Mongolian Naadam Festival Tour

Arrival in Ulaanbaatar

Sightseeing and Welcoming Dinner

Arrival and transfer to a 4 star hotel. Today will be a day of guided sightseeing in Ulaanbaatar, including the Gandan Monastery, the Bogd King palace, which is a series of beautiful traditional buildings where the last religious King of Mongolia resided, and Fine Arts museum. Lunch and dinner will be in local restaurants.

Fly to South Gobi

Today you will be transferred to the airport for your flight to Dalanzadgad either in the morning or afternoon depending on the domestic flight schedule. The flight from Ulaanbaatar to the capital of the South Gobi Aimag takes one and a half hours, and you will be accompanied by your guide. On arrival at the airstrip in the Gobi you will be met by a driver and jeep and taken to the ger camp. After lunch we will visit Yolyn Am, or Eagle Valley. This is about 40 km from your ger camp and approximately a one-hour drive. The valley is about 10km long and is completely shaded from the sun in some parts by the high cliff walls. It is possible to walk through the valley and out the other side. You may be lucky enough to spot wild sheep and goats grazing high on the cliff walls. The valley is also full of soaring eagles hunting for prey. At the opening of the valley there is a local Natural History Museum displaying interesting information about the animals of the area. Return to you ger camp for dinner and overnight.

Khongor Sand Dune

Today we drive west along the Altai Mountain Range until we reach Khongoriin Els. Reaching heights of 800 m, these are Mongolia’s largest sand dunes. Locally they are called the ‘singing dunes’ because of the tons of sand, which shift in the wind, making a strange sound similar to that of distant aircraft. Though largely inhospitable to human settlement, the Great Gobi does support a remarkable variety of flora and fauna: more than 400 plant species, 150 bird species, and nearly 50 mammal species, some unique to this Central Asian habitat, including Gobi bears and Bactrian camels. we will have the opportunity to use a different type of transport. We will be riding on camels today to explore these massive sand dunes. The two-humped camels are very comfortable to ride, as they walk slowly and gently and we will be well supported by the humps, sitting comfortably between them. Our camel man will take us to the sand dunes.

Bayanzag

Today will drive to UNESCO Biosphere Reserve to Bayanzag, with its striking Flaming Cliffs, the red-rock bluff reminiscent of areas in the American West. Internationally renowned as the place where celebrated explorer and naturalist Roy Chapman Andrews first discovered dinosaur eggs on his ground-breaking expedition in the 1920s, Bayanzag boasts a treasure-trove of important fossils that we can see all over the rocks.

Back to UB/Terelj National Park!

After breakfast you will be driven to the desert airstrip with your guide for your return flight to depart for the Khentii Mountains. The drive will take you into the Gorkhi-Terelj National Park and past the small township of Terelj. You will cross the Terelj River, past nomadic families’ gers to meet our local horsemen. After a light lunch, the journey will continue, either on horseback or yak cart, into the Baga Khentii Mountains, the smaller sisters of the Khentii Mountains to the north. You will spend 4 nights in tents moving from one place to another in the mountains. You will be accompanied by local horsemen, your guide, and cooking staff. There will be a dining tent for dining and social time in the evening. During the day there will be horse riding, or yak cart riding in the mountains and valleys, hiking and visiting the ruins of the Gunjiin Monastery. A small river flows past the camp, which is deep enough for a dip in the cool water or to do some fishing with the locals. The wildlife is varied and includes musk deer and moose, brown bear, roe and elk. It is also a paradise for bird lovers who may be lucky enough to spot whooper swans, spoonbills, great white egrets and numerous raptors. On your last we will arrive at Tuul Riverside Lodge. An intimate and fully sustainable traditional Mongolian ger camp on the foot of the Bayanzorik Mountain, the beautiful camp’s surrounding invites to be explored and discovered! Your gers are prepared by a dedicated team of people, giving you a warm welcome!