Hi,
looking into doing Kili next year but most American outfitters are really pricey. Would welcome anyone's suggestions, tips or addresses of local outfitters that won't charge an and a leg....
I did use a local outfitter for Nepal and it worked great, parts of me believe it is possible to do it on the *safe* but cheaper side.

Thanks

I climbed Kili in March. I received bids from 5 different guide services before going and ultimately choose mar tours and safaris(www.martoursandsafaris.com). Three of the other bids were higher than mar tours and safaris, and 1 was about the same cost.mar tours and safaris is the biggest guide service on Kili, and they have a very nice mountain gears. I was very happy with them.

I just returned 4 weeks ago from Tanzania, and we booked with a local agency called Tanzania Adventures. There website is here http://www.tanzania-adventure.com/. The lady to deal with is Corinne, she is fantastic!
Our itinerary was as follows:
Day 1-2: Rest at Moivaro Coffee Lodge
Day 3-9: 7 day climb of Kilimanjaro via Machame Route
Day 10-14: Safaris @ Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti + Lake Manyara with overnights @ Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge, Mapito Tented camp @ Ikoma, Northern Serengeti, Eunoto retreat lodge
Day 15-18:Zanzibar beach extension with overnights @ Matemwe Beach Village
Day 19: Stonetown tour w/spice tour with overnight @ Zanzibar Coffee House.
The trip was beyond our expectations, and everything was very well organized and on schedule. I cannot recommend them enough. I have to admit, we were a little apprehensive about booking with a local company, as we wired our money before we got there, but that was quickly put to rest upon arrival in Tanzania. Everything was meticulously planned and carried out by them, from airport transfers, to pickup dates/times, to keeping us informed as to who our guides were and when they would pick us up, even confirming our flights home which we booked back in Canada.
Our climb was subcontracted out to a German company called Elefant Tours http://www.elefant-tours.de/. Our guides were Frederick + Paul. The most amazing guides we could have asked for...great equipment, my wife rented her sleeping bag, she ended up with the identical bag I purchased and brought from home worth $300 from MEC...food was great, porters extremely friendly caring for our every need.
Every hotel/lodge we stayed in surpassed our expectations, all extremely clean, friendly and safe. I truly feel if I had booked with an agency back home, I wouldn't have ended up with the same level of accomodations and would have paid at least 25% more. Our trip turned into an experience of a lifetime, one which we still talk about daily.
Sorry if my post is rambling on, but if you need any further info, I will be more than happy to help you out. Will try to post some pictures of our accomodations a little later!

Check out Marangu Hotel
I used them this past May/June for a crater stay and will use them again, once my knee gets fixed up (hopefully same time of year in 09) they give 5star service for a 3 star price. i have no reservations about recommending them.

BootsnAll also rates Marangu Hotel pretty high.

I would recommend Kilitreks and Safaris. They provide a very good tour at a reasonable price. Communications prior to the trip were excellent and they were very concerned about our safety during the climb. Here's their website link: http://www.kilitreks-safaris.com/mountain-climbing.html

I've used serengeti pride safaris, they are very good and attentive.

www.serengetipridesafaris.com

I just returned last week and used MEM Tours. We did 2 days of safari and then the Lemosho route. Great staff, helpful service, and great guides - http://www.memtours.com/index.html

I climbed Kili in June with a great guide named Nixon who is actually starting his own company. He is very knowledgeable and friendly. We have kept in touch with him since our trip via e-mail. I would highly recommend him. His website is http://www.thenewadventure.com/tanzania/.

Did Nixon used to work for ZARA? We had a Nixon on ZARA that did a great job.

Nixon was a guide working for Tanzannature Tours but he said that he does work for many different outfitters. So it may have been him.

I have decided to use Bush Explores. One of their guides, Jacob, was a guide in the Imax film 'On the Roof of Africa'.