Logistics

Hi! My sister and I are planning on going to China and Mongolia in August. China is all planned, but we aren't sure about Mongolia. It's been my dream to go there for ages, but we cant find any good tours within our time frame (only about 7 days mid-August). I know its really short, but we would love to go. Is it possible to see Mongolia by yourself or is it absolutely necessary to go with a tour group? Also, whats the best way to get from Beijing to Ulaan Bataar? Quickest and safest :)

Take train from Beijing to Ulaanbatar, capital of Mongolia.

I would recommend you to take a direct train to UB from Beijing.

The quickest is a flight. Both MIAT and Air China operate on this route. I would definitely say that MIAT has a better reputation for reliability.

The train is 30 hours and it only operates 2-3 times per week so you could lose even more time if its departure doesn't match your travel dates. The daily options mean traveling to the border, crossing and then traveling to UB and take two nights and the day in between.

The international train is very expensive because tickets must be purchased through a travel agency. Before ruling out the idea of flying, check the train ticket costs. Try contacting CITS, www.cits.net or Richard Tian of Ocean Travel, whose email is oceantravelcn@yahoo.com.cn or richards@public3.bta.net.cn. Reportedly these companies are quite reliable about obtaining the tickets at a fair price and delivering them during the day to your hostel or hotel in Beijing. Be sure to add them to your address book so that your spam filter does not "Eat" their responses.

Regarding tours, there is minimal infrastructure so if you are hoping to visit places outside the capital city you really need to take a tour. Search this forum for information on 4 day and 5-7 day trips. The former are usually close to UB, the latter tend to be either towards the Gobi desert or Lake Khovsgul.

Contact the guest houses which often put together tours - try Golden Gobi, Khongor, Idre's, Zaya, etc.

Ruth

Contact Khongor [http://mandarinmedia.com/projects/khongor/] for tour and August is a good time to visit.

Have a look at www.tours-mongolia.com as they do trips of varying lengths, especially to the Gobi.

Hi, in the globetrekker show for Mongolia two guys sum it up: "you either need time or money, we have neither so did nothing". Basically getting around yourself is cheaper but takes time which you don't have so book a tour or a driver and you will get the most out of it. A driver gives you more flexibility and might be the best of both worlds?

Finding tours in your timeframe now isn't that important - you can turn up in UB and go to the guesthouses in person to find groups that are going to where you want to go, and link up with them . Plenty of backpackers do the same thinga nd in August there will be a lot going. The only issue might be a shortage of driver at that time. If you're concerned you should look through old posts on here and contact some of the guesthouses that are recommeneded regularly.