Mongolia In Depth

Thanks for choosing us as your service provider in Mongolia. Today at the agreed time, our driver will wait for you at the Ulaanbaatar Airport and then transfer you to the nice and clean hotel in downtown.

During the rest of the day, the guide will escort you to visit some highlights in Ulaanbaatar downtown. The first one will be Sukhbaatar Square, where important political and cultural events are held. Surrounding it, stand State Parliament House, Palace of Culture, and State Opera and Ballet Theatre, etc. Then visit Museum of Mongolian National History to get a deeper understanding of Mongolian history and culture. To welcome you, we specially arrange an extraordinary Mongolian traditional music and dance show with throating singing for you in the evening.

What Should I Do If I Need a Sim Card?
The sim card can be bought with your passport at the airport upon your arrival, or it can be bought at some shops under the help of the guide. Unitel is the best choice. Generally, a package with 10GB flow at the cost of USD10 is valid for 7 days, and there are some others options such as 20GB with validity of 30 days cost about USD20. The signal in the cities big tourist sites are good, but don't expect too much on mountainous or remote roads.

Meals: Dinner

Accommodation: Ramada Hotel (4 stars)

The first sightseeing stop of this 18 days escorted Mongolia tour will be Baga Gazriin Chuluu, a big area of astonishing granite formations located in the central steppe. After breakfast, our experienced guide will escort you there by a private car. It will take about 5 hours on the way, during which you can learn some local customs from the guide, or appreciate the unique landscape outside the window. Feel free to ask for some photo stops. On arrival, check into a ger and have a short rest. In the afternoon, the guide will accompany you to explore the rock maze. There are also ancient inscriptions on the rocks and rare wild lives to see such as marmots, and wild mountain goats.

What Does a Ger Camp Look Like?
Gers, known as yurts, are actually movable hotels. They are always located at the best viewing places, providing the authentic traditional food and western-style buffet, offering tourists a real taste of Mongolian culture and adventure. Ger camps in popular destinations like central and southern Mongolia are equipped with private bathrooms, which are always we arranged for clients. But in some remote areas, only shared bathrooms available, this may be inconvenient but it is part of the adventure that worth to experience the real Mongolia.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Erdene Ukhaa Tourist Camp

This morning after breakfast, we will set out for Tsagaan Suvarga, another natural wonder in Mongolia. It will also take about 5 hours to get there. You could enjoy the extraordinary landscape of Gobi Desert on the way. On arrival, we'll check in the tourist camp and have lunch before exploring Tsagaan Suvarga. It is a canyon full of colorful rock formations eroded into various shapes by wind year after year. It is locally known as "white stupa", because the rock formations just look like so from a certain angle.

How Long Do We Need to Stay on the Road Every Day?
It depends on the destinations on the day, generally, the driving each day takes about 3-6 hours (100-290km/ 62-180 miles) from one to next destination. Moreover, 80% of the road is countryside road, thus the driving time is also influenced by weather condition. But we can always take breaks along the road for photographs, toilets, stretch and meet with local nomads.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Tsagaan Suvarga Tourist Camp

Yolyn Am, or Eagle Valley or Yol Valley, is a narrow and deep gorge in the middle of the Gobi Desert. What makes it worth visiting is that the surrounding mountains are home to various endemic plants and rare animals such as argali, ibex, and bearded vultures. Besides, some parts of the valley are covered by ice almost throughout the year. On arrival from Tsagaan Suvarga by car, the guide will escort you to enjoy a hiking and photographing trip in the scenic valley.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Juulchin Khanbogd Tourist Camp

Today, we will visit one of the largest sandy areas in Mongolia, Khongor, with the length of 180 kilometers (110 miles) and width of 3-5 kilometers (2-3 miles). At northern border of the dunes, there is a small river flowing alongside the Seruun Bulag Oasis covered with green and luxuriant vegetation. Getting there, we will firstly visit a local herdsman’s camp, ride a camel to venture into the sand dunes, enjoy an excursion to the oasis and then climb up to the top of one high sand dune to fully appreciate the magnificent desert landscape.

The Stuff Offered When Visiting a Family
The host are always happy if some tourists visit his ger or yurts, one is the Mongols themselves are very hospitable, what’s more, the visit of tourists can increase their income. When stepping into the ger, the hostess serves visitors some hand-make dairy foods, as well as the warming drink, the suutei tsai, known as the milk tea. Suutei tsai is loved by Mongolian people, since there was a lack of vegetables on the grassland for generations, while suutei tsai can supplement the vitamins needed by the body perfectly. And the herdsman treat guests with milk tea to show their respect. Talking with the hosts is the best way to learn the herdsmen’s life style.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Gobi Erdene Tourist Camp

After breakfast, we will drive 4 hours to Bayanzag, popularly known as Flaming Cliffs. It was named so because the cliffs here glow with a stunning fiery red light, especially at sunset. In addition, being a dwelling of dinosaurs 65 – 100 million years ago, many fossils of dinosaurs have been found here, including dinosaur eggs. Actually, it is right here that dinosaur eggs were discovered and known to the world for the first time.

Can I Find a Dinosaur Fossil in Bayanzag?
In 1922, on this Gobi Plain land where full of Haloxylon ammodendron, American scientists first discovered dinosaur fossils dating back 70 to 80 million years. Many Neolithic stone tools were also unearthed here. This is the cradle of world-renowned ancient humans and organisms. On the red land, low green shrubs grow tenaciously,and Gobi presents a rare beauty and brilliance under the blue sky. Our tour guide will show you around this area and leave you enough time to explore it. Why not try your luck?

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Mongol Gobi Tourist Camp

We will spend the morning, about 4 hours traveling to Ongi Steppe by car. After settling down in the ger and having lunch on arrival, the guide will lead you to go for a walk along Ongi River and then visit the Ongi Monastery alongside. It was once one of the largest and most important monasteries of Mongolia with nearly 30 temples and over 1,000 monks. Unfortunately, it was destroyed in 1939 during the anti-religious purges. Now a temple and a museum have been rebuilt beside the ruins. After the guided sightseeing, you are free to explore the ruins in depth on your own during the rest of the day.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Ongi Secret Tourist Camp

Today will be a highlight of this Mongolia tour, as we will visit the first UNESCO World Culture Heritage of the country, Orkhon Valley Cultural Landscape. To be specific, we will visit two representative sites of that culture heritage, Karakorum and Erdene Zuu Monastery. It will take us about 5 hours to drive there from Ongi Monastery. 

Karakorum was established as the capital of Mongol Empire by Genghis Khan in 1220 and later grew into a world-class metropolis in the successive 200 years or so, consisting of outer city and palace city. Based on the ruins, we can see that it is in irregular rectangle with the southern and northern walls measuring 1,500 meters (1,640 yards) and eastern and western walls 580 - 1,120 meters (635 - 1,225 yards). A museum has been built beside the ruins to tell the history of the ancient city and life stories of Genghis Khan. Erdene Zuu Monastery was built not far away in 16th century after the fall of Karakorum. It is probably the oldest Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. Currently, it mainly consists of three temples and outer walls, on which 108 white stupas stand with a distance of about 15 meters (16.5 yards) one from another.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Munkh Tenger Tourist Camp

On the 9th day in Mongolia, we will firstly visit Tsetserleg. It is one of the greenest cities in the country, surrounded by mountains on four sides with Tamir River flowing through. Next, head for Taikar Chuluu, a 66-feet high cliff of granite engraved with different writings dating from the 6th century. The last stop of today will be Khorgo Extinct Volcano inside Terkh White Lake National Park. The last eruption of the volcano was about 8,000 years ago. Its slope is covered with basalt and its crater is 200 meters (656 feet) in diameter and 80 meters (262 feet) in depth. After coming down from the crater, we will set out for the camp near Terkh White Lake and stay overnight there.

What Kind of Road Do We Travel On?
During the main sightseeing spots in Mongolia, the 20% of the roads are paved roads, while the rest are all countryside roads. Thus, a full-escorted itinerary is needed in Mongolia, since traveling on roads without obvious signs can easily get lost, but visitors will have a worry-free vacation with help with our professional guide and driver.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Maikhan Tolgoi Tourist Camp

This whole day will be left for you to explore the scenic Terkh White Lake National Park on your own. Embraced by serval extinct volcanoes, Terkh White Lake is one of the most beautiful lakes in Mongolia, and an ideal place for hiking, horse riding, fishing and swimming. In the evening, the guide will accompany you to visit a local family and learn about their daily life. 

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Maikhan Tolgoi Tourist Camp

After breakfast, we'll drive through the vast steppe to northern Mongolia. Around noon, park at Jargal Jiguur Tourist camp to have lunch and then take a short break at Jargalant Hot Springs. After, keep driving north till reaching Ulziit Khishig Tourist Camp to stay overnight. Today’s trip on the vast grassland will must be a unique experience in your life. When passing by the scenic spots en route, just ask the driver to make stops and enrich this trip. 

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Ulziit Khishig Tourist Camp

Our final destination today will be Khovsgol Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Mongolia. On the way we will have lunch at the small town Murun, and then drive 2 hours to Khatgal Village where the guide will accompany you to visit its bazaar, port and observe locals’ life. Khovsgol is the home to many deer herders and we will visit a deer herder’s home to learn their traditions and lifestyle, before checking into the camp by the Khovsgol Lake for overnight stay.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Khuvsgul Eco Tour Camp Tourist Camp

Khovsgol Lake National Park is a great place for horse riding. This morning, you will be given some elementary instructions about horse riding and then the guide will escort you to appreciate the landscape of the park on horseback. This afternoon will be left for your own plan. You may go to climb the nearby mountains, take a stroll by the lake and take some great photos.

Something about Mongolian Navy
In 1930, Mongolia formed a navy aiming to defend the oil transportation on Lake Khovsgol. Later, this action is stopped in order to protect the environment. Since 2001, an old Russian tugboat named the Sukhbator has been put into use, equipped with seven crew members, for the shipping industry on Lake Khovsgol. The ship can sail along the Selenga River to Lake Baikal and then to the Arctic Ocean. Timber, livestock products, furs, coal, and minerals produced in Mongolia can be transported to Russia through this route and back with industrial materials. The Mongolian Navy did not engage in any military operations except for transporting goods. You may come across one of the members during your stay around Lake Khovsgol.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Accommodation: Khuvsgul Eco Tour Camp Tourist Camp

This morning, the guide will send you to the airport in Murun Town, for you to take the plane back to Ulaanbaatar. If time permits, visit Uushig Ancient Deer Stone Monument on the way. Once you arrive at Ulaanbaatar airport, please connect your flight to next destination by yourself. Our service in Mongolia will end there. Hope we can serve you in the near future in other destinations!

Meals: Breakfast