Welcome to Ulan-Ude

With its smiley Asian features, cosy city centre and fascinating Mongol-Buddhist culture, the Buryat capital is one of Eastern Siberia’s most likeable cities. Quietly busy, welcoming and, after Siberia’s Russian cities, refreshingly exotic, it’s a pleasant place to base yourself for day trips to Buddhist temples and flits to eastern Lake Baikal’s gently shelving beaches, easily reachable by bus. For some travellers UU is also a taster for what’s to come in Mongolia.

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Founded as a Cossack ostrog (fort) called Udinsk (later Verkhneudinsk) in 1666, the city prospered as a major stop on the tea-caravan route from China via Troitskosavsk (now Kyakhta). Renamed Ulan-Ude in 1934, it was a closed city until the 1980s due to its secret military plants (there are still mysterious blank spaces on city maps).

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Top experiences in Ulan-Ude

Amazing hotels and hostels

We've pre-picked the best hotels, hostels and bed and breakfasts to make your stay as enjoyable as possible.

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Travel guides

Starting at $32.49

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Ulan-Ude activities

$3144.15 Rail

Epic Trans-Siberian Journey

Imagine trying to cover ground across Russia far west to far east — a crazy thought, huh? The solution: Get on the Trans-Siberian with us and watch this epic land glide by through the window of a comfortable train. After visiting the historic sights of Moscow, take the train through the Ural Mountains (and cross into Asia!) to Yekaterinburg, before heading to the heart of Siberia in Irkutsk and Lake Baikal. Learn about Buryat culture in Ulan-Ude before heading to the coast in Vladivostok. The whole trip covers 9,300km (5,778 mi) and crosses seven time zones. Whether you go in the summer or winter, this trip is the definition of epic.
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