Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive in Ulaanbaatar

Your driver will greet you at the airport/railway station and transfer you to a centrally located hotel. Free day to relax and discover the city on your own while staying in a good location central hotel.

Accommodation: 3* hotel

Day 2: Tsagaan Suvarga colorful mud cliffs

Your guide and driver will meet you at the hotel at 8:30 AM and start the tour to the Tsagaan Suvarga cliffs in the Gobi desert. The area is one of the most famous attractions in the Gobi Desert, where all visitors wish their pictures taken among this colorful natural formation. Hiking down and up along the trails of the stupa-shaped colorful cliffs takes 1 to 1.5 hours.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 3: Gobi Gurban Saikhan Mountain National Park and hiking in Eagle Valley

The Gobi Gurban Saikhan means "Three beautiful mountains in the Gobi.” The Gobi Gurban Saikhan Mountain is a beautiful national park, rich in wildlife and scenic places. Among them, Yoliin Am/Bearded Eagle Valley is one of the picturesque valleys accessible by car. After our vehicle brings us to a designated parking area, we will walk through the resplendent valley into the depths of a sheer rock canyon, which accepts no sunlight. Therefore, it has ice until the end of June. The hiking continues for 2.5 to 3 hours for travel into the valley and back to the vehicle. Bearded Eagles, elusive wild sheep, and ibexes are indigenous to the valley.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 4: Khongor Sand Dunes, camel riding

Our journey will continue to Khongor, part of the Gobi Gurban Saikhan National Park. After reaching the sand dunes, you will hike along the green stream shore, climb sand dunes, visit a nomad family and ride two-humped camels for an hour. If you can climb one of the tallest sand dunes, spread the sand northwards against the wind to find out why locals call the sand dunes "Singing Sand.” The sunset/sunrise and the views are fantastic from the top of the sand dunes.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 5: Khavtsgait Rock Drawings and the Flaming Cliffs

Our adventure will continue on the northern side of the West Saikhan Mountain to explore the Khavtsgait Rock drawings, which date back to the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age. You will reach Khavtsgait rock drawing after 2 km of soft trekking in return ways. Afterward, the journey continues to the Flaming Cliffs, where American explorer Roy Chapman Andrews found the remains of dinosaurs, including the first dinosaur eggs ever discovered on earth. The cliffs are picturesque and photogenic at sunset.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 6: Bayanzag Saxual tree grove and driving to Ongi Monastery on the open steppes

7 km north of the Flaming Cliffs, you will see the Gobi desert tree grove covers a vast land. This endemic tree grows only in the Central Asian desert. Next, you drive through slate mountains, followed by 80 km of Ongi steppes heading to Ongi Monastery. Ongi Monastery was one of the seven biggest monasteries in Mongolia. There were two separate monasteries, consisted of more than 30 temples on the north and south shores of the Ongi River, surrounded by the Gobi Desert mountains; socialists destroyed the monastery in the 1930s. Now the ruins of the monasteries cover a large area. Visit a new active temple and a ger museum, explore the monastery ruins and climb a nearby mountain to see the panoramic views of the surrounding areas.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 7: Ulaantsutgalan Waterfall and the Orkhon Valley National Park

Our journey takes place in the transition zone from the Gobi Desert to the mountain steppes heading to Ulaantsutgalan waterfall. Ulaantsutgalan is the central Mongolian largest waterfall, which falls from 24 high lava cliffs. Arrive at the Orkhon River late afternoon. Spend the rest of the day seeing Ulaantsutgalan waterfall and hiking along the Orkhon River canyons.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 8: Hiking to Tovhon Monastery and Tsenkher Hot Spa

You will spend the day exploring the Orkhon River Valley and hiking to Tovhon Monastery. This small monastery was built on 2312 m rocky top of Shiveet Ulaan Mountain. Reaching the monastery will require 3 hours of soft hiking up and down the mountain, but not steep. The vista is incredible from the mountaintop. The journey continues along forested mountain tracks and arrives at Tsenkher valley in the evening.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 9: Arkhangai province, explore the nomadic life and try authentic Mongolian barbecue

This day begins with a short tour of Tsetserleg town of Arkhangai province, including the local market visit. Continue the journey to meet a yak-herding nomadic family and relish in an authentic Mongolian barbecue for lunch. Discover more about the traditional nomadic life of northern Mongolian nomads. Next, drive through the picturesque landscapes of Arkhangai with a stop at the Chuluut River canyon. Arrive at Khorgo Terkhiin Tsagaan National Park in the late afternoon.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 10: Explore Khorgo Terkhiin Tsagaan National Park

The Khorgo Terkhiin Tsagaan National Park was established to protect the spectacular mountain scenery and endangered species of its flora & fauna. There are several extinct volcanoes within the National Park area. The most spectacular and accessible is Khorgo Volcano. Astonishingly beautiful, clear water lake Terkhiin Tsagaan (known as Great White Lake) formed after lava flow from the volcanoes blocked the north and south water access from the Terkh River. The lake is renowned for its fish and birdlife, including the Ruddy Shellduck and Great Cormorant. Today, you climb the Khorgo Volcano, now extinct for nearly 8000 years. Its surrounding area has several caves and hideouts. That is why the volcano was named “Khorgo,” meaning shelter. This is not the only extinct volcano in the vicinity, but Khorgo is the youngest and most accessible among them. You will see thick basalt covering much of the National Park's territory. Climb the volcano on stairs and trails, and upon reaching the top, walk along the volcano rim with outstanding views of surrounding areas; a small village can be seen from the volcano, as well as a bird’s eye view of Terhkiin Tsagaan Lake. In the afternoon, travel to freshwater Lake Terkhiin Tsagaan.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 11: Kharkhorin and Erdenezuu Monastery in the Orkhon Valley

Kharkhorin, formerly known as the Karakorum, was once the capital of Genghis Khaan's Great Mongol Empire in the 13th century. After the move of the Mongolian capital to Beijing, and the fall of the Empire, Karakorum was abandoned and then destroyed in 1388. Today, in the vast valley of the Orkhon River, the awe-inspiring ancient monastery Erdenezuu coexists with Kharkhorin town. See some valuable religious items in the monastery museum and view its stunning architecture, followed by a visit to Kharakhorum Museum.

Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Day 12: Visit nomads, horse riding and return to Ulaanbaatar

Today is the last day you spend in the beautiful countryside of Mongolia. On your way to Ulaanbaatar, visit horse herding nomad family and ride horses. You also join the nomads for lunch. Arrive in Ulaanbaatar and transfer to your accommodation.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Tour Price

Background

It is a regular tour to explore the most exciting attractions and scenic places of the beautiful and unique Gobi Desert, central Mongolian hilly steppes, and the southern part of the mountainous and forested northern Mongolia. This itinerary includes 1.5 to 3 hours of daily soft trekking for 5 to 6 days. Traveling in Mongolia always requires long driving through changing landscapes, scenic views, and open steppes. Even though we tried to plan the trip to have as little driving as possible. An approximate day's driving will be 3-6 hours. The longest driving day is on Day 2 -approximately 7.5-8.5 hours, including a lunch stop. Then you will be in the Gobi Desert in the evening of the first day. The itinerary includes an hour of camel riding and 1-2 hours of horse riding with the support of your guide and local equestrians. The most challenging experience could be climbing high sand dunes in the Gobi Desert, which is not mandatory. You can enjoy the sand dunes and yourself while climbing one of the lower sand hills.

Tour meals are included as indicated in the itinerary. In the countryside, ger camps serve both European and Mongolian meals. Meat is the main ingredient for meals and is served for lunch and dinner with vegetables, salads, and soups. There will be more meat in traditional Mongolian meals. A typical breakfast is tea or coffee, bread, jam, butter, eggs, and sausage. There are some cookies, cheese, cereals, pancakes, and more at some ger camps for breakfast. For lunch, meals include salads, Mongolian soups, main course (pasta, rice, vegetables, beef/mutton/chicken/fish near lakes/rivers), dessert, and tea. Ger camps serve salads, the main course, a dessert, and tea for dinner. With nomads, you will try authentic Mongolian meals. Different types of meals offered simultaneously are not customary in Mongolian tradition. If you are a vegetarian or have other dietary restrictions, please inform us in advance, and we will make arrangements accordingly. We will supply two 0.5L bottles of water a day. Providing one large bottle (1.5 liters) of water instead of 2 small water bottles is available upon request. More information on Mongolia meals

Mongolian tourism depends highly on the season and seasonal accommodation ger camps. The ger camps operate between 15 May and 20 September. The tour includes 1 night in a centrally located hotel in Ulaanbaatar and 10 nights in regular gers of ger camps. More detailed information about Mongolia Ger camps

The majority of our company's guides are English speaking. German, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, and Japanese-speaking guides are available upon request. All of our guides are friendly and helpful. The majority of them were born and raised in the Mongolian countryside. Therefore, they have good knowledge about every aspect of Mongolia. During horse and camel riding, local equestrians will support you.

Regarding land transport, full-time Japanese vans and jeeps serve, depending on the group size. Besides the vehicles, our experienced, friendly, and knowledgeable mechanic drivers contribute a lot to your safe and pleasant journey. You can check the travel vehicle details at Mongolia transportation

The most suitable time to take this tour is between May and 5 October. During this period, the weather will be warm and enjoyable. The Gobi Desert is the most temperate region in Mongolia. The annual temperature is usually 2-10⁰C higher than in other parts of Mongolia. Overall, Mongolian weather fluctuates a lot; hourly, in the daytime, and at night. The temperature drops by 8-15⁰C in the evening and at night. Snowfall and chill wind is occasional in May, September, and October. We suggest you travel to Mongolia in May, September, and October if you wish to escape the summer heat and tourist crowd. Average temperatures are +20⁰C, the highest +28⁰C in the daytime, and the night temperature is about 8 to 10⁰C lower at the end of May, June, late August, and the first half of September. July could be the hottest or the wettest. The average July and beginning of August day temperatures are +28⁰C, the hottest is +39⁰C, and the night temperature could drop to +12⁰C. The temperature could dramatically fall if it rains. For your pre-departure preparation, you may check the discovery tour packing list. To plan your dream holiday or customize the tour exclusively for you, please check things to do in Mongolia in the different regions.

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