Embark on a three or five week guided Off Road Mongolia tour, crossing the Gobi desert and the Khangai mountains to ride horses into the taiga and stay with the Tsaatan reindeer herders.

08 FAQs

• How long is the Gobi–Taiga Traverse?

  The full traverse is 34 days from the airport across the Gobi desert to the Tsaatan reindeer herders in the northern taiga and back to Ulaanbaatar, covering approximately 6,400 km.

  The tour is also available in two halves. The Desert Leg is 17 days from Terelj through the Gobi desert, Khermen Tsav and the Gobi Altai to the ancient capital of Kharakhorum. The Forest Leg is 21 days from Hustai and Kharakhorum north to the Darkhad valley, the Tsaatan reindeer herders, Khuvsgul lake and home along the Eg, Selenge and Orkhon rivers. Both halves change over at Kharakhorum on the same evening, so you can join or leave without missing a day of the route.

• Does the tour start in Ulaanbaatar?

  It starts at the airport, but not in the city. We meet your flight and drive straight out — to Terelj National Park if you are on the Desert Leg or the full traverse, or to Hustai National Park if you are joining the Forest Leg. You take the vehicle, get the safety briefing and sleep your first night in the countryside. Ulaanbaatar comes at the end of the journey, not the beginning.

  Your flight needs to land before 14:00 for this to work. If you arrive later, or want a night to recover from a long flight, add a pre-tour night in Ulaanbaatar at checkout.

• Who are the Tsaatan and how much time do we spend with them?

  The Tsaatan, or Dukha, are Mongolia’s reindeer herding people — a few hundred individuals living in the taiga forest of the far north, close to the Russian border. They live in urts, birch-pole tipis, and move camp several times a year with their herds. Their way of life is among the last of its kind anywhere in the world.

  On this Mongolia off road tour you spend three nights at a Tsaatan camp, reached on horseback. This is not a day visit. You arrive in the afternoon, spend two full days in the camp, and ride out on the fourth morning — enough time to see how the camp actually works rather than photographing it and leaving. Our community fee is paid directly to the herders.

• Do I have to ride a horse to reach the reindeer herders?

  Yes. There is no vehicle access to the Tsaatan camp. The ride is roughly half a day in each direction, three to four hours in the saddle, through forest and across boggy ground. No previous riding experience is necessary — the horses are calm and the horsemen lead — but you should be in reasonable health and prepared for a couple of stiff days afterwards. Vehicles and everything you do not carry in a saddlebag stay with a herder family at Renchinlkhümbe.

• How challenging is the driving?

  This is our Tour Level 5 route, the most demanding we run. Three sections stand out: the navigation leg to Khermen Tsav, where there is no fuel, no water and no settlement for two days; the river crossings in the Khangai and the Darkhad, which run high in early summer; and the Jigleg pass over the Khoridol Saridag mountains, which is steep, rutted and rocky and where winching is routine rather than exceptional.

  Basic 4×4 experience is strongly recommended. Our guides drive the hardest sections with you and, on request, for you.

• When does the tour run and why those dates?

  The 2027 departure runs 26 May to 28 June. The dates are built around one fixed point: the Jigleg pass must be crossed after the spring snowmelt has drained and before the summer rains begin, which puts it on 20 June. Everything else follows. It also means the Gobi is crossed before the summer heat, Khuvsgul lake is clear of ice by the time you reach it, and the Darkhad is behind you before the worst of the mosquito season.

• What is Khermen Tsav?

  A system of red sandstone canyons in the far south-west Gobi, several hundred kilometres from the nearest fuel. It is one of the great dinosaur fossil sites of Mongolia and one of the most spectacular landscapes in the country, and its remoteness means almost no Mongolia tours include it. You camp on the rim and spend a full day exploring the canyon on foot.

• What kind of accommodation is there?

  A mix. A lodge at Terelj on the first night, hotels at Bayankhongor, Kharakhorum and Mörön, traditional ger camps at Khongoryn Els and Khuvsgul lake, a ger family stay in the Darkhad, three nights in a Tsaatan urts in the taiga, five-star in Ulaanbaatar at the end, and twenty-one nights camping in the wild. On this route the camping nights are the ones people remember.

• Can I do just the Gobi, or just the reindeer herders?

  Yes. The Desert Leg covers the Gobi and the Khangai and finishes at Kharakhorum. The Forest Leg starts at Hustai and Kharakhorum and covers the Darkhad, the Tsaatan, Khuvsgul lake and the northern rivers. Both are complete tours in their own right and either can be booked alone.

• What gear should I bring?

  A sleeping bag rated for cool nights, layered clothing, a windproof jacket, full waterproofs, sturdy boots, river shoes for the crossings, sun protection, and a mosquito head net for the taiga. Gobi nights in late May are close to freezing while the days reach thirty degrees; the Darkhad in mid-June can go from sun to sleet in an hour. A full packing list is sent before departure.

• Are permits needed?

  Yes, and we arrange them. The route passes through Hustai, Gobi Gurvansaikhan, Khuvsgul Lake National Park and the Khoridol Saridag protected area, and the Tsaatan region near Tsagaannuur sits inside a border zone requiring a separate permit. All park entries and the Tsaatan community fee are included.

• What happens if the Jigleg pass is closed?

  If conditions on the day make the pass unsafe, we exit the Darkhad by the road route via Ulaan-Uul and reach Khuvsgul lake from the south. This costs one day of driving and changes nothing else — by the time we reach the pass, the reindeer herders are already behind us. This is one reason the route is built in this direction.

• Can solo travellers or couples join?

  Yes. Solo travellers can drive a vehicle alone in the convoy or join the crew car. Couples share a vehicle. Group size is capped at four guest vehicles plus the support vehicle — smaller than our other tours, because of the pass, the deep-desert navigation and the footprint we are willing to bring into a Tsaatan camp.

• What is the difference between this and your other northern Mongolia tours?

  Most tours reach the Tsaatan from Mörön and return the same way. This one arrives from the Gobi, having crossed the entire country first, and leaves over the mountains to Khuvsgul lake rather than backtracking. It is the difference between visiting northern Mongolia and travelling to it.

• Can I customise the tour?

  Yes. Private and custom versions of the Gobi–Taiga Traverse are available on request, including chauffeured options if you would rather not drive. Contact us for more information.