Must-see attractions in Mongolia

  • Stupa monastery Amarbayasgalant in the moonlight
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    Amarbayasgalant Khiid

    Mongolia

    Amarbayasgalant Khiid was built between 1727 and 1737 by the Manchu emperor Yongzheng, and dedicated to the great Mongolian Buddhist and sculptor…

  • Ongiin Khiid, Saikhan Ovoo, Mongolia - 07 19 15: Buddhist Ongiin Khiid temple building at the monastery ruins of Ongiin Khiid which is a tourist attraction in the remote Gobi of Mongolia; Shutterstock ID 1883979241; purchase_order: 65050; job: ; client: ; other:
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    Ongiin Khiid

    The Gobi

    The bend in the river here marks the remains of two ruined monasteries which are today considered one vast complex known as Ongiin Khiid. Bari Lam Khiid…

  • Siberian Ibex (Capra sibirica) at Ikh Nart Nature Reserve in Mongolia.; Shutterstock ID 1659526936; your: Barbara Di Castro; gl: 65050; netsuite: digital; full: poi
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    Ikh Nartiin Chuluu Nature Reserve

    The Gobi

    This 670-sq-km nature reserve, only a four-hour drive from Ulaanbaatar, at an elevation of 2200m, is home to hundreds of ibexes (mountain goats), argali …

  • Sand dunes Khongoryn Els in Gobi Desert, Umnugovi, South Gobi, Mongolia.
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    Khongoryn Els

    The Gobi

    Khongoryn Els are some of the largest and most spectacular sand dunes in Mongolia. Also known as the Duut Mankhan (Singing Dunes – from the sound they…

  • Yolyn Am or Eagle valley is a deep and narrow gorge in the Gurvan Saikhan Mountains of southern Mongolia, near town Dalanzadgad in Gobi Desert; Shutterstock ID 1246836706; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI
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    Yolyn Am Gorge

    The Gobi

    A pleasant 2km path leads from the parking area to this gorge filled with blue ice, one of the park's can't-miss sights. You can hike, bike or hire a…

  • Earth energy center - northern entrance to Shambhala in Gobi desert near Sainshand. Mongolia; Shutterstock ID 2089127335; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI
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    Shambhala

    The Gobi

    In 1853 Danzan Ravjaa told the local people that he would die in three years but that they could forever come to this place and speak to his spirit…

  • Bayanzag, Flaming Cliffs, Mongolia, Asia; Shutterstock ID 1262892721; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI
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    Bayanzag

    The Gobi

    The so-called Flaming Cliffs are a Gobi highlight and an important palaeontology site first excavated by Roy Chapman Andrews in 1922. Even if you are not…

  • Scenery near Yolyn Am, Gobi desert, Mongolia

    Yolyn Am

    The Gobi

    Yolyn Am was originally established to conserve the region's bird life, but it’s now more famous for its dramatic rocky cliffs and narrow, heavily shaded…

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Yolyn Am valley is located at Gurvan Saikhan Mountains of southern Mongolia.

    Gurvan Saikhan National Park

    The Gobi

    Gurvan Saikhan National Park (20,000 sq km) offers a wealth of sand dunes, canyons, dinosaur fossils and mountainous terrain. Desert wildlife includes…

  • Aerial panorama of textural colorful striped canyons Tsagaan suvarga - White stupa at sunrise. Ulziit soum, Dundgovi province, Mongolia
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    Tsagaan Suvarga

    The Gobi

    A 400m-long jigsaw of white-sand cliffs, striped pastel shades of purple, orange and red. That's the scene awaiting you at Tsagaan Suvarga, a sight…

  • Stupa of Erdene Zuu monastery in the town of Kharkhorin, Mongolia.

    Erdene Zuu Khiid

    Mongolia

    Founded in 1586 by Altai Khaan, Erdene Zuu (Hundred Treasures) was the first Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. The monastery went through periods of neglect…

  • National Museum of Mongolia.

    National Museum of Mongolia

    Ulaanbaatar

    Mongolia’s wonderful National Museum sweeps visitors from the Neolithic era right to the present day. It’s UB's only genuine blockbuster sight, offering…

  • The Choijin Lama Temple Museum is a Buddhist monastery in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

    Choijin Lama Temple Museum

    Ulaanbaatar

    This temple museum smack in the middle of downtown Ulaanbaatar was the home of Luvsan Haidav Choijin Lama (‘Choijin’ is an honorary title given to some…

  • View of the Winter Palace of the Bogd Khan, now a museum, located in southern Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

    Winter Palace of the Bogd Khan

    Ulaanbaatar

    Built between 1893 and 1903, this palace is where Mongolia’s eighth Living Buddha, and last king, Jebtzun Damba Hutagt VIII (often called the Bogd Khan),…

  • Aerial view of the equestrian statue of Genghis Khan.

    Chinggis Khaan Statue Complex

    Mongolia

    Few tourists come to Mongolia without visiting its most iconic landmark, a 40m-high glistening silver Chinggis Khaan statue. Constructed in 2008 from…

  • Terkhiin Tsagaan Nuur, Mongolia

    Terkhiin Tsagaan Nuur

    Mongolia

    Protected within the Khorgo-Terkhiin Tsagaan Nuur National Park, this scenic freshwater lake is around 16km long, east to west, and around 4km to 6km wide…

  • Khoton Lake at the foot of the Altai Mountains near the Chinese border, Altai Tavan Bogd National Park.

    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…

  • Zaisan memorial in the south of Ulaanbaatar.

    Zaisan Memorial

    Ulaanbaatar

    Built by the Russians to commemorate 'unknown soldiers and heroes' from various wars, the Zaisan Memorial features stirring socialist realism imagery with…

  • Khoton Nuur lake in Mongolian Altai.

    Khoton Nuur

    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…

  • Zanabazar Museum of Fine Arts

    Ulaanbaatar

    This fine-arts museum has a superb collection of paintings, carvings and sculptures, including many by the revered sculptor and artist Zanabazar. It also…

  • Uureg Nuur Lake, saline lake in an endorheic basin in western Mongolia.

    Üüreg Nuur

    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…

  • Deluun Boldog

    Mongolia

    In a boundary zone of steppe and taiga some 3.5km north of Dadal village, you'll find a grouping of rounded hills and shallow gullies intercut with clear…

  • International Intellectual Museum

    Ulaanbaatar

    This museum contains an intriguing collection of puzzles and games made by local and international artists. One puzzle requires 56,831 movements to…

  • Ganga Nuur

    Mongolia

    From the end of September until mid-October, this lake is home to thousands of migrating swans. Along the shore, in a fenced compound, is delicious spring…

  • Khentii Ethnography Museum

    Mongolia

    This excellent museum occupies the 18th-century home of the Tsetseg Khan, who governed most of eastern Mongolia during the Manchu reign. Standout exhibits…

  • Yalaltiin Khoshuu

    Mongolia

    As Soviet propaganda goes, this victory monument, located just outside Khalkhgol, is a masterpiece of the genre. The sculpture features a stylised…

  • Gandan Khiid monastery, Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia

    Gandan Khiid

    Ulaanbaatar

    Around the start of the 19th century more than 100 süm (temples) and khiid (monasteries) served a population of about 50,000 in Urga (the former name of…

  • Mongolia, Ulan Bator, Sukhbaatar square

    Sükhbaatar Square

    Ulaanbaatar

    In July 1921 in the centre of Ulaanbaatar, Damdin Sükhbaatar (the ‘hero of the revolution’) declared Mongolia’s final independence from China. A square…

  • Tövkhön Khiid

    Mongolia

    Hidden deep in a pine forest in the mountainous Khangai Nuruu National Park, this scenic monastery has become a major pilgrimage centre for Mongolians…

  • Khustain Nuruu National Park also known as Hustain National Park is a declared protected area and home to the reintroduced Takhi Horse or Przewalski’ Horse.
Khustain Nuruu National Park also known as Hustain National Park is a declared protected area and home to the reintroduced Takhi Horse or Przewalski’ Horse.
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    Khustain National Park

    Mongolia

    Situated around 100km southwest of Ulaanbaatar, this 506-sq-km reserve is most famous for its population of takhi, a Mongolian wild horse once thought…

  • Mongolia's natural beauty. Uvs aimag, Khyrgas soum, Khyrgas lake, Khetsuu Khad nearly; Shutterstock ID 2011478780; your: Barbara Di Castro; gl: 65050; netsuite: digital; full: poi
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    Khetsuu Khad

    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…

  • Tsenkheriin Agui

    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…

  • Karakorum Museum

    Mongolia

    Kharkhorin's museum is small, but highly impressive – probably the country's best museum outside Ulaanbaatar. Everything is beautifully designed and well…

  • Waterfall

    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)…

  • Museum of Arkhangai Aimag

    Mongolia

    This is one of the best aimag museums in the country, not least because it is housed in the charming courtyard-temple complex of Zayain Gegeenii Süm,…

  • Khorgo Uul

    Mongolia

    With its surrounding lava field, this 200m-tall extinct volcano dominates the area to the east of the lake. From its west side there are stairs leading up…

  • Baruun-Urt Ethnography Museum

    Mongolia

    Baruun-Urt’s museum has a fine collection of costumes representing the three ethnic groups that inhabit the region: the Khalkh (the majority), the…

  • Dayan Uul Rock Tower

    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…

  • Mongolian National Modern Art Gallery

    Ulaanbaatar

    Sometimes called the Fine Art Gallery, this place contains a large and impressive display of modern and uniquely Mongolian paintings and sculptures, with…

  • Dornod Aimag Museum & Gallery

    Mongolia

    Inside the former Government House, the comprehensive collections here stampede through the aimag's history, from Stone Age and Bronze Age finds to the…

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