- Regions
- Planning
- First trip
Mongolia is roughly six times the size of the United Kingdom and home to around three and a half million people, close to half of whom live in the capital. Outside Ulaanbaatar, the population thins to herding families, their animals and a road network that is still more track than tarmac. That scale is the point. It is also the first thing to get your head around when you plan.
You cannot see all of Mongolia in two weeks, and you should not try. What you can do is pick two or three regions that suit your interests and give them the time they deserve. Here is how they compare.
Ulaanbaatar and Terelj
Most journeys start and end in the capital, a city of monasteries, Soviet-era apartment blocks, glass towers and traffic that tests everyone's patience. Give it a day. The Gandan monastery at morning prayers and the national museum are both worth the effort, and the food scene is far better than its reputation.
An hour or so north-east, Gorkhi-Terelj National Park trades concrete for granite outcrops, larch forest and river meadows. It is the ideal first night out of the city: close enough that a late flight is no problem, wild enough to reset your sense of distance.
Central Mongolia and the Orkhon valley
If Mongolia has a heartland, this is it. The Orkhon valley was the seat of successive steppe empires, and the ruins of Kharkhorin, the old imperial capital, sit beside the walls of Erdene Zuu, one of the country's oldest surviving monasteries.
It is also prime horse country. The valley's grassy floors, volcanic plateaus and river crossings make for some of the best multi-day riding anywhere, and herding families here are well used to visitors joining them for milking, cooking or simply sitting with a bowl of tea.
The Gobi
The Gobi is not one long sand sea. Most of it is gravel plain, scrub and low ranges, broken by sudden drama: the towering dunes of Khongoryn Els, the ice-filled gorge of Yolyn Am, the red cliffs at Bayanzag where some of the world's most famous dinosaur fossils were found.
The trade-off is distance. Gobi itineraries involve long driving days, and the rewards come in the pauses: a camel herder's ger at noon, a night sky so dark the Milky Way casts shadows, the silence after the engine is switched off.
Khövsgöl and the north
In the far north, the steppe gives way to taiga and Lake Khövsgöl, a long, deep body of water so clear you can see stones metres below the surface. Larch forest runs down to the shore, and the air smells of pine rather than dust.
Beyond the lake, in the remote taiga, live the reindeer-herding Dukha people. Visiting them takes real effort, often days on horseback, and needs to be done with care and respect. It is one of the most remarkable journeys in the country.
The Altai and the far west
Bayan-Ölgii, in the far west, is home to Mongolia's Kazakh minority and the eagle hunters who have made the region famous. The Altai mountains here carry glaciers and the country's highest peaks, and the valleys below are dotted with Kazakh gers, recognisable by their taller roofs and richly embroidered hangings.
This is the place for trekking, for the eagle festivals of early autumn and for a culture distinct from the rest of the country. Most people fly in from Ulaanbaatar to save several days of driving.
Khentii and the east
The east is Mongolia's quiet corner: rolling grassland, birch-lined rivers and the hills where Chinggis Khaan is said to have been born. Visitor numbers are tiny compared with the Gobi or the Orkhon, which is exactly why some people love it.
The best trips we plan rarely tick off the most places. They give you time to stop, sit with a family, ride a valley twice and let the country slow you down.
Putting it together
A few combinations work especially well:
- First trip, two weeks: Terelj, the Gobi and the Orkhon valley. Desert, history and riding in a single loop.
- Riders: a short Ulaanbaatar stay, then a week or more on horseback in the Orkhon or Khentii.
- Mountains and culture: fly to the far west for the Altai, then add Khövsgöl or the central steppe.
- Autumn eagle season: the Altai festivals combined with a few days in the Gobi on the way back.
When to go
June to September is the main season, with warm days, cool nights and the greenest steppe in July and August. Late spring and autumn are quieter and more dramatic in their light, if colder. Winter is extreme but extraordinary for the well prepared.
Whichever regions you choose, build in slack. Weather, road conditions and the habit of being invited in for tea have a way of reshaping the best-laid schedules. That, more often than not, is when the trip becomes memorable.
If you are unsure where to start, tell us what draws you here: the horses, the open space, the people or the mountains. We will suggest a route that fits, and be honest about the long days involved.
