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Trips 
Mongolia
Naadam
Festival & Gobi Desert Tour
This adventure program comprises all the best things
we can do in Mongolia. Specially timed to coincide with the grandest
& most significant event of the Mongolian year for foreigners &
locals alike - Naadam
Festival, which is held from July 11 to 13 each year.
Naadam is a traditional display of Mongolian courage, strength, dexterity and marksmanship. The center of the Naadam festivities are the fierce horse racing, archery
and wrestling competitions - the traditional sports of the Mongolian
warrior ( the three "manly" sports ). During the Naadam Festival are also featured art performances and traditional folk songs and dances. For Mongolians, the Naadam is the most joyful event of the year. Experience the thrill of watching hundreds of horses with child-riders from age 5 years old and up.
In addition, we will have opportunity for horse & camel riding in the steppes
of central Mongolia, staying in nomadic camps, and witnessing the true
nomadic culture and civilization of its people. In our drive through the
Gobi Desert, we will be enchanted by the breathtaking sunsets
and sunrises in the midst of spectacular sand dunes, following in the footsteps of world reknown anthropologists
who discovered the largest remains of dinosaur fossils. Then, we also will get to see the ancient capital
of Kharakhorin and visit Mongolia's first Buddhist monastery, Erdene Zuu.
Highlights:
- Experience the colorful celebrations surrounding Mongolia’s national games and the country’s grandest festival, Naadam.
- Experience riding Mongolian horses, legendary for their great stamina and ability to negotiate difficult terrain, and the hardy desert camels.
- Visit nomadic families and experience traditional hospitality
that is extended to passing travelers
- Explore the spectacular panorama of the world’s northern-most desert with its spectacular sand dunes
- Travel to Kharakhorin, site of the 13th-century capital of the Mongol Empire and visit and centuries-old Buddhist temples at neighboring Erdene Zuu Monastery, a place of Buddhist activity for more than half a century
- Museum visit, folklore show
Included
- All transportations according to the itinerary.
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- 3-4 star hotel accommodation on twin-triple sharing
- Services of a professional tour guide, and experienced drivers
- Ger camps
- Tax of National Protected Areas
- Entrance fees for museums and Folklore show
- Horse & Camel riding
Excluded
- 2-way international economy class return airfares between Singapore & Mongolia
- All airport taxes & fuel surcharges
- China & Mongolia entry visa fees & application charges
- Tipping & gratuities to guide & local staff
- Extra fees for photo & video cameras in the museums, historical sights and game parks ( except those specified in the itinerary )
- Personal travel insurance & pre-trip medical immunizations
- All expenses relating to any optional tour(s)
- All expenses of a personal nature
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2006 Departure: 9 - 25 July
Duration: 15 days
Group Size : minimum 6 persons
Grading:
| Group Size |
Price |
| 10 - 15 persons |
$ 1900 |
| 8 - 9 persons |
$ 1950 |
| 6 - 7 persons |
$ 1975 |
| * Price above is land cost only and does not includes international return air fares ( Air China / SIA ). Estimated airfares is about $1000-1600. |
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| Day 1 / July 10 |
Singapore - Beijing - Ulaan Baatar. Visit to Sukhbaatar Square. Overnight in hotel. |
Day 2 / July 11 |
Naadam
Festival. The major events take place during the first
two days and mass celebration is reserved for the third. Today attend the opening ceremony at the Central Stadium in Ulaan Baatar. Full day enjoy watching the archery and wrestling events. O/N hotel. |
| Day 3 / July 12 |
Naadam Festival. After breakfast, watch the horse races taking place outside the city centre. O/N hotel. |
| Day 4 / July 13 |
Drive to Elsen Tasarkhai ( Sand Stretch ) and Khara-Khorum, a unique combination of forested mountains and desert-type landscape. O/N tourist ger camp. |
| Day 5 / July 14 |
Drive to Kharakhorin and start horse riding trip to visit the ancient capital of the Mongol Empire. Today only the basement walls of the
castle stands as a reminder of this once great city. Make friends with the nomad Mongols during visit to Erdene Zuu monastery, the first Buddhist monastery
in Mongolia, currently undergoing restoration. O/N tourist ger camp |
| Day 6 / July 15 |
Drive to Orkhon Valley and visit the Ulaan Tsutalan waterfall whose river flows an incredible 1120km to the north. The fall is naturally most impressive after heavy rain. Visit to Shankhiin Hiid monastery along the way. O/N tourist ger camp. |
| Day 7 / July 16 |
Drive to Ongi River and visit the 2 ruined monasteries whose complex remains is known as Ongiin Khiid monastery. O/N tourist ger camp. |
| Day 8 / July 17 |
Drive to Yol Valley and enjoy its dramatic and very unusual scenic valley with meters-high ice almost all year-round. O/N tourist ger camp.
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| Day 9 / July 18 |
Drive to Khongor Sand Dunes, where some of the largest and most spectacular sand dunes in Mongolia are found. O/N tourist ger camp. |
| Day 10 / July 19 |
Khongor Sand Dunes. Today visit a local family on a camel-riding trip. O/N tourist ger camp. |
| Day 11 / July 20 |
Drive to Bayan Zag where dinosaur skeletons, fossilized eggs, and other prehistoric giant animals have been found. Full day exploring dinosaur sights of interest. O/N tourist ger camp. |
| Day 12 / July 21 |
Drive to Middle Gobi. Visit to anicient temple ruins and rock drawings of the 19th century. O/N tourist ger camp. |
| Day 13 / July 22 |
Return drive to Ulaan Baatar. Visit to Zaisan Hill. O/N hotel. |
Day 14 / July 23 |
Ulaan Baatar sightseeing: Gandan monastery, WInter Palace of Bogd Khaan, shopping and folklore show in the evening. O/N hotel. |
| Day 15 / July 24 |
Ulaan Baatar - Beijing - Singapore |
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The group will be accompanied by an interpreter
/ guide. Meals in the country side will be provided, as well as transportation
throughout the trip. Horses and camels will be provided for the riding travel. We shall have a free day in the city ( Ulaan Baatar
) during which you can visit the monastries, explore the museums, enjoy
a cultural show or two, do shopping. The roads in Mongolia are in a very poor condition. Paved roads are only available surrounding the major towns including Ulaan Baatar city. Most roads in the country are dirt roads and in the remotest areas, roads almost do not exist. Jeeps are an important form of transport on the unpaved roads, and mandatory when visiting remote attractions.
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