Duration: | 19 Day(s) - 18 Night(s) |
Tour Category: | Nature Tours |
Day 1: Travel to Baga Gazriin Chuluu
Your service team will pick you up from your hotel at 8:00 am board the vehicle and drive south towards the Gobi. Rock formations of the Baga Gazriin Chuluu, which is a picturesque mountain at an elevation of 1,751 meters in the Granite Belt of Mongolia.
After a 5-hour drive, enter first your ger camp where you will be staying tonight and have lunch, then venture to explore the caves, streams, and shrines that dot this sacred site. The scenery is beautiful and the area has abundant wildlife unique to the Gobi, both flora and fauna. Enjoy hiking for 2-3hours. Stay overnight in Ger camp. LD
Day 2: Travel to Tsagaan Suvarga
In the morning it’s back on the road – today you head further south to the imposing cliffs of Tsagaan Suvarga, translated into English as “White Stupa”, named after its looks. This stunning area is 30 meters 30-meter-high white limestone formation and was created over thousands of years by natural wind. Hike to venture into the sedimented cliffs for some great opportunities for photography. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 3: Travel to Yol Valley – Hiking
In the morning we will drive to Yol Valley (Lammergeier’s Gorge) about 220 km. This picturesque place is nestled between the beautiful peaks of the Gurvan Saikhan Mountain and shelters rich wildlife. Visit the Gobi museum and hike through the valley. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 4: Travel to Khongor Sand Dune & Bactrian Camel Ride
Travel to Khongor dunes for 180 km. Known as Singing dunes, the Khongor dunes are up to 300ms high, 15kms wide, and 180kms long. Afternoon we will walk through the Golden Dunes. The view is incredible from the top of the dunes. Optional camel riding is available. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 5: Explore ancient petroglyphs and Bayanzag
Continue travel to Bayanzag for 170 km. On the way, you will stop at an ancient sacred site of Khavtsgait, where on top of a rocky hill there are hundreds of ancient stone engravings, called petroglyphs. Some of them are as old as 3000 BC and were painted by hunters while waiting for prey.
The site also offers wonderful views over the desert. Soon you will arrive at Bayanzag Flaming Cliffs. Here you will see Saksaul forest in the Gobi desert and red flaming cliffs, which formed by the erosion of the sand and rock over many thousands of years. This is the place where dinosaurs lived 70 million years ago and is internationally famous for its dinosaur remains of complete skeletons, eggs, and hatchlings of the Cretaceous Period. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 6: Travel to the Temple Ruin of Ongi & Walking
Today we will drive to the north of the Ongi temple ruins. Walk among the ruins and see the reconstructed temples. Ongi is a ruined and partially rebuilt monastery founded in 1760 to commemorate Dalai Lama’s first visit to Mongolia, It’s available to see the stupa displaying the names of the victims and perhaps meet the local monks. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 7: Drive from Desert to Steppe
Today you will travel to Orkhon Valley in 5-6 hours about 280 km. Enjoy beautiful scenery over the valley which is a UNESCO-listed heritage site and the ancestral nomadic heartland of Mongolians. Hiking to venture Orkhon Waterfall, is a scenic cascade on the Ulaan Tsutgalan River, 20m high and 10m wide. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 8: Travel to Kharakhorum
Travel for 120 km to Kharakhorum. Kharakhorum is the ancient capital of Mongolia where Chinggis Khan established his headquarters in 1220. In 1235, his son and successor, Ogodei built a palace enclosed by walls. You will visit an interesting local museum that showcases the Mongolian Past and Erdenezuu monastery, the largest and first Mongolian Buddhist temple complex built on the remains of 16th-century Kharakhorum city.
Then we will visit a local cooperative to attend a workshop for making felt items by hand. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 9: Travel to Tsenkher Hot Spring
Travel to Tsenkher hot spring and reach the hot spring area. Enjoy taking a bath in hot spring water at +86.5 degrees Celsius with the stench of hydrogen sulfide. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 10: Travel to Taikhar Rock
Rest time. Lunch at Ger camp. After lunch travel to Taikhar Rock. On the way, we will visit Zaya Gegeen Temple in Tsetserleg town. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 11: Travel to Lake Terkhiin Tsagaan
Travel to Lake Terkhiin Tsagaan, which is an astonishingly beautiful lake, which was formed by a dam of lava flows from a volcanic eruption many millennia ago. On the way, we will see Khorgo Mountain, which is a dead volcano that lies east of the lake Terkhiin Tsagaan. The volcanic crater of the mountain is 200 meters wide and 100 meters deep. The northern slope is covered with Siberian larch forest. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 12: Travel to Zuun Lake
Travel to the Khuvsgul province. Today we will be exploring beautiful flowers covering the steppe. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 13-14: Travel to Khuvsgul Lake & Walking Around the Lake
Travel to Murun town, the provincial center of Khuvsgul. After lunch at a local restaurant continue travel to the crystal clear lake Khuvsgul. In the late afternoon, we will enjoy walking around the lake, where we explore rare medical herbs and wildflowers. Also, you can climb up a surrounding mountain to get a panoramic view of the lake. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 15: Travel to Uran Togoo Mountain
Today we will travel to Uran Mountain, an extinct volcano with a crater of 600m wide and 50m deep, and explore the surrounding natural beauty. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 16-17: Travel to Gurvanbulag Community Ger Camp
Travel to Gurvanbulag community-based Ger camp in the buffer zone of Khognokhan Nature Reserve. Hiking to neighboring mountains, enjoy a panoramic view over the valley. Optional horse riding is available. For dinner, you will have “Khorkhog”, which is a real Mongolian barbeque, grilled with hot stones. Enjoy traditional games in the evening. Stay overnights in a community-based Ger camp. BLD
Day 18: Wildlife Tracking – Wild horses
Travel to Hustai National Park. This beautiful area of 50620ha reserve protects wild Mongolian horses famed as Takhi (Przewalski’s Horse). Visit the Information Center. In the afternoon, you will explore and hike in the park to spot wild horses. Stay overnight in Ger camp. BLD
Day 19: Travel to Ulaanbaatar
Travel back to Ulaanbaatar for 100kms. Arrive in Ulaanbaatar and transfer to your hotel. End of the service. B
SERVICES INCLUDED
GER CAMP STAY (18 NIGHTS) IN COUNTRYSIDE - ENGLISH SPEAKING GUIDE SERVICE - ENTRANCE FEES TO PROTECTED AREAS AND SIGHTSEEING COSTS - ALL TRANSFERS BY 4WD JAPANESE MINIVAN IN THE COUNTRYSIDE - MEALS OF BREAKFAST, LUNCH /PICNIC/ AND DINNER AS MENTIONED PER DAY ITINERARY.
SERVICES NOT INCLUDED
INTERNATIONAL TRANSPORTATION TO AND FROM MONGOLIA - HOTEL STAY IN ULAANBAATAR - TRAVEL INSURANCE - MINERAL (BOTTLED) WATER AND ALCOHOLIC DRINKS - TIPS AND GRATUITIES - LAUNDRY AND ITEMS OF A PERSONAL NATURE
HIGHLIGHTS
ULAANBAATAR – BAGA GAZARIIN CHULUU - TSAGAAN SUVARGA - YOL VALLEY - KHONGOR SAND DUNES - BAYANZAG - ONGI TEMPLE RUIN – ORKHON VALLEY - KHARAKHORUM - TSENKHER HOT SPRING – TAIKHAR ROCK - TERKHIIN TSAGAAN LAKE – ZUUN LAKE – KHUVSGUL LAKE – URAN MOUNTAIN – GURVANBULAG COMMUNITY – HUSTAI NATIONAL PARK – ULAANBAATAR
MEETING POINT
GOOD NEWS! YOU WILL BE PICKED UP FROM YOUR HOTEL, JUST EMAIL US THE DETAILS. DON'T WORRY IF YOU HAVEN'T BOOKED YOUR ACCOMMODATION IN ULAANBAATAR YET, YOU CAN SEND US THAT LATER.
FITNESS LEVEL
MODERATE: THIS TOUR INVOLVES SHORT WALKS AND OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES SUCH AS CAMEL RIDING OR KAYAKING, WITH A RELAXED TRAVEL PACE