Climb Pico De Orizaba: 18,491’ (5,636 m)
Pico de Orizaba, also known as Citlaltépetl, is the third-highest peak in North America and the highest volcano on the continent. The Náhuatl or Aztecan name means “Star Mountain,” as the peak’s glacier-capped summit can be seen from miles away across the Mexican countryside.
The Perfect Introduction to High-Altitude Mountaineering
Mountain Trip has been guiding high-altitude peaks around the world since 1973, including Mount Everest, Denali, Aconcagua and Kilimanjaro. Our guides know that to be successful on the highest mountains, it’s important to build experience at increasingly higher elevations to learn how our bodies react to thin air.
After climbing the 14,000-foot peaks of Colorado, we recommend Pico de Orizaba to all climbers who are interested in reaching higher elevations, like those encountered while climbing the Seven Summits. “Pico” is a great introduction to high-altitude mountaineering because of it’s relatively short expedition length (8 days), only two nights spent in tents (while the rest are spent in hotels or lodges), and limited glacier travel.
Unique Cultural Experiences and Beginner-Friendly Climbing
Our expedition begins in Mexico City at 7,300 feet above sea level. Over the next few days, we’ll visit ancient Aztec cities and make acclimatization climbs of other peaks and volcanos, all the while staying in lodges, eating great food, and enjoying the warm Mexican culture. Finally, we’ll embark on a two-night, three-day summit push up the Jamapa Glacier Route on the north side of Pico de Orizaba.
Check out this Trip Report from our most recent Pico de Orizaba expedition in March 2025 for an idea of what to expect.
Your Guides
Mountain Trip guides have experience climbing high-altitude peaks all over the world, in addition to alpine guide training and certification through the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA). Mountain Trip is an AMGA accredited guide service, meaning our guides and risk management protocols have been vetted by the industry’s governing body. In addition to your Mountain Trip lead guide, your trip will have support from local guides and porters.
Contact Us with Questions or Private Trip Inquiries
If you have questions, or would like to customize this itinerary to meet your group’s wishes, from luxury accommodation to longer trips. please contact the Mountain Trip office at [email protected] or (970) 369-1153.
Day 1: Mexico City
Your guides will meet you at your hotel in Mexico City (7,349′). We’ll spend this day acclimatizing by exploring some of the capital’s amazing sights before enjoying a welcome dinner together.
Day 2: Climb Cerro San Miguel
After breakfast, we’ll take a day trip to the Desierto de los Leones National Park, a protected biosphere entirely within Mexico City. We’ll climb Cerro San Miguel (12,316 ft/3,754 m) to continue our acclimatization. The views of Mexico City and it’s nearby volcanoes from the summit are stunning. After our climb, we’ll return to Mexico City for the night. This day usually takes about 5 hours and covers 5 miles (8 km) and 1,700 ft (500 m) of elevation gain.
Day 3: Travel from Mexico City to Malinche
Today, we’ll say goodbye to the city and visit the ancient pre-Hispanic city of Teotihuacan, which was the largest pre-colonial city in the Americas. This World Heritage site is home to some massive pyramids, which we’ll explore. After lunch, we’ll make our way to Malinche, the gateway to our next acclimatization climb.
Day 4: Climb Volcán La Malinche
Volcán La Malinche is named for a princess who helped Hernán Cortés during his conquest of the Aztec empire. Eventually spurned by the conquistador, legend has it that she retreated to the mountain. Our goal for the day is to climb this 14,635-foot (4,461 m) peak to continue acclimatizing. This climb requires an early start and 8 hours of hiking over 9 miles (14.5 km) and 4,500 ft (1,300 m) of elevation gain, round trip. After a late lunch, we’ll head to San Miguel Zoapan to stay at a climbers lodge for the night.
Day 5: Travel to Base Camp, Refugio Piedra Grande
After a sumptuous breakfast, we’ll depart San Miguel Zoapan, using 4WD vehicles for the rough track to the Refugio Piedra Grande (13,877 ft/4,320 m). We’ll arrive around mid-day and take a short acclimatization hike to around 15,000 ft (4,600 m) to prepare for the coming summit climb. We’ll spend the night camped in tents near the refugio.
Day 6: Move to High Camp
We’ll pack up camp and climb for about three hours to the site of our High Camp at 15,748 ft (4,800 m). After reviewing our plan for summit day, we’ll get to bed early in anticipation of an alpine start for the summit of Pico de Orizaba.
Day 7: Pico De Orizaba Summit Day
We’ll start around 3 a.m. and climb on gentle snow slopes up a glacier for about 6 hours to the summit of Pico de Orizaba (Citlaltépetl) at 18,491 ft (5,636 m). After taking in the views from the highest point in Mexico and third-highest point in North America, we’ll descend for about 4 hours to the trailhead and drive to San Miguel Zoapan, where we’ll spend the night and celebrate our climb with a local feast.
Day 8: Return to Mexico City and Departure
After breakfast, we’ll depart for Mexico City and the airport, arriving around mid-day. Your flight home should depart no earlier than 3 p.m. What a trip!
Inclusions and Exclusions for Pico de Orizaba
Included in the Expedition Fee:
• Unlimited pre-trip access to our office staff to best prepare you for the climb.
• Guidance of our Mountain Trip guides, supported by local guides and staff.
• All lodging for the days as described on the itinerary.
• All meals while on the mountain.
• Welcome dinner in Mexico City and some meals as provided by the lodges.
• Ground transportation as described in the itinerary.
• Group camping and mountaineering equipment.
• Porter support for group gear to High Camp. (Additional porter support for your personal gear is available for an additional cost upon request.)
• National Parks entrance fee.
Not Included in the Expedition Fee:
• Personal clothing and equipment (an equipment list will be provided).
• Additional lodging or extra days beyond the itinerary.
• Meals while not on the mountain beyond the “Welcome Dinner” and meals provided at the lodges/hotels.
• Travel and/or rescue insurance. Recommended for everyone!
• Costs incurred due to evacuation or unplanned departure from the trip due to illness, other problems or
your own choice. Cost may include, but is not limited to additional lodging, shipping costs to return
equipment, transportation.
• Costs incurred because of delays beyond our control (weather, force majeure, etc.).
• Guide/staff gratuity.
Refunds and Cancellations
Mountain Trip recognizes how difficult and disappointing it can be for climbers who must cancel expeditions which they have planned for a long time. Team members must also recognize that, due to the nature of planning expeditions and dealing with governmental permits and regulations, Mountain Trip also accrues significant expenses in the months prior to expedition departure dates. We must therefore adhere to a strict refund policy for all climbers. Trip cancellation and travel insurance is generally available for all expeditions. U.S. and Canadian residents should contact us for more information regarding travel insurance. Our refund and cancellation policy is outlined below.
- All expeditions require a deposit to secure a spot on the team. Your submission of a deposit constitutes your acceptance of this Fee Schedule, Refund and Cancellation Policy.
- All deposits for Pico De Orizaba include a non-refundable $1,500 administration fee (We highly recommend that you consider Trip Cancellation Insurance to protect the administration fee, if not the entire cost of your climb.)
- Final payments for expeditions must be received 120 days prior to the Team Meeting Day.
- Failure to pay expedition fees by the date they are due constitutes cancellation of your spot on the team and forfeiture of your deposit.
- Any cancellation 120+ days before your Team Meeting Day will be refunded in full, less the administration fee.
- If you cancel 120-90 days before your Team Meeting Day, you are eligible for a refund of 50% of any monies paid, less the deposit.
- No refunds will be provided for cancellations occurring within the last 89 days prior to an expedition.
- All requests for refunds must be made in writing and received in our Colorado office.
- If you register for a climb within 90 days of the Team Meeting Day, expedition fees will be due in full to secure your spot on the team.
- No refunds will be given for unused hotel bookings due to schedule changes, late arrivals, etc.
Mountain Trip reserves the right to cancel an expedition prior to the departure date for any reason. In the event that the expedition is cancelled based solely on an internal administrative decision by Mountain Trip (Internal Cancellation), all monies, except for nonrefundable administrative fees, collected by Mountain Trip from team members for the canceled expedition shall be refunded within 30 days. That is the extent of our financial liability for such cancellations. This Internal Cancellation provision shall not apply when external factors that force Mountain Trip to cancel an expedition against its will, including, but not limited to international political upheaval, terrorism, drought/famine, epidemics/pandemics, and/or cancellations imposed by foreign or domestic governments or permitting agencies (External Cancellation). All External Cancellations shall not be subject to a refund unless such cancellation occurs prior to the deadlines set forth in the Refund and Cancellation policies stated above.
General Agreement Concerning Services to be Provided and Responsibilities of Team Members
When registering for an expedition with Mountain Trip, we want to help make sure you understand the services we are providing and the services you are responsible for.
Transportation is Incidental
The main purpose of becoming a team member is to join us on an expedition in the mountains. As such, any transportation we provide or that you may contract for on your own is incidental to the trip. We suggest that you make sure you have time built into your itinerary for delays.
Transportation to and from your Destination
We will designate a specific Team Meeting Day for your expedition. Transportation to the meeting point on your Team Meeting Day is to be provided by you. You must arrive in time to be ready to participate in a team meeting at the appointed time on the Team Meeting Day for your expedition. This probably means you will need to arrive the day before, as our Team Meetings for Pico De Orizaba are held in the morning. Expedition climbing is very dynamic and we will provide you with a recommendation as to when you should book your flights to and from your destination. We suggest you book a ticket that allows you to change your flight with little effort or cost.
Lodging off the Mountain
Mountain Trip will provide lodging per the Inclusions and Exclusions section of the “What’s Included?” tab. Any additional lodging is your responsibility.
Responsibilities of Team Members
You are ultimately responsible for your own well-being, including making all necessary preparations to ensure good health and physical conditioning. You are responsible for understanding the conditions that may exist on the climb and choosing a climb that is appropriate for your abilities and interests. You are responsible for having knowledge of all pre-departure information and for assembling the appropriate clothing and equipment for your climb.
While on the expedition, team members are responsible to maintain basic levels of hygiene and to conduct themselves respectfully with other team members and members of the local population. If a guide feels that a team member is putting other members’ health or safety at risk, the guide has the discretion to remove a team member from a trip.
Use our office staff and your lead guide as pre-trip resources to ensure that all your questions are answered. Travel insurance may help recoup expenses if you need to leave your expedition due to an illness.
Airline Responsibility Passenger/Airline contracts are in effect while team members are on board any aircraft contracted for use in the expedition.
No Guaranteed Outcomes
While it is one of our goals to help every climber on every Mountain Trip expedition reach the summit, Mountain Trip cannot guarantee you will reach the summit. Any number of factors, including weather, conditions encountered on the route, your personal level of fitness or ability, the abilities of your teammate(s) or any number of other circumstances, might result in you and/or your team turning around before reaching the summit. Failure to reach the summit due to any reason associated with mountaineering, such as weather, team dynamics, route conditions, avalanche and rockfall hazard, or due to your lack of fitness or preparation, are not the responsibility of Mountain Trip, and will not result in a refund or a rescheduling of your expedition.
Equipment list coming soon! Please reach out to our office for a detailed list. – The Mountain Trip Team
