TOUR INTRODUCTION:

Mongolia is a land of miracles! There's no fences on this vast land, horsemen and animals roam free here! Traveling overland in safari style, you will visit the ancient capital at Karakorum, where you will visit the legendary 15th century ErdeneZuu monastery. Then you visit the vast expanses of the Gobi Desert, where a three day circuit explores the lofty sand dunes of KhongoriinEls, the glacial canyon of Yolyn Am, and the red cliffs of Bayanzag, where the world’s richest deposits of dinosaur fossils are found. You will have the chance to visit families of nomads, remote Buddhist monasteries and traditional events, and to take part in horse-riding or guided walking if you wish – there are also endless opportunities for photography. Now come and take this wonderful trip and visit the Gobi and the legendary capital Karakorum with us!

DAY BY DAY ITINERARY:

Day 1. – Arrival in Ulaanbaatar (Abbr-UB)

You will arrive in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia where your guide welcomes you. We will then transfer to our centrally located guesthouse for some rest. After having a lunch at the guesthouse, we will take a leisurely stroll into the city centre not far from our guesthouse. Our first stop will be newly renovated Sukhbaatar Square. This is right in the centre of UB and is named after the revolutionary hero of 1921, DamdinySukhbaatar, who declared Mongolian independence from China. Another interesting place to stop is the National History Museum on the edge of the square. There will also be chances to change money, visit the post office and explore UB further. In the evening there will be a welcome dinner at a local restaurant and a tour briefing.

Day 2.Equestrian Statute of Chinggis Khaan and Bag Gazrin Chuluu

After breakfast in our hotel restaurant, we will leave for the Mongolian countryside. Our first stop will be Equestrian Statute of ChinggisKhaan. (The construction of this huge silver Equestrian Statute of ChinggisKhaan, the largest the largest in the world (40 meters in height) was started in August 2006 and it will systematically develop according to the plan and will start its operation in 2009 and be completed in 2010.) This XII Century complex displays the golden whip that believed to be Temuujin’s lucky find, also has a conference hall in the basement and an elevator in the horse’s hind legs for visitors to reach the head for superb views of the area. Our next stop will be 250 km (6 hours driving) southward in the beautiful region of Bag GazrinChuluu. It is a huge granite formation in the middle of the Mongolian sandy plane. At the foot of the formation we will visit the remains of a small monastery named DelgeriinChior. End of the afternoon we will drive and hike around in the area. We will visit the picturesque ruins of a small monastery that are hidden in a nice little protected valley. As the place is far away from the usual tourist routes, there are no accommodation facilities. Therefore we will set up our tents in a beautiful natural scene of one of the valleys of the formation. Tents, pneumatic mattresses, etc. will be provided. You will have to bring your own sleeping bag.

Day 3. The Flaming Cliffs (Bayanzag) - Dinosaur Site

In the morning, we carry on to see the “Flaming Cliffs”, called Bayanzag in Mongolian. The site was first excavated in 1922 by an American explorer Andrew and the area is renowned as a “Dinosaur Cemetery”. Complete dinosaur skeletons, their fossilized eggs and hatchlings are found in their multitudes. The site itself is also stunning as it stands out of the desert with its deeply red coloured sandy rocks and hearty endemic vegetation.

We will spend some time in the neighbourhood of this site and explore the surrounding areas. If you are lucky you may be able to find something too.

Day 4. Drive to the Vulture Canyon

We are now on the road again to the Vulture Canyon, which nestles between the beautiful peaks of Gurvansaikhan of the Three Beauties. After arrival at the canyon, we will take 2-hour hike through the canyon and maybe able to see parts of a glacier left over from the winter months. The gorge’s sheer rock walls rise to over 200m in some places and a mountain stream flows along the floor of the gorge. Above us you will be able to see ibex grazing. On the walls of canyon pairs of Lammergeyer nests and it maybe possible to see the rare Wallcreeper at close range. All the canyon is a great place to spot some of the 200 species of birds such as the Altaic Snowcock, the Mongolian desert Finch and the Cinereous Vulture, We will also be surrounded some of the park’s 600 different types of vegetation and plants. On our way in/out of the park we can visit the local Natural History Museum where dinosaur eggs and bones, petrified trees and a snow leopard are on display.

Day 5. – Khongoriin Els sand dunes

This morning will drive towards the KhongoriinEls sand dunes or so-called Singing Sand. These are some of the largest and most spectacular sand dunes in Mongolia. At 28 m in height the giant sand dunes stretch lengthwise some 180 kms. Sometimes the area is only several hundred meters wide but can grow to 7-20 kms. You can walk up the dunes, enjoy the views for miles and could hear the song of the sand dunes as you slide down.

Day 6. Arts Bogdiin Mountain

Today we will drive 230 km (6 hours) to the north in the direction of the green steppes of Central Mongolia. Before reaching those green areas we will have to cross a remote and unforgiving stretch of desert. We will also cross the arid rocky Arts Bogdiin Mountain, and pass trough breath-taking landscapes. On the way we will have a short stop at Bogd village. As this road is far away from the normal tourist tracks, we will have to put up our tented camp for the night. We will visit some nomad families and experience their hospitality. Those who want will have the opportunity to try the "airag" or fermented horse milk. Camping place is near to Guchin Us village.

Day7- Orkhon waterfalls, ancient graves, gorges.

Today we head for HangaiNuruu NP, to see the only waterfall in Mongolia – The Orkhon Waterfall. We will make our way to the waterfall through good gravel and reasonably difficult dirt roads.

Registered as World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in 2005, this Orkhon River valley is known as the cradle of the Mongolian civilization holding many of Mongolia’s ancient monuments lie within its basin. And the Orkhon Waterfall marks the halfway point of the Orkhon River, Mongolia’s longest river that runs about 1120kms to the north before it joins the mighty Selenge River.

The waterfall, also called UlaanTsutgalan was formed by a series of volcanic eruptions about 20.000 years ago. It cascades from the height of 22 metres and is 10m wide. We will explore this place and although slightly chilly, it is also possible to swim in the plunge pool.

After visiting the waterfall we will split up into smaller groups and hike in the neighborhood. All hikers will pay a visit to local nomads and sample “airag”, a drink of fermented mare’s milk - favourite drink of Mongolians. This area is famous for its Airag brewery art throughout the country – now it is our chance to try!

Day 8.Tsenkher Hot Spring Spa

Today we will have reached the hot spring Spa. This is another beautiful spot set amidst mountains covered by larch forests and valley’s carpeted in flowers. Here you will be able to enjoy softening restorative waters of the hot spring and stay in warm comfortable traditional ger accommodations.

Day 9. Cultural tour of Karakorum

In the morning, we will drive to the Karakorum, the site of the ancient capital of the Great Mongolian Empire. The city served as the Mongolian capital for only 40 years (until when Khubila iKhaan moved it to what is now Beijing). Most of the city was later destroyed by Chinese soldiers during the second half of 14th century. And the remnants of the city were used to build the ErdeneZuu Monastery in the 16th century.

Upon arrival in Karakorum the first and most obvious landmark is the massive walls of the ErdeneZuu Monastery, which was the first Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. After lunch at local restaurant, we take cultural tour at ErdeneZuu Monastery. It was built in 1586 by the initiative AbtaiSain Khan, on the spot where Kharkhorin had been. The monastery is surrounded by 400x400 m stonewalls with 108 stupas. The stone columns, blocks and sculptures excavated from the ruins of the city show that various building materials were used in the construction of this monastery. At its height, the ErdeneZuu monastery had up to 62 temples, 500 other buildings and gers with about 1000 lamas inside the walls. Now the monastery displays the best of Buddhist architecture and many of religious art works. We will firstly visit this monastery museum, which houses the best of Buddhist architecture and religious art works. We will then continue the tour and see the symbolic ruins of Karakorum city. Overnight at bank of Orkhonriver. we will have celebrating dinner of “Khorkhog” a traditional Mongolian delicacy. This is lamb, slow cooked with hot rocks. After dinner we will sit around the campfire, sing with our staff to celebrate our trip success.

Day 10.Hustai N/P and back to Ulaanbaatar

This morning earlier we will drive to the Khustai National Park, which is famous for the wild Takhi horses, a species which have to be brought back from the brink of extinction. Wild horses, also named after the Russian explorer Przewalsky, had become extinct in 1970’s. They were recently re-introduced to their historic homeland from those survived in various European zoos. A brief but informative presentation on the wild horses and other wild life in the area will be given by a Park Ranger. We will then go further to hopefully catch a glimpse of the wild horses and the marmots, roe deer and other animals that roam here. Then we will drive to UB. Stay at guesthouse

August 11. –City tour

Today we explore the Mongolian capital, Ulaanbaatar. In the morning, we visit Zaisan Memorial and the Bogd Khaan Palace, with its bizarre collection of artefacts, including a royal ger made out of snow leopard skins. Next we visit Gandan Monastery, the largest and most famous functioning monastery in Mongolia. Here, we may be able to see Buddhist lamas in worship and we will also see the impressive Golden Buddha Statue of Megjid Janraisig. You will have time to walk in the city and to shop for souvenirs, cashmere and leather products make great buys. The evening concert of Folk song and music followed by a farewell dinner will complete your Mongolian experience.

Day 12. Departure