festival, cultural.qxpGreat Camel Festival in the Gobi Desert

Mongolia’s two-humped Bactrian camel is nicknamed by local people the Gobi Ship. It inhabits the Gobi desert in the southern part of Mongolia. Camels still carry a large portion of the freight in this roadless country, as well as gers (yurts) of the nomadic people when they move from place to place. Because the camel is an inseparable part of life for nomadic Mongolians, it has become a tradition in Mongolia to organizae a Camel Festival every year in honor of this strong and beautiful animal. A local association of camel herders organize this gathering of camels and their breeders each year to promote continued breeding of the Bactrian camel and to educate both Mongolians and foreigners on the importance of the camel in the Mongolian way of life. Camels and riders compete in a race, in camel polo tournaments, and even in a camel “beauty contest” where owners display the finest saddles and rigging for their camels.

festival, cultural.qxpDay 1: Ulaanbaatar city
Upon your arrival at the Buyant-Ukhaa International Airport in Mongolia, you will meet the Mongolei Reisen crew and transfer to the Bayangol hotel, conveniently situated in downtown Ulaanbaatar. After freshening up from your trip, we will spend the day with a walking tour of some of the capital’s most noteworthy sites starting out at the heart of Ulaanbaatar, Sukhbaatar Square. Here we will see the statue of Sukhbaatar, the hero of
the Mongolian revolution, the Parliament house, National Opera, and City Hall. Afterwards we’ll visit Zaisan Hill, which offers great views of the city. Before dinner, you will attend a performance of traditional dancing and singing. Mongolia is best known for the traditional form of throat singing, khoomii, and the horse-headed fiddle that accompanies many traditional songs. Overnight in hotel (L, D)

Day 2: South Gobi Desert
An early-morning flight takes us to the South Gobi Desert – a stunning landscape of mountains, rock and sand. We will spend the afternoon at the Camel Festival, a local event highlighting Mongolia’s camel-culture. The festival includes demonstrations of camel-polo and other events. The day’s activities will end with a local children’s dance show. Overnight in ger camp (B, L, D)

Day 3: Camel Festival
We will attend the second day of the festival, watching a variety of entertaining camel races, followed by the closing ceremony. Overnight in ger camp (B, L, D)

Day 4: Vulture’s Gorge / Bayanzag
We spend the day touring the magnificent Gobi Gurvan Saikhan national park where we will see the remarkable “Vulture’s Gorge”, an exotic setting of green meadows and dense glaciers situated deep within the arid Gobi. You may have the chance to catch sight of some of this area’s abundant wildlife, including the rare argali sheep and mountain goat.
In the afternoon we will visit the ancient rock formations at Bayanzag, made famous by American scientist Roy Chapman Andrews’s discovery here of complete dinosaur skeletons and eggs in the 1920s, the first discovered anywhere in the world. Overnight in ger camp (B, L, D)

Day 5: Ulaanbaatar
We fly back to Ulaanbaatar, and spend our last day touring the city. We’ll stop by the center of Mongolian Buddhism, Gandan Monastery to learn a little about Buddhism in Mongolia and see the spectacular 25 meter, 20 ton statue of the Megjjd Janraysig Buddha. After that we’ll tour the Natural History Museum which has several exhibits on the flora and fauna of Mongolia plus a room of dinosaur skeletons discovered

Day 6: Departure
Our adventure together ends with your transfer back to the Buyant-Ukhaa International Airport for your departure.