Witness the art of hunting with trained golden eagles at the Altai Eagle Festival. Travel across three iconic landscapes: the Altai Mountains, the Gobi Desert and the vast steppe. Meet nomadic families and discover Mongolia's art, history, music and beliefs.
Meet your guide at Ulaanbaatar’s airport and check into the five-star Novotel Ulaanbaatar in the heart of Mongolia’s cosmopolitan capital. (D)
Friday, September 12Ulaanbaatar
Join your tour leader on a walking tour of Mongolia's cosmopolitan capital. Explore the country's history at the spectacular Chinggis Khaan National Museum, newly opened in Fall 2022, and marvel at the splendid art and architecture of the Choijin Lama Temple Museum. (B,L,D)
Saturday, September 13Oasis in the Gobi Desert
Fly to Dalanzadgad, the capital of South Gobi Province, located in the shadow of the Three Beauties Mountain Range. The mountains provide shelter and sustenance to nomadic herders, their herds and myriad wildlife. Enter this landscape, and explore Yolyn Am Canyon. The high rock walls, covered in juniper and wild rhubarb, form an oasis home to lammergeier bearded vultures and Siberian ibex. After hiking through the canyon, settle in for the night at the desert’s premier ger (nomadic dwelling) resort, your home in the Gobi. (B,L,D)
Sunday, September 14Flaming Cliffs
Start the day riding the Gobi’s most iconic animal: a two-humped Bactrian camel, and meet a family who raises these legendary animals. Then, explore the red sandstone Flaming Cliffs. The cliffs, rich in dinosaur fossils, are renowned for the world’s first discovery of dinosaur eggs, uncovered in 1923 by an American Museum of Natural History expedition led by zoologist Roy Chapman Andrews. (B,L,D)
Monday, September 15Wild Horses of the Steppe
Fly back to Ulaanbaatar and travel west onto the vast Mongolian steppe. At Hustai National Park, the home of the world’s last wild horses, see Przewalski’s horses, formerly extinct from the wild, but reintroduced to Hustai by an international conservation effort in the 1990s. (B,L,D)
Tuesday, September 16Nomadic Life
Experience life on the steppe. At the ger of a family of nomadic herders who pasture their animals near sacred Mt. Hugnu Khan, cook and share a meal and ride horses. Settle into an elegant ger ecolodge for a two-night stay in the shadow of Elsen Tasarhai, an area of sand dunes in the midst of the vast steppe grasslands. (B,L,D)
Wednesday, September 17Valley of History
Explore the history and legends of the steppe on a day trip to the town of Harhorin in the heart of the UNESCO World Heritage Orkhon Valley. Visit Mongolia’s oldest monastery, sixteenth-century Erdene Zuu. The monastery was built on and with the ruins of Karakourm, founded by Genghis Khan’s son as the thirteenth-century capital of the Mongol Empire. (B,L,D)
Thursday, September 18Ulaanbaatar
Return to Ulaanbaatar and attend a folk music and dance performance by the renowned Tumen Ekh Ensemble. (B,L,D)
Friday, September 19Ulgii
Fly to the town of Ulgii in western Mongolia's Altai Mountains. Head into the Altai, reaching a seldom-visited area of Bronze Age Petroglyphs, and encounter Mongolia's ancient rock art tradition amidst the stunning beauty of the mountains. Then, return to Ulgii and settle into a basic hotel, your home base for your three nights in the mountains. (B,L,D)
Saturday, September 20Altai Eagle Festival
Celebrate the art of eagle hunting, falconry with trained golden eagles, a tradition practiced by nomadic herders in the remote Altai Mountains of western Mongolia. The countryside around Ulgii is the center of eagle hunting traditions, and the location of the annual Altai Eagle Festival, a two-day competition of dozens of eagle hunters. At the festival, enjoy traditional sports, food, embroidery and a chance to enjoy the ruggedly beautiful mountain landscape. (B,L,D)
Sunday, September 21Eagle Hunters
Enjoy the second day of the Eagle Festival. In the evening, visit the family of an eagle hunter and see how the hunter raises and trains his prized golden eagle. (B,L,D)
Monday, September 22Town to City
Spend the morning exploring town life in Ulgii before flying back to Ulaanbaatar. In the city, enjoy a visit to Gandantegchenlin Monastery, the center of Mongolian Buddhism. (B,L,D)
Tuesday, September 23Genghis Khan
On your last full day in Mongolia, see how contemporary Mongolia is shaping its future with an eye toward the past. On the steppe east of Ulaanbaatar, visit the towering 131-foot tall Genghis Khan Statue, built in 2006 for the 800th anniversary of the Mongol Empire. Return to the city for your farewell dinner. (B,L,D)
