Terelj Area

Introducing Terelj Area

Terelj sum (district), about 55km northeast of Ulaanbaatar, is a playground for urban-weary Ulaanbaatarites. At 1600m, the area is cool and the alpine scenery magnificent, and there are great opportunities for hiking, rock climbing, swimming (in icy cold water), rafting, horse riding and, for hard-core extreme-sports fanatics, skiing in the depths of winter.

Terelj was first developed for tourism in 1964 and 30 years later it became part of Gorkhi-Terelj National Park. A few of the tourist developments here are hard on the eyes and ears; some ger camps have concrete car parks, ugly electricity poles, TV antennae and discos at night, and locals overcharge for goods and services. But you can easily get away from all this if you want.

In late summer, the mosquitoes at Terelj can be appalling – at times, the worst in the country – so make sure you have insect repellent with you.

There is a T3000 entry fee to the park for each person, which you’ll have to pay at the park entrance, 6km from the main road.

Terelj village (GPS: N47° 59.193’, E107° 27.834’) is about 27km from the park entrance, at the end of a paved road. It’s in a nice location near the river but there’s not much here apart from a few shops, a café and a ger camp.

Last updated: Feb 17, 2009