Wander to Mongolia

May 15

Highlights: Arrival day, welcome dinner

Included: Dinner

Upon arrival in Ulaanbaatar, you’ll be met by our personal driver and transferred to our hotel in the city center. Once everyone has arrived, we’ll have an evening orientation followed by a welcome dinner that introduces authentic Mongolian flavors!

May 16

Highlights: Full tour of Ulaanbaatar, throat singing show

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today we’ll get a real introduction to Ulaanbaatar, a city where modern blocks, monasteries, and busy street corners all sit side by side. We’ll start at the National Museum of Mongolia so you’ll have strong context for everything we’ll see out on the countryside, from early cultures and deer stones to Chinggis Khan and the Mongol Empire. From there we’ll head to Sukhbaatar Square to see the heart of the capital, then we’ll walk through a local market where people shop for practical things such as felt boots, saddles, tea, dried dairy snacks, and everyday supplies. After lunch we’ll wrap the day with a folk performance featuring throat singing, long song, and the morin khuur, the horse head fiddle, which is one of the best ways to feel Mongolia’s spirit.

May 17

Highlights: Flight to Mörön, Lake Khövsgöl

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

After breakfast we’ll take a 90-minute flight to Mörön, the small capital of Khövsgöl Province in northern Mongolia. This is the main gateway to Lake Khövsgöl, and we’ll start with a visit to a busy market that serves herding families from the surrounding countryside. This is a great place to see the practical side of life here and the supplies that keep remote communities moving. From there we’ll drive toward the lake through open country and larch forest, and you’ll start to feel the distances Mongolia is known for, with wide skies, scattered homes, and herds appearing and disappearing in the landscape. Along the way we’ll pass ovoo cairns where travelers leave small offerings for safe passage, and we’ll pause a few times to stretch our legs and take in the views. By late afternoon we’ll reach our lakeside ger camp, and you’ll have time for a first quiet walk along the shore before dinner.

May 18

Highlights: Boat and horseback rides

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today will be a relaxing day out in nature. We’ll head out for a half day boat ride on Lake Khövsgöl, where the water is clear, the shoreline is a mix of pebble coves and forest, and the views feel calm in a way that’s hard to find elsewhere. We’ll return to camp for lunch and a short break before heading out for easy horseback riding on flat trails near the shore. Mongolian horses are small, sturdy, and sure footed, and we’ll keep a gentle pace with time to pause and take in the scenery. If you prefer not to ride, you can enjoy a walk along the lakeside or stay at camp and soak up the calm surroundings.

May 19

Highlights: Local market, drive to Tarvagtiin

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

We’ll retrace our route to Mörön today, with a quick stop at the lively market to see stalls stacked with dried cheese, fresh produce, tools, saddles, and other everyday goods. This will be a good chance to catch one more glimpse of life in the north before we head deeper into the countryside. From there we’ll embark on a scenic drive toward the Tarvagtiin range on a route that shifts between paved and gravel roads. This will be a big landscape day, the kind where Mongolia starts to feel truly open, with long stretches of steppe, grazing animals, and very few signs of hurry. We’ll make a few stops for tea, photos, and a simple break from the road, then we’ll cross a higher pass with views over summer grazing camps before dropping into a quieter valley where we’ll spend the night and enjoy a low key evening close to nature.

May 20

Highlights: Mongolia’s scenic nature

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today we’ll follow one of central Mongolia’s most scenic tracks, crossing grasslands and shallow streams before climbing into volcanic country. As we gain elevation, the land will change fast, with darker rock, old lava fields, and rolling hills that feel almost untouched. By afternoon we’ll arrive at Terkhiin Tsagaan Nuur, White Lake, a crater lake formed by ancient eruptions near the Khorgo volcano, and we’ll settle into our camp with wide views over the water. You’ll have time to take a walk along the shore, spot birds, and watch the light shift across the lake before dinner.

May 21

Highlights: Volcano crater, Chuluut Canyon, Tsenkher, thermal pools

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

We’ll start the day with a visit to a small lakeside pilgrimage site, then we’ll head to Khorgo Volcano for a walk up to the rim, where you’ll be able to look into the crater and out across the lava fields and understand the region in one glance. After that we’ll drive toward Tsenkher, following the dramatic basalt walls of Chuluut Canyon where the river has cut deep into old lava flows, and we’ll stop at viewpoints as the landscape changes from open steppe to canyon edges and rocky folds. On the way we’ll also visit a shrine tree wrapped in khatags, the blue silk scarves tied for luck and safe travel, then by late afternoon we’ll reach the pine forest and meadows around Tsenkher and you’ll be able to soak in outdoor thermal pools before dinner, with steam rising as the evening cools.

May 22

Highlights: Nature hike, herding family

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

After a short drive, we’ll head out for a gentle walk beside a clear stream, moving through pine forest and past smooth granite boulders as the path climbs toward a wide lookout. We’ll stop for a Mongolian picnic lunch, then we’ll visit a nearby summer ger to meet a herding family in their seasonal home, one of those experiences that feels simple but stays with you because it’s so direct and real. This is their seasonal home, so you’ll get a real sense of how daily life is organized out here, from the stove and food supplies to the space for sleeping and work. Here we'll be invited to help with daily tasks such as rolling noodles, stirring milk tea, or shaping dumplings. We'll also talk about the animals, the seasons, and how dairy is prepared and dried. By late afternoon we’ll be back at camp for a soak in the outdoor hot pools, with time to rest and enjoy the calm before dinner.

May 23

Highlights: Tuvkhön Monastery, Orkhon

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

We'll follow the river today toward Tuvkhön Monastery, a 17th century retreat founded by Zanabazar, where the setting is quiet and the views start to open up as we climb. We’ll explore the small chapels and meditation caves and hear why this became a place of study and reflection, then we’ll continue by road through volcanic landscapes where old lava fields and broken basalt stretch out on both sides. By late afternoon we’ll arrive in the Orkhon Valley, a UNESCO cultural landscape shaped by centuries of herding and movement along the river, and we’ll settle into our ger camp right in the middle of it, with open grasslands, the river nearby, and a sky that makes everything feel bigger.

May 24

Highlights: Orkhon Canyon, Camel Valley, Shankh Monastery

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today we’ll get a deeper feel for the Orkhon Valley with a mix of short walks and stops that show how water, pasture, and history all overlap here. We’ll start with an easy walk across open country to the rim of Orkhon Canyon, where the river cuts through dark lava far below, then we’ll drive to a high viewpoint over a tight river bend for one of the best wide angle looks in the valley. From there we’ll head to Camel Valley to visit the slab stone site, a field of upright stones tied to ancient traditions, then we’ll visit Shankh Monastery, one of Mongolia’s oldest active monasteries, where you’ll hear chanting and feel how Buddhism still fits into daily life today. If time allows, we’ll finish with a stop above Kharkhorin for sunset views over the valley and the area linked to the former Mongol capital. We’ll then continue by road to the Kharkhorin area for the night.

May 25

Highlights: Full-day tour of Karakorum

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today we’ll focus on Karakorum and the Orkhon Valley’s role in Mongolia’s past and present. We’ll start at the local museum so you’ll be able to picture what the imperial capital was actually like, not just as a name in a history book, then we’ll head to Erdene Zuu Monastery and arrive in time for the morning puja so you can hear the low chanting and ritual instruments inside the walls. After lunch we’ll stop at Turtle Rock for an easy viewpoint over town, then we’ll continue to the Monument of Empires, built to mark the 800th anniversary of the coronation of Chinggis Khan and to tell the story of major empires tied to this valley, before returning for a relaxed evening.

May 26

Highlights: Shifting landscapes

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

We’ll leave Kharkhorin after breakfast and drive about 2.5 hours to the Khogno Khan area for a morning hike. This pocket of landscape is known for dramatic granite outcrops rising from open steppe, and it is an excellent place to see how quickly Mongolia’s scenery can shift. We’ll take time to explore the formations and enjoy the views. We’ll then continue for about 30 minutes to a nearby seasonal lake, where we may spot migratory waterfowl resting on their route between the Siberian tundra and warmer regions farther south. In the afternoon we’ll drive roughly 45 minutes to Elsen Tasarkhai and step into a very different setting as we arrive at the edge of the desert. These dunes mark the northern reach of the Gobi. Here there will be an optional easy walk across the sand. By late afternoon we’ll settle into our camp overlooking the desert and enjoy a quiet evening after a day that bridges rock, steppe, and sand.

May 27

Highlights: Morning dunes, Mongol Nomadic Center

Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today we'll head out before breakfast for an optional sunrise walk on the dunes, when the desert is calm and the light changes fast across the sand. After breakfast we’ll stretch our legs again on easy trails in the Khogno Khan area with views back toward the dunes and the plains beyond, then by late morning we’ll drive about four hours to the Mongol Nomadic Cultural Heritage Center. The afternoon will be hands-on and a lot of fun! We'll help move camp, put up a ger, and get a clear feel for how nomadic life works day to day. Depending on what’s happening on site, you may also try milking, learn how felt is made, and watch herding skills, music, and riding up close. We’ll end the day with a farewell dinner and a final night under a huge Mongolian sky.

May 28

Highlights: Drive back to Ulaanbaatar, departure day

Included: Breakfast

After breakfast we'll transfer to the Chinggis Khan Airport for flights home, carrying the scent of wood stoves and hot springs. **IMPORTANT: Please make sure your departure flight out of Mongolia is later than 2:00 PM in order to have enough time to transfer to the airport.