One week is the perfect period to discover the Gobi Desert highlights, scenic places, top attractions, and must-do activities. You will be in the Gobi Desert on the first day of this tour, surrounded by 360° steppe views, gazing at stars, staying in the nomadic dwelling ger, hiking through, and taking pictures of Tsagaan Suvarga colorful mud cliffs. Next few days, you will do soft hiking in the lush green Eagle Valley of Gobi Gurban Saikhan Mountain National Park along a freshwater creek and climb the Khongor sand dune to see the breathtaking views of the surrounding areas. You also ride two-humped camels, explore the former dinosaur fossil exploration site Flaming Cliffs, and view the ruins of the Ongi Monastery. The tour includes Erdenezuu Monastery and the Kharkhorin Museum in the Orkhon Valley, a part of the UNESCO Cultural Heritage Site. Culturally enriching the trip, you will visit a nomadic family, have Mongolian lunch and ride horses on the hilly steppes of central Mongolia.
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive in Ulaanbaatar
Our driver meets you at the airport and transfers you to a centrally located hotel. Free day to relax and discover the city on your own while staying in a good location hotel.
Accommodation: 3* hotel
Day 2: Tsagaan Suvarga colorful mud cliffs
Your guide and driver meet you at your accommodation and start the tour to Tsagaan Suvarga. It is one of the most famous highlights in the Gobi Desert. Tsagaan Suvarga is a spectacular natural formation of colorful, massive mud cliffs that look like stupas. Hiking through the cliffs offers the chance to take amazing photographs.
Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 3: Drive to Gobi Gurban Saikhan Mountain National Park, visit Eagle Valley
The Gobi Gurban Saikhan Mountain is a beautiful national park, rich in wildlife and scenic places. Among the picturesque valleys, Yoliin Am/Eagle Valley is 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 and two-humped camel riding
The journey will continue to Khongor, the tallest solid dunes. Upon reaching Khongor, visit a nomad family, ride two-humped camels, and climb one of the dunes, depending on how much physical challenge you wish to face. If you can climb one of the tallest dunes, spread the sand northwards against the wind to find out why locals call the dunes "Singing Sand.” The Gobi Desert views are fantastic from the top of the dunes.
Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 5: Flaming Cliffs and Khavtsgait rock drawing
First, we travel to the Khavtsgait Valley in the West Saikhan Mountain of the Gurban Saikhan Mountain National Park to explore Khavtsgait rock drawing dates back to the Late Bronze Age and early Iron Age. Seeing the rock drawing requires us 1 km hiking in a return way. Our adventure will continue to the Flaming Cliffs, where American explorer Roy Chapman Andrews found the remains of dinosaurs. The first dinosaur nest found in Flaming Cliffs had research importance that the dinosaurs laid eggs. After relaxing at the gers, escaping from the afternoon sun, we will enjoy exploring the cliffs in search of dinosaur fossils we may find and take evening pictures of the Flaming Cliffs.
Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 6: Drive to Ongi Monastery on the open steppes
First, we will visit the Gobi tree grove Bayanzag. This tree only grows in the Central Asian desert. Next, drive through slate mountains and on 80 km Ongi steppes heading to Ongi Monastery. Ongi Monastery was one of the seven biggest monasteries in Mongolia. There were two separate monasteries consisting of more than 30 temples on the shores of the Ongi River, surrounded by the Gobi Desert mountains. The temples were destroyed during the socialist purge of the 1930s. Now the ruins of the monasteries involve an expanse area. Visit a new active temple and a ger museum, explore the monastery ruins and climb a nearby mountain, which rewards stunning views of the surrounding areas.
Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 7: Kharkhorin, ancient Monastery Erdenezuu
Our today's journey takes place in the transition zone from the Gobi desert to the mountain steppes. Kharkhorin, formerly known as Kharakhorum, was the capital of Genghis Khaan's Great Mongol Empire in the 13th century. After the Mongolian capital moved to Beijing and the fall of the Empire, Min soldiers destroyed the abandoned Kharakhorum 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 articles in the monastery museum, and view its stunning architecture. Visiting the Kharakhorum Museum is part of today's program.
Accommodation: Ger camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 8: Visit nomads, horse riding and return to Ulaanbaatar
Today is the last day you spend in the beautiful countryside of Mongolia. On our way to Ulaanbaatar, we will visit a horse-herding nomad family, ride horses on the steppes and have nomadic lunch.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Background
Is the Gobi Desert & Orkhon Valley Tour suitable for you?
This regular tour includes overnight stays in ger camps in the countryside. The itinerary does not involve demanding physical activities. Traveling in Mongolia always requires long driving through changing landscapes and steppes with scenic views. You will drive approximately 3.5 to 6 hours a day. Day 1 is the longest day, with 7-hour driving plus 1-hour lunch on the way. The itinerary includes some light activities, such as 1-3 hours of soft hiking and horse and camel riding with the help of local wranglers. Khongor sand dune climbing is the most challenging experience, but it is not mandatory. You can enjoy the sand dunes and the view while climbing one of the lower dunes.
Meals
Tour meals are included as indicated in the itinerary. In the countryside, ger camps serve occasional European but mainly 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
Accommodation
The tour includes a night 3* hotel stay in Ulaanbaatar and 6 nights in ger camps. Mongolian tourism depends highly on the season and seasonal accommodation ger camps. The Gobi Desert ger camps are open between 15 May and 1 October. During other months, the ger camps are partially open and closed in winter. Thus, we can organize the tour with local hotels, guest ger, and ger camp stay in winter. For more detailed information about accommodations, please visit our recommended hotels in Mongolia and Mongolia Ger camps
Guides
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.
Transportation
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
When is the best time to take the Gobi Desert & Orkhon Valley Tour?
10 May through 5 October is the best time to travel the Gobi Desert. 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 2-10 degrees higher than in other parts of Mongolia. However, you should not expect warm weather even if you travel to Mongolia in the summer. Mongolia is elevated at least 700 m above the neighboring Siberian plateau and Chinese territory. Day and night and some days' hourly temperature fluctuations are sharp. The temperature drops by 10-20 degrees in the evening and at night. There will be occasional chill wind and snowfalls in May, September, and October, while wind storm is frequent in March, April, and the first half of May. Average monthly temperatures are +20 degrees, the highest +30 degrees in the daytime, and the night temperature may drop to +8 degrees at the end of May, June, late August, and September. July could be the hottest or the wettest. July's average daylight temperature is +28 degrees, the hottest +40 degrees, and the night temperature could drop to +12 degrees, although some nights could be sultriness. The temperature could dramatically fall if it rains. For your pre-departure preparation, you may check the discovery tour detailed packing list.
To plan your dream holiday, please check attractions in the Mongolian Gobi, things you should know before traveling the Gobi desert, and attractions in Central Mongolia.
