Altai Tavan Bogd National Park
Western Mongolia
Covering 6362 sq km, Altai Tavan Bogd National Park takes in the Tavan Bogd massif – which includes Khuiten Uul (4374m), Mongolia's highest mountain…
Must-see attractions in Western Mongolia
Western Mongolia
The southern shore along Khoton Nuur has excellent camping spots, especially around Ulaan Tolgoi, a spit of land that juts majestically into the lake. The…
Western Mongolia
Üüreg Nuur (elevation 1425m) is 20km long and 18km wide, with an average depth of 27m. Surrounded by mountains of 3000m-plus, and almost entirely devoid…
Western Mongolia
The lake's main attraction Khetsuu Khad, an enormous rock sticking out of the water that attracts migratory cormorants. The birds arrive in April and…
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Western Mongolia
This huge cave looks deceptively small from the parking area. But once you scramble up the loose rock path, you realise its true size and how it must have…
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Western Mongolia
High up in the protected area of mountains north of Üüreg Nuur, a 14m waterfall cascades over black rocks. It's a 10km slog (most people drive this bit)…
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Western Mongolia
Crowning a level platform of boulders atop Dayan Uul is this 30m-high sedimentary rock tower, draped with blue cloth and encircled by prayer wheels. The…
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Western Mongolia
Western Mongolia's second highest mountain – the permanently snow-capped Tsambagarav Uul (4208m) – straddles the border between Khovd and Bayan-Ölgii…
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Western Mongolia
This pretty alpine lake is surrounded by mountains and makes a great destination on foot or by horse from Tarialan; the trip is about 15km up Davaan…
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Western Mongolia
The bleakly inviting teal expanse of Tolbo Nuur unfurls for 20km beside the paved Ölgii–Khovd City Rd. Despite being 2080m above sea level, the lightly…
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Uvs Nuur Strictly Protected Area
Western Mongolia
Uvs Nuur Strictly Protected Area (7125 sq km) consists of four separate areas: Uvs Nuur, Türgen Uul, Tsagaan Shuvuut Uul and the Altan Els Strictly…
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Western Mongolia
Spread through the mountains of the Dara region are nine freshwater lakes varying in size from 100m to 2km in length. The easternmost lake, known locally…
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Western Mongolia
Several brightly painted Buddhist temples have been erected on this hilltop in Dörgön sum (district) on the northeastern shore of Khar Us Nuur; the…
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Western Mongolia
This museum has the usual collection of stuffed wildlife, plus excellent ethnic costumes, Buddhist and Kazakh art and a snow leopard pelt on the wall. One…
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Otgon Tenger Uul Strictly Protected Area
Western Mongolia
Encompassing rivers, lakes and rocky peaks in the Khangai range, this protected area (955 sq km) wraps around Otgon Tenger Uul (meaning 'youngest sky'),…
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Khökh Serkh Strictly Protected Area
Western Mongolia
Meaning 'Blue Goat' in Mongolian, this mountainous area (659 sq km) on the border with Khovd is a haven for snow leopards, argali sheep and ibex. This is…
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Western Mongolia
The Khuiten Uul Base Camp (3092m) offers stunning views of all the five peaks as well as the 12km-long Potanii Glacier, which tumbles out of the range. It…
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Western Mongolia
These two graves, plonked incongruously on the grassy plain that runs down to the shore of Üüreg Nuur from OT Tour Camp, are each marked by a balbal …
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Western Mongolia
This remarkable habitat (103 sq km) straddles the Bayan-Ölgii/Uvs border and centres around Develiin Island in the Usan Khooloi and Khovd rivers. It is…
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Western Mongolia
The best petroglyphs in the area, if not all of Central Asia, can be found at Tsagaan Sala, in a river valley between Ulaankhus and Tavan Bogd. The…
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Western Mongolia
Simply meaning 'blue lake' (one of many so-named lakes in Mongolia), Khökh Nuur sits between Dayan Uul and Otgon Tenger. Just over 5km long, its grassy…
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Western Mongolia
Khyargas Nuur National Park (3328 sq km) is an area of springs and rocky outcrops encompassing Khyargas Nuur, western Mongolia's second largest lake and…
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Altan Els Strictly Protected Area
Western Mongolia
This protected area (1482 sq km) due east of Uvs Nuur contains the world’s northernmost sand dunes and protects threatened desert plants.
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Western Mongolia
Khar Us Nuur (15,800 sq km, average depth 4m) is a vast marshy delta and Mongolia's third biggest lake by area, home to wild ducks, geese, wood grouse,…
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Western Mongolia
This freshwater lake offers swimming and fishing, and it makes a logical camping spot if travelling between Ulaangom and Khovd City; it's is 102km south…
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Western Mongolia
At the northern end of the city are these crumbling ruins, built around 1762 by the Manchu (Qing dynasty) warlords who once brutally governed Mongolia…
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Western Mongolia
This hilltop near the river and to the northeast of Uliastai's main street features a pavilion, 11 stupas and the concrete likenesses of elk, ibex and…
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Mönkh Khairkhan Uul National Park
Western Mongolia
Established in 2006, this national park protects an important habitat for ibex and argali sheep. It's home to Mönkh Khairkhan Uul (4362m, Tavan Khumit),…
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Western Mongolia
At 3796m above sea level, this mountain crowns a teardrop-shaped massif encircled by Khar Us, Khar and Dörgön lakes. Dara Tour can organise trekking in…
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Western Mongolia
The incumbent Mongolian president is obliged to visit this ceremonial ovoo (shamanistic collection of stones, wood or other offerings to the gods) every…
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Western Mongolia
The old-fashioned Ölgii Aimag Museum gives a basic overview of Kazakh culture and the geography of Bayan-Ölgii. The 1st floor has some terrifically bad…
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Western Mongolia
This decent aimag museum contains the bone of a mammoth, some fine religious art and a coral tsam mask, worn during lama dances. There are also a few…
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Western Mongolia
This okay museum has the usual dusty exhibits, plus a section on the 16th-century Oirad leader Amarsanaa (the chain-mail jacket is supposedly his). There…
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Western Mongolia
With a total area of 1400 sq km, this park borders Russia and has two sections, one around Türgen Uul (sometimes referred to as Siilkhem A), the other…
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Western Mongolia
The shoreline of Khurgan Nuur is dry and exposed. Few people travel along its southern shore, but if you are going this way, you can seek out a stupa-like…
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Great Gobi 'B' Strictly Protected Area
Western Mongolia
Straddling Khovd and Govi-Altai aimags, this strictly protected area in the Gobi Desert was created to protect khulan (wild ass), gazelle, jerboas and…
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Western Mongolia
Officially opened in 2010, this is the largest monastery in western Mongolia. The compound is surrounded by a wall (with a path on top) and 108 stupas…
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Western Mongolia
Next door to the History Museum (and included in its admission price) the Museum of Famous People features well-known Zavkhanites, including Mongolia’s…
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Western Mongolia
A pair of hillocks 3km west of town have a few petroglyphs etched into the boulders on top, and more in the narrow canyon between them. Performances are…
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Western Mongolia
Close to Tavan Bogd, the lower slopes of Sheveed Uul (3350m) and its surrounding valleys contain some fascinating petroglyphs depicting wild animals and…
