Untamed Mongolia

Some famous tourist spots of Mongolia are briefly introduced here to encourage you to explore this remote region.

Mongolia is a hitherto unexploited region in the world of tourism. As is common with human nature, unknown places and things attract us the most. In this blog article, I shall focus upon some most interesting places to visit, events to take part in and things to do in this country.

Brief outline

The capital city Ulan Bator is the starting point of an interesting journey. Foreign tourists come in Mongolia to trek into the deep reaches of Gobi desert. This part is located at the south of Ulan Bator whereas west to it is the White Lakes that is another most popular tourist spot.

You may undertake a good adventure trip that is also a cost-effective one in Mongolia. Small measures of thrill are present at every nook-and-corners of the country. For example camping permissions are available at every part of Mongolia, except at military establishments or reserved areas. Drivers for vans and guides are easily available and that is also at a pocket-friendly rate.

Be sure to hire an experienced guide and driver as conditions of roads are not good here and most of the places are having no sign-boards.

Interesting sights

Gobi desert: Name of the Gobi desert is almost synonymous with Mongolia.

One of the few places where you can take a ride of wild Bactrian camels, Gobi desert is a store house of pre-historic dinosaur fossils. Next comes in importance is the Khongoryn Els Sand Dunes. These 100 kilometers long and 12 kilometers wide sand dunes contain with nil vegetation and are continually shifting. These impressive sand dunes are situated before mighty mountains and sheep and camels graze before them; believe me the whole sight is just awesome.

Khongoryn Els Sand Dunes

White Lake: Central Park area of Mongolia is the home of this stunning place. Nearest city to it is Tariat. The surrounding area is a specimen of natural beauty. Lush, rolling grasslands and scattered forests are neighbors of White Lake. During summer season nomadic camps are set up along its coasts. If you want to have a thrilling horse-back trip then go for a horse-ride along the lava flows surrounding the lake area. More adventurous souls may hike atop of a now extinct volcano that is located at the entrance of the lake.

Interesting events

Nadaam Festival: Every year 11^th to 13^th July the festival of Nadaam (meaning competition) is held in Ulan Bator. In fact this festival is the biggest entertainment event of the country. Most popular sporting events like wrestling, horse racing and archery are held during this time. Except wrestling, women also participate in these events. The third day is usually reserved for merry-making.

The festival has a long history and sacrifices are offered to Mountain Gods. At present colorful warrior marches, playing by inspiring military bands and peaceful marches of monks take place in the first day.

Interesting activities

Trans-Mongolian Railway journey: This 7,622 kilometers rail ride is a thrilling one that comprises of 3 nations; Russia, China and Mongolia. Think about watching the Gobi, mighty Urals and The Great Wall of China behind the window of your rail compartment. From Moscow the whole way passes through dense forests of pine and birch, here and there interrupted by abandoned industries. You will cross the Volga River at one place. Siberian plane has many swamps, steppe grasslands and forests. Lake Baikal, the largest lake of world crosses the way.

Entering in Mongolia you will cross the Gobi desert and grasslands. Chinese Great Wall is visible after the train emerges through tunnels.

I can bet that journey to Mongolia would be a memorable one for those who love to explore off-beat venues. However Mongolia has many adventure tours and you may get more of them via our travel guide.

Miss sneha is a travel planner of offbeat places.