Mongolia: Steppes, Deserts & Nomads - Nadaam Festival

Rolling steppe make way to stark desert; small nomadic ger camp pepper this vast land where camels and goats are herded on horseback, fermented mare’s milk is the tipple of choice, sand dunes are known to ‘sing’ and the first intact dinosaur eggs were found. Genghis Khan went forth from here on horseback to conquer the biggest land empire in history and, to this day, Buddhist and Animist traditions mix. In July, all over the country, people come together to compete in wrestling, archery, horse-racing and ankle bone flicking during the Naadam Festival but traditions can be witnessed throughout the year. We travel through steppe, mountain and the Gobi desert exploring the nature and culture of this fascinating, yet little known, country.

We use hotels in Ulaanbaatar and Arvaikheer and ger camps elsewhere. Gers are similar to yurts, generally airy and comfortable with beds and, normally, a stove (though in the summer the stoves are not normally needed). The bathrooms are normally shared and all have hot water (due to the remoteness of the camps, this can be erratic at times). Many of the ger camps now have 24-hour electricity in the ger itself for charging batteries. If there is no charging facility inside the ger then there are charging facilities in the common area (though this may be during limited periods, when the generator is turned on). There is normally no more than two people per ger; however, due to availability issues, we may need to have triples in the ger in some cases. There may also be rare occasions when a single cannot be guaranteed in a particular ger camp.