Today you take an overnight flight to Ulaanbaatar.

Your guide meets you at the airport and you head straight out into nature. Just outside the capital lies Terelj National Park, known among other things for its edelweiss meadows. After a welcome breakfast you hike through the wide, hilly and rocky landscape and get a first impression of Mongolia (easy, approx. 4 km, approx. 2 hrs, +/- 140 m). The rest of the day is for settling in. (B/L/D) (Distance: approx. 80 km; driving time: approx. 2 hrs) Note: On departures during the Naadam festival, the visit to Terelj National Park is replaced by an extra night in Ulaanbaatar so you can enjoy the celebrations.

1 night · Double room · With breakfast The Terelj Lodge lies in Terelj National Park, about 55 km east of Ulaanbaatar; Turtle Rock and a hillside temple are 2–3 km away. A small ger museum tells the history of the Mongolian yurt, and the restaurant serves Mongolian cuisine.

On the way back to the city you stop at the huge equestrian statue of Genghis Khan, who as Great Khan united numerous Mongol tribes into one empire. In Ulaanbaatar you visit Sukhbaatar Square, the heart of the city, and the Zaisan Memorial on a hill overlooking Ulaanbaatar. Before a traditional Mongolian dinner you also visit the Winter Palace of the Bogd Khan. (B/D) (Distance: approx. 60 km; driving time: approx. 1.5 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast The Ramada Hotel is centrally located in Ulaanbaatar, close to Sukhbaatar Square. It has a restaurant serving international and local cuisine, a fitness centre, a wellness area and a 24-hour reception. The practical rooms have a work area, private bathroom and free Wi-Fi.

The day begins at the Buddhist Gandan Monastery, where – if possible – you attend a morning prayer and your guide introduces you to Buddhism. Then you head to Hustai National Park, the last stretch by off-road vehicle. On a hike through forest and steppe you may, with luck, see Przewalski’s horses, which were successfully reintroduced here after becoming extinct in the wild. The park is also home to red deer, wolves, lynx, steppe foxes and marmots (easy, approx. 4 km, 1–2 hrs, +/- 180 m). (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 110 km; driving time: approx. 2 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

On the way you visit the Khar Bukh ruins, a historic fortress. In Gurvanbulag a landscape of forests, mountains and desert-like plains awaits, which you explore on a short walk (easy, approx. 2 km, approx. 1 hr, +/- 50 m). After an optional horse ride, you cook “khorkhog” with your hosts in the evening – a meat stew cooked with hot stones. Overnight at the nomad community’s ger camp. (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 220 km; driving time: approx. 4 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

On the way to Karakorum you visit the Khoshoo Tsaidam archaeological site with 8th-century Göktürk inscriptions and memorial stones. In the afternoon you reach Karakorum, the former capital of the Mongol Empire, destroyed by Chinese troops at the end of the 14th century. Some 200 years later Erdene Zuu, Mongolia’s first Buddhist monastery, was founded here. At the weekly market your guide points out local specialities. You then visit a felt workshop set up as a project to support unemployed and single mothers. (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 150 km; driving time: approx. 4 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

Today you travel to the Orkhon Valley (UNESCO World Heritage). With your guide you walk along the river past fields and gentle hills to the Ulaan Tsutgalan waterfall, where the water plunges a good 20 m (easy, 6–7 km, approx. 3 hrs, +/- 60 m). In the late afternoon a nomad family welcomes you in typical Mongolian fashion with a snuff bottle. With luck you can try airag, fermented mare’s milk – whether it is available depends on how good the summer has been for the mares. Overnight at a ger camp on the Orkhon. (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 120 km; driving time: approx. 2–3 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

On the Ongi River you visit the ruins of Ongi Monastery. Until 1921 it was one of the largest in Mongolia, home to more than 1,000 monks; in the 1930s it was almost completely destroyed, and partial reconstruction began in the 1990s. Afterwards you take an easy walk through the steppe and hills (easy, approx. 2 km, approx. 1 hr, +/- 50 m). (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 260 km; driving time: approx. 5 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

Today you reach Bayanzag, one of the most famous dinosaur fossil sites, and learn more about the history of these giant reptiles. In the evening, weather permitting, you watch a glowing red sunset at the “Flaming Cliffs” (easy, approx. 4 km, approx. 2 hrs, +/- 80 m). (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 140 km; driving time: approx. 4 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

Today you drive to Khongoryn Els, one of Mongolia’s largest dune fields, stretching for around 100 km. In the late afternoon you climb the “singing dunes”, which hum in certain winds (moderate, approx. 1 km, approx. 1 hr, +/- 150 m). The climb through sand is strenuous, but at the top an unforgettable sunset rewards you. (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 180 km; driving time: approx. 4 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

Early in the morning you drive along the Gobi Altai, a spur of the Altai range that spans four countries. In the Yolyn Am vulture gorge you walk beside a clear stream – ice-covered depending on the season – ever deeper between steep rock walls. Look out for ibex on the slopes and birds of prey overhead (easy, approx. 4 km, approx. 2 hrs, +/- 70 m). (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 210 km; driving time: approx. 5 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

Through the Middle Gobi you travel to Tsagaan Suvarga, the “White Stupa”. You explore the colourful limestone formations on an easy hike and can look for shell fossils (easy, approx. 5 km, approx. 2 hrs, +/- 100 m). The day ends with sunset in front of the cliffs. (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 200 km; driving time: approx. 5 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

Getting up early pays off: you watch the sunrise at the White Stupa. After breakfast you drive to Baga Gazriin Chuluu, an impressive granite rock formation home to wild sheep, ibex, marmots and vultures (easy, approx. 5 km, approx. 2 hrs, +/- 100 m). (B/P/D) (Distance: approx. 240 km; driving time: approx. 5–6 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast You stay at a typical ger camp in a two-person yurt. Showers and toilets are separate shared facilities.

Today you return to the capital. There is time for last souvenirs before you look back on the journey together over a farewell dinner. (B/L/D) (Distance: approx. 240 km; driving time: approx. 5 hrs)

1 night · Double room · With breakfast The Ramada Hotel is centrally located in Ulaanbaatar, close to Sukhbaatar Square. It has a restaurant serving international and local cuisine, a fitness centre, a wellness area and a 24-hour reception. The practical rooms have a work area, private bathroom and free Wi-Fi.

After breakfast you are taken to the airport for your flight back to Europe. (B)