Mongolian Yak Safari & Nadaam Festival
Mongolia is a land of stark and often spectacular beauty. This journey takes us from the capital, Ulaanbaatar, to the many contrasting features in the vast countryside, such as the endless steppes, the lakes of Arkhangai and the sands of the Gobi Desert. It is also a cultural journey where we meet and travel with the nomadic descendants of a people whose empire once dominated most of Asia. Karakorum (Harhorin) was the former capital of Genghis Khan’s Mongol Empire and the Erdene Zuu Monastery still reflects the faded glories of the past. We stay in gers (local style tents, also known as yurts) on our journey, and also join our Mongolian friends and their camels on a short desert trek. We may also come across wildlife in Hustai National Park and Zorgol Hairhan Mountain.
Ancient medieval games still survive in Mongolia and are part of the living cultural heritage of that country. Wrestling, horse races and archery are still the most popular sports. In July, the National Naadam is held in the capital and all across the country. The largest is in Ulaanbaatar. Herdsmen arrive on horseback from distant provinces, simultaneously training their horses. Such a journey lasts for anything between one to three months! A giant nomadic camp is set up on the steppe area outside Ulaanbaatar, during the night of July 10th. This program provides a close encounter with the Mongol ‘Three Manly Games’ of horseracing, wrestling and archery. The skills required for these activities date back to the medieval times of Genghis Khan armies, and perhaps even as far back as the time of the Huns.
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Tour Highlights
- Low-impact ger camping in Gobi's Ikh Nart Nature Reserve
- Khan Khentii's protected environmental zone
- Yak trek in the spirit of a nomad
- Former Soviet Union-influenced Ulaanbaatar
Inclusions
Peregrine tour leader, local guides, arrival and departure transfers, transport, sightseeing and entrance fees.
- 4 breakfasts, 2 lunches, 2 dinners
Mongolian Yak Safari & Nadaam Festival
Day 1
Ulaanbaatar (10th July)
Meals Privided:
On arrival in Ulaanbaatar, you are transferred to your hotel. In the evening, you meet your tour leader and the other group members for a pre-tour briefing. This is generally followed by an optional group dinner at a local restaurant. The Mongolian Capital is a buzz as you witness the build-up to the country’s biggest festival. There is training going on at the small archery stadium and some of the competitions will start early, such as the children’s archery and one for the Buryat people, competing in their own distinctive Buryat style. These sessions are often more relaxed and offer better opportunities for photographers, as opposed to the more crowded Naadam days. In the evening the horse trainers move their horses, along with their mobile camps, closer to the city and pitch camp in the steppe areas.
Day 2
Ulaanbaatar - Naadam (11th July)
Meals Privided:
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
In the morning Naadam is officially opened by the President of Mongolia. Soldiers on horseback, sometimes dressed in Genghis Khan warrior regalia, first carry nine white horsetail banners around town. They collect the banners at the Parliament, where they are normally displayed, and then ride with them in procession through the city, before placing them in the centre of the National Stadium. This is the site where we view the opening ceremony. Usually the first round of wrestling starts immediately afterwards. Around 512 wrestlers from all across Mongolia will compete in the first round! But sometimes there are more than 700! There are no judges, no time limits and no weight limits! There is a chance to attempt to see the archery competitions (if we haven’t already done so the previous day) before heading out to the steppe areas on the fringes of the city. We visit to the nomadic tented camps that have sprung up and experience a concentration of nomadic Mongolia, all at the one site! Herdsmen have come with their horses and all provisions for the festivities, which include airag or kumiss (fermented mare’s milk) for the merrymaking. Stroll around the area and you are likely to be invited in somewhere. You may also try your luck at the finals of the horse races, but prior instructions are necessary, as joining a full horse race with several hundred participants is a potentially hazardous situation!
Day 3
Ulaanbaatar - Naadam (12th July)
Meals Privided:
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
The horse races are continuous over the two main Naadam days and today we will start early in the morning and try our luck to find a site beyond the restricted zone, where a close up encounter is possible with some 700 children on horseback. Normally, with the huge crowds and police restrictions, real close up experiences are not possible. Mongol horseracing is part of a living cultural heritage, similar to the equestrian tradition that took the Mongol armies to faraway places, during medieval times. The afternoon is buffer time to accommodate personal requests, but we will continue our quest to experience the Naadam Games, possibly repeating some of the previous experiences. This is a chance to catch up with something that we may have missed or to experience other elements of Naadam.
Day 4
Ulaanbaatar - Naadam (13th July)
Meals Privided:
Breakfast
You enjoy a free day in Ulaanbaatar – perhaps visit some of the museums or other sights that you missed out on seeing on Day 2. Alternatively you can also travel out to Hui Doloon Hudag Steppe, where the horse races took place, and watch the horse trainers have their own wrestling competition. This usually starts around 11am and it is recommended that you take a packed lunch with you, as food is not available out there.
Day 5
Ulaanbaatar (14th July)
Meals Privided:
Breakfast
Your Naadam extension ends after breakfast.
