Mongolia Encompassed: Naadam Festival — Self-Launched
17 days · Mongolia
G Adventures charges £4,230
No-markup version: ~£1,095 per person
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
A self-launched 17-day version of G Adventures' Naadam Festival circuit: three days of festival action in Ulaanbaatar, Genghis Khan statue and Terelj National Park, then a shared 4x4 loop through Middle Gobi, Yolyn Am, the Khongoryn Els dunes, the Flaming Cliffs and Ongiin Khiid ruins, finishing with a nomadic family stay and Khustai National Park. Instead of a private vehicle and CEO, you book Naadam tickets yourself, join a shared Gobi 4x4 tour (or hire a driver-guide with other travellers), and use guesthouses and ger camps along the way. Costs are rough per-person estimates in GBP; the biggest saving comes from ditching the group markup, and the biggest cost is still the Gobi vehicle.
Day-by-day
Arrive Ulaanbaatar
Ulaanbaatar
Land at Chinggis Khaan International Airport and take a metered taxi or the airport shuttle bus into the city centre (~8,000–15,000 MNT / £2–4). Check into a hostel or guesthouse in the Sukhbaatar Square area, sort a local SIM with Unitel or Mobicom (~£5–8 for data), and walk Sukhbaatar Square in the evening. Grab dinner at a guanz (canteen) for a first taste of buuz (steamed dumplings) and khuushuur.
🚌Airport taxi/shuttle ~£3
🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse near Sukhbaatar Square, £10-14
- →Airport transfer to city centre
- →Sukhbaatar Square walk
- →Guanz dinner
Naadam opening ceremony
Ulaanbaatar
Naadam tickets are sold via the official Naadam organising committee and at ticket offices around the city — buy well in advance (late June) as the opening ceremony sells fast. Witness the opening ceremony at the National Sports Stadium: colourful costumes, the 'three manly sports' of wrestling, archery and horse racing. In the afternoon wander the festival grounds. Drop by Cafe No Limits (the G for Good project on the original tour) for coffee and snacks served by young people with Down Syndrome and their mothers. Evening: optional cultural performance and fireworks at Sukhbaatar Square.
🚌Walking / city bus ~£1
🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, £10-14
- →Naadam opening ceremony ticket
- →Festival grounds
- →Cafe No Limits visit
- →Optional cultural show (~£7)
Horse racing finish and wrestling finals
Ulaanbaatar
Head to Khui Doloon Khudag (the horse racing steppe on the city's edge) for the finish of the Naadam horse races — 15–30 km races ridden by child jockeys, one of the world's most distinctive racing spectacles. Share a taxi back into town (~£5 split), catch the wrestling finals at the stadium, then the closing ceremony at National Sports Stadium.
🚌Shared taxi to Khui Doloon Khudag ~£3-5
🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, £10-14
- →Naadam horse race finish
- →Wrestling finals
- →Closing ceremony
Genghis Khan Statue and Terelj National Park
Gorkhi Terelj National Park
Book a day trip to Terelj (many Ulaanbaatar hostels and agencies sell this for £25–40 per person including a driver, or join a shared minibus from the Dragon Bus Terminal area). Climb the gigantic Genghis Khan Equestrian Statue (~£7 entry), then continue to Gorkhi Terelj National Park for Turtle Rock and the Aryabal Meditation Temple. Enjoy a ger-camp lunch before returning to the city in the evening.
🚌Shared day-trip minibus ~£10-15
🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, £10-14
- →Genghis Khan Statue Complex
- →Turtle Rock
- →Aryabal Meditation Temple
- →Terelj National Park
Free day in Ulaanbaatar
Ulaanbaatar
Self-guided city day: Gandan Monastery (morning prayers), Bogd Khan Palace Museum, Zaisan Hill for city views, and the National Museum of Mongolia for context on the Naadam tradition. If you'd prefer a guide, book a Ulaanbaatar city walking tour via GetYourGuide or direct with a local operator (~£20-30). Evening: pick up your Gobi tour departure details and stock up on snacks and cash — ATMs get sparse west of the city.
🚌City buses/taxis ~£3
🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, £10-14
- →Gandan Monastery
- →Bogd Khan Palace Museum
- →Zaisan Hill viewpoint
- →National Museum of Mongolia
Ulaanbaatar to Baga Gazriin Chuluu
Baga Gazriin Chuluu, Middle Gobi
Start the Gobi loop. Rather than a private vehicle, book a shared 4x4 driver-guide (small operators arrange this for 3-6 travellers; roughly £45-70 per person per day vehicle share) or join one of the small-group Gobi tours departing Ulaanbaatar and ask specifically for the Middle Gobi → Yolyn Am → Khongoryn Els → Bayanzag → Ongiin Khiid → Khustai routing. Drive south to Dungobi Aimag, stopping at Choir Monastery en route. First ger camp night of the trip.
🚌Shared 4x4 ~£50-70 per person per day (fuel and driver)
🛏Ger camp, shared facilities, £15-22
- →Choir Monastery
- →Middle Gobi drive
Yolyn Am ice gorge
Yolyn Am, Gurvan Saikhan National Park
Continue to Yolyn Am, a narrow gorge in the Gurvan Saikhan mountains where ice persists year-round in shadowed sections. Hike into the gorge (bring sturdy shoes and warm layers — it's genuinely cold inside even in July) and visit the small natural history museum at the gorge entrance featuring Gobi wildlife and dinosaur artefacts.
🚌Shared 4x4
🛏Ger camp or guesthouse near Yolyn Am, £15-22
- →Yolyn Am gorge hike
- →Natural history museum
Drive to Khongoryn Els
Khongoryn Els
Long drive day across the Gobi toward Khongoryn Els, the 'Singing Dunes'. Stop at the local natural history museum in the village en route. Arrive with time to settle in and watch the dunes catch the evening light.
🚌Shared 4x4
🛏Ger camp at the dune edge, £15-22
- →Gobi drive
- →Local natural history museum
Khongoryn Els dunes and camel-herder family
Khongoryn Els
Morning hike up the biggest dunes in the western Gobi — it's a proper slog for the views, so start early before the sand heats up. In the afternoon visit a nomadic camel-herding family (your driver-guide can arrange this; a small cash gift or an agreed fee of ~£5-10 is polite) and take a short camel ride (~£8-12).
🚌Shared 4x4
🛏Ger camp, £15-22
- →Dune hike
- →Camel-herder family visit
- →Camel ride
Bayanzag Flaming Cliffs
Bayanzag
Drive to Bayanzag, the Flaming Cliffs, where the first dinosaur eggs were discovered in the 1920s. Walk the red-orange badlands at sunset and look for fossil fragments in the eroding scree (leave anything you find in place). Simple ger camp or tented camp nearby.
🚌Shared 4x4
🛏Ger camp or tented camp, £12-18
- →Flaming Cliffs walk
- →Dinosaur fossil site
Ongiin Khiid monastery ruins
Ongiin Hiid
Cross the western Gobi to the Ongi River valley and explore the ruins of Ongiin Khiid (the Hoshuu and Ongiin Khiid monastery complexes), largely destroyed in the 1930s purges. Entrance around £2-3. Stay overnight near Saikhan Ovoo.
🚌Shared 4x4
🛏Ger camp or guesthouse, £12-18
- →Ongiin Khiid monastery ruins
- →Ongi River valley
Into the grasslands: nomadic family stay
Mongolian steppe (Karakorum region)
Leave the desert and drive north into the open steppe. Arrange in advance via your driver-guide or an operator like a local community tourism group for a two-night stay with a nomadic herding family — expect multi-share sleeping in a ger, no facilities, and traditional meals. Observe milking, herding and daily life; bring small gifts (good coffee, sweets, school supplies for kids) rather than cash if preferred.
🚌Shared 4x4
🛏Nomadic family ger, multi-share, no facilities, £10-15 (includes meals)
- →Nomadic family stay
- →Traditional home-cooked dinner
Nomad life and Karakorum
Karakorum (Kharkhorin)
Morning with the family before driving on to Karakorum, the 13th-century Mongol capital. Visit Erdene Zuu Monastery (Mongolia's oldest surviving Buddhist monastery, ~£3 entry) and the Karakorum Museum. Walk to the Karakorum monument for the steppe panorama.
🚌Shared 4x4
🛏Guesthouse in Kharkhorin, £12-18
- →Erdene Zuu Monastery
- →Karakorum Museum
- →Karakorum monument
Khustai National Park and wild horses
Khustai National Park
Drive east toward Khustai National Park, home to reintroduced Przewalski's horses (takhi). Entrance ~£8-10 plus a small vehicle fee; the best sightings are in the early morning or late afternoon, so arrive with time for a game drive with a park guide (mandatory in some zones). Late in the day, continue on to Ulaanbaatar or overnight near the park.
🚌Shared 4x4
🛏Ger camp near Khustai or guesthouse in UB, £15-22
- →Khustai National Park
- →Takhi wild horse viewing
Return to Ulaanbaatar
Ulaanbaatar
Finish the loop back in the capital. Free afternoon for the things you missed: the Choijin Lama Temple Museum, State Department Store for cashmere and souvenirs, or the Narantuul market. If you'd like Mongolian throat singing, book a cultural show (~£7-10 direct, or via a hostel desk).
🚌Shared 4x4 return / city transport ~£3
🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, £10-14
- →Choijin Lama Temple Museum
- →State Department Store
- →Optional cultural performance
Ulaanbaatar free day
Ulaanbaatar
Buffer day to absorb any Gobi road delays (very common) and enjoy the city. Options: a half-day Terelj trip if you skipped it earlier, the Fine Arts Zanabazar Museum, or a day-trip to the Manzushir Monastery ruins. Evening: farewell dinner — try a proper khorkhog or buuz feast at a local restaurant.
🚌City transport ~£3
🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, £10-14
- →Museum visits
- →Manzushir Monastery day trip option
- →Farewell dinner
Departure
Ulaanbaatar
Check out and transfer to the airport (taxi ~£3 or shuttle). If your flight is late, leave bags at the hostel and take a last walk around the city. Note that Mongolia's visa-free entry for many nationalities (including UK, EU, US) is 30 days — check your own nationality's rules and confirm nothing changed; no tourist visa normally needed for short stays.
🚌Airport taxi ~£3
🛏None
- →Airport transfer
Self-launched vs. G Adventures
| This itinerary (self-launched) | G Adventures | |
|---|---|---|
| Price per person | ~£1,095 | £4,230 |
| Duration | 17 days | 17 days |
| Who books it | You and your group, direct | Tour operator, guided group |
| Savings | £3,135 per person (74%) | |
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
Want to see more G Adventures-style trips? Check them out here.~£1,095
estimated per person
You never pay Travel Crew for this — you pay hostels, transport, and activity providers directly, the same as if you'd booked it all yourself.
This publishes your dates so other travellers can find and join you — no tour operator needed.
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Frequently asked questions
How much does Mongolia Encompassed: Naadam Festival — Self-Launched cost?+
Doing it yourself with this self-launched itinerary costs an estimated £1,095 per person for 17 days in Mongolia. This is an AI-generated estimate based on typical budget-traveller prices — actual costs will vary by season and how you book.
Is this cheaper than booking with G Adventures?+
Yes — G Adventures charges around £4,230 per person for a similar tour. Doing the same route independently, using the same standard of accommodation and activities, costs an estimated £1,095 — a saving of roughly £3,135 (74%) per person.
How long is the Mongolia trip?+
This itinerary runs 17 days, covering 17 day-by-day stops through Mongolia.
How do I join this trip?+
You can join an existing open departure using this itinerary if one is scheduled, or launch your own departure with your own dates and invite other travellers to join you — no tour operator required.
Isn't it easier to just use a tour operator?+
Well, yes, a tour operator will book all the individual parts of your travel for you and provide a guide. That's obvious, but doing this has the potential to save the group thousands, which can in turn improve your itinerary substantially or save you huge amounts of money. Also, when you launch a departure, Travel Crew has tools in place to help you book the individual sections of the trip or make it easier for you to do this as a group. Really, you do not need a middle man. If you are more comfortable paying more and using a middle man, then you should certainly do this.
Is it safer to book through a tour operator?+
Arguably, there isn't much difference. A self-launched trip runs on the same principle as a group travel crew: collective responsibility, everyone looking out for each other, the same way it would if a group of friends organised the trip themselves — because that's exactly what's happening. You should always take out travel insurance before you go, self-launched or not; that doesn't change either way. Every open departure is published publicly with real dates and a real trip organiser, so it's never an anonymous arrangement, and our support team is reachable any time you need help, including in an emergency while you're away. Longer-term, we're building direct relationships with ground DMCs in popular destinations, offered as an optional paid add-on for extra on-the-ground support. Ultimately, though, the group is responsible for its own conduct and safety on a self-launched trip, same as on any trip you plan yourself.
What kind of trip is this?+
This is a adventure, culture, festivals trip through Mongolia, self-launched rather than run by a tour operator — you organise it with a group you find or bring yourself.
Would you like to name the operator, name the trip, or have any suggestions about how to improve this itinerary?
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