursed) and minimal time to prepare. After one of the participants fainted, we received no medical checks as promised. Due to the rushed start of the trek, we were playing catch up the entire week, leading to absolute exhaustion and zero acclimatisation. This led to multiple health problems later on from participants that would have otherwise summited with no problems whatsoever. I understand we were one of many flights affected however CAC should have prepared default plans incase this happens, rather than storming ahead with unsafe plans. On top of this, we were only given a 1.5hr window in between our connecting flight which is ridiculous, when CAC explicitly told us to be at the airport 3hrs ahead of schedule incase of delays. So why is the connection time less than this? On summit night, we were only given maximum 1.5hrs sleep before setting off for a 14hr walk. This meant most of us suffered extreme fatigue and exhaustion and 30% of our group did not make it to the peak, while the success rate for our route is 97%. Regardless of the fact “everyone still got a shot at the summit”, it was in complete unsafe conditions. Three of the fittest members of the group suffered severe exhaustion and feel very let down by this. The representative for choose a challenge in Tanzania gave zero communication, was unenthusiastic, unprofessional, and unhelpful. I absolutely loved our Kilimanjaro trek but only because the group, porters, and guides made it enjoyable. Just raise some money for charity and book your own trip.

We had such a great time climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. The porters and guide company that were organised for us were incredible and the hardest working, happiest individuals which made the experience even more incredible.
The hotels are incredible and Harry has been more than helpful with any and every request from our group and went well out of his way in Zanzibar to organise an incredible night up for the whole group and showed us round local shops in Moshi, offered to take and organise a taxi with anyone who needed to go to an ATM without being asked. He made sure all parties were looked after at all times at all hours of the day. I had a great trip!

Great experience! Harry was the best!! Great hospitality couldn’t have done a better job.

Very disappointed with choose a challenge. The company takes advantage of students trying to raise money for charity. We had an amazing Kilimanjaro trek, but this was all due to the guides and porters who supported us, while choose a challenge lacked communication, organisation and care. Following our missed connecting flight to Tanzania, choose a challenge were difficult to contact and we were left unsure of our plan while in the airport for hours. They delayed informing us of how our itinerary would change, and we had to begin our trek following over 48 hours of travelling without a night to sleep in Tanzania and with minimal time to prepare, repack our bags etc. We received no medical checks as promised, after a member of our group fainted on the plane. The choose a challenge itinerary meant that we were only given an hour and a half to sleep before beginning the summit night trek, with many of us not sleeping at all. Unfortunately this meant most of us suffered extreme fatigue and exhaustion while summiting and more of our group than expected did not make it to the peak - around 25%, while the success rate is usually 97% for this route. The representative for choose a challenge in Tanzania hardly gave any communication, was unenthusiastic and unhelpful. It was unclear how ethically the porters and guides were treated as many seemed to have insufficient trekking clothing. There were also many hidden costs that choose a challenge did not make clear until later points. Many of us have been left wondering where a lot of our money has gone. I absolutely loved our Kilimanjaro trek but would not recommend the company to anyone.

Where do I start….

I joined the Kilimanjaro trek in 2022 as a fresher who wanted to try something unforgettable. The initial fee was £425 and I was reassured that fundraising £3,990 is very possible. Over time I realized that it would not be feasible to fundraise this large amount. MRF run events that cost money to participate in and unless you were given a good station fundraising often meant you spent more money on transport and food than you even managed to fundraise. When I couldn’t fundraise the amount I was forced to defer which was a £200 fee. Not to mention losing the deposit for Zanzibar which was £95! I was then offered the role of the challenge leader for half price fundraising. However, due to inflation I now had to fundraise in line with inflation which meant it went up significantly by £600. I worked hard to gain sign ups and recruit others to climb kili with me.

Having gone on the trip I found out that other challenge leaders were given half price registration fee and other perks meanwhile I had already given so much to choose a challenge. Then, I was charged a huge sum of £318 as apparently I didn’t request flights when the previous year I had flights included. This was awfully managed and a huge sum to land on a student. Everything was made out to be my fault.

Then comes the trip, the hidden costs that aren’t explicitly talked about. The cost of kit and necessary jabs added up to around £1000 on top of everything. As well as this to get 300 dollars emergency money out. This trip is advertised to students but yet it’s a huge cost.

As the challenge leader I took on the role of signing everyone in. Another issue with choose a challenge is they booked a flight with only 1 hour and 30 mins between the second flight. Delays are common and on this occasion there were issues with British airspace. Eventually we get onto the plane and one of the participants on the trip faints. This is then my responsibility. A lot of responsibility was put on to me, as an unpaid individual. I called choose a challenge and they reassured me that the participant that fainted would have a medical check before trekking. This never happened. Due to the delay we then had to spend 24 hours in Istanbul, I had to organize a group of 28 people and ensure all the hotel rooms and food vouchers were sorted. Again unpaid responsibility. This lead us to be 24 hours behind the original schedule. Choose a challenge did not change our itenary, instead we were rushed off the plane onto a 9 hour coach to moshi. Where we had no time to acclimatize and instead get ready to trek that day. Choose a challenge did not communicate with us effectively. Having to rush up the mountain led to a lot of health problems later on. We had no sleep and started trekking through the night. This led me to be violently sick. Throughout the trek we were on catch up.

Summit night was the worst of all, by this point two participants had to descend the mountain due to health risks. We ate dinner at 8pm and summit began at 10:30pm. This was at no fault of the guides and porters as they were not allowed to extend the challenge due to choose a challenge. This meant climbing with no sleep leading to exhaustion and fatigue. Many did not make it. Overall 8 out of 31 didn’t make it. I believe if we had been given another day to acclimatize and rest more of us would have succeeded. Participants felt let down by this.

Lastly, the porters and Tanzania representatives were outstanding and were the reason Kilimanjaro was still a success for 23 of us. However, it was felt that the porters were not given sufficient clothing and clothes for the trek. It was unclear whether they were paid fairly as we were encouraged to tip high. I was happy to do this along with a lot of others however it made us question the wage that they received from choose a challenge.

Choose a challenge targets students and charges a huge amount, they are not transparent in their fees and costs. Questions must be raised over whether they ethically pay their staff and ensure that they have the right equipment and clothes. I will never recommend choose a challenge. Book your own trip!

I had an incredible time on my recent Kilimanjaro trip.

Choose a Challenge were really helpful with how to prepare and the support from Harry during the flight there and at the hotel was smooth.

The local guides were amazing and couldn’t do enough to support the team to the summit.

I would highly recommend a trip with Choose a Challenge

The trek was an incredible experience and one I would recommend to anyone. Information packs were clear and sent at convenient times. Harry was always available back at the hotel if we had any problems!

I have been a challenge leader at chooseachallenge for 2 years now and both trips I've done (Kilimanjaro and Colombia) have been unforgettable! Have felt very well taken care of and gotten to do things most tourists haven't been able to thanks to chooseachallenge's connections with the local communities. Another positive is that it's certified B corp etc, highly recommend especially if you're a student!

The most amazing thought out experience. From the very start there was support with any questions asked. Everything is so thought through for the whole trip from flights to dietary requirements. Doing the Morocco challenge was life changing, meeting so many new people and becoming such close group, so much so all 5 of us have decided to continue our journey with choose a challenge and become leaders for next year. Couldn’t reccomend enough.

Fun trip, good people :) ~J

Incredibly rewarding experience! Had an amazing time trekking in Morocco! Arrived at the airport without knowing anyone and left the trip with friends I felt like I have know for years. Very well ran trip which felt safe and organised. Amazing views, food and local guides. Would highly recommend choose a challenge!

The trip was the best thing i’ve done. I met some incredible people doing it. Everything was well organised and the guides were knowledgable and funny.

The Morocco trek was very well organised - all details about the trek were well communicated by choose a challenge and the entire trek experience went very smoothly. During the trip, we were always taken care of by a cohort of amazing guides, as well as a choose a challenge representative, which made the experience feel that much more secure and allowed for creating incredible lifelong memories.

My daughter was in the Atlas hiking trip, organised by Choose Challenge London with some of her colleagues and friends from the university. Everything was very well organised, we have received all the information enough in advance to have time to get prepared, all instructions were clear as well. The trip went very well and she was so happy about it and it was a life changing experience. Such an experience offers you the opportunity to see the life with different eyes and be more responsible. Also, she made a lot of friends and I am very happy about that as well because they are all ambitious and determined in everything they want to do in their life.

Everything was organised perfectly which made the experience super easy and accessible. The guides and staff were all excellent. The trip was everything I hoped it would be and doing it through Choose a challenge made it all the more memorable doing it with a large likeminded group!

An overall really well run trip with amazing food, people, guides and more. Always felt safe and in the right hands. Would highly recommend choose a challenge for an unforgettable experience.

Mike was such a great challenge leader! Really funny guy and super friendly :) I loved every bit of the challenge and would definitely recommend it to anyone!

Challenge succeeded, was a great opportunity to complete an event (3 peaks) that I've wanted to do, in the name of a good cause and amongst some amazing people. Mike and Rhiannon were great leads, providing support and motivation throughout, and the guides were great. Overall this was well worth the effort and would do it all over again.
Big up Mike for the bus music taste.

The reps Mike and Rhiannon totally made the challenge a lot more worth it and appreciated the feet of the challenge we were all doing while having the best possible team experience. Also the music choices by MC Mike on the first days trips were undisputed.

Was a fun experience