Do it yourself travel in mongolia
Some basics
Safety
I found Mongolia to be perfectly safe for me, a solo woman traveler. I was warned by everyone about pickpockets in the capital, UB. In fact, one of my hosts was pickpocketed as we walked down a busy street together. Luckily she noticed, and her cell phone was not stolen. However, you must follow instructions. Once I was staying in a ger camp in the countryside, and was shown how to 'lock' my door at night by tying it shut. In the middle of the night, some hoodlums galloping on horses tested my door, so I was glad I had tied the door as shown! Can I drive myself? Oh, my gosh. No!!! (Unless you are an extremely experienced 4WD driver, such as the Overland Discovery couple listed on the Reading tab.) I strongly suggested to my Mongolian friend when I was planning my trip that I would like to rent my own vehicle and drive myself, since I prefer to move at my own pace. Now that I've been to Mongolia, I understand why she was completely adamant in numerous messages that I should absolutely not rent a vehicle and drive it myself. First of all, within UB the driving culture is really different from the USA, Europe, Kenya, and everywhere else I've been, except Saigon, Vietnam. Traffic rules are unknown. Intersections seem organized, but I don't know how-- some of them have tall stands in the center, upon which a policeman stands and directs traffic during rush hour. Almost no space is between your car and the car in front of you (really! just a few inches). Traffic is heavy, like highways at rush hour in Los Angeles, except that the main road is only 2 lanes wide in each direction, instead of 5 or 7 lanes. Invariably, there is a car broken down in one of the lanes. Pedestrians do not have any rights when crossing the roads, even if they have a green light and a crosswalk. Outside of UB, the roads are often dirt pasture. Sometimes I could not see the road, but my driver could-- it can be hidden to most tourists. Other times I could see 5 dirt roads intersect, run parallel for a kilometer, and then split in various directions. Also, the rivers, steep gullies, and mud require a very experienced 4-Wheel-Drive driver My friends brother used a GPS, a map, binoculars to look in the distance to see where the road goes, and asked directions in every small village to know the best route based on any mud due to recent rain. I could not have done this, since in the villages no English is spoken, and there are no signs. Wait! We did see a sign once in one larger town, but it was in Mongolian script, so I could not read it. So, plan on getting a driver. If you bike or trek, take GPS, maps, etc. Take care of yourself! Be aware, that some maps (including the one I bought) actually have some villages in the wrong place. You cannot depend only on a map. To see roads in real life, you can watch the episodes 5 and 6 of "The Long Way Round" on Netflix, with Ewan McGregor. In real life, he and his friend ride their motorcycles from London to NYC. Homestay in a ger In UB, I stayed in my Mongolian friends' apartment and a guesthouse (Golden Gobi). I also stayed in gers in the countryside. The homestay rate may be difficult to negotiate one-on-one, as culturally Mongolians are hesitant to set a price on their hospitality. Everywhere I stayed had the price arranged for me, and was about $15 per day, which included a bed for the night, dinner and breakfast. Lunch was a few dollars more, and was eaten wherever we were passing through-- either at a ger in the middle of the countryside, or at a small restaurant if we were passing through a town. During my homestays, I learned how to put up a ger, how to brush goats for their cashmere hair, how to prepare foods, such as dumplings, goat testicles, and blood sausage. I also saw (and sometimes attempted to assist in) milking yaks, horses and goats, train horses, and a lot more! I love learning about culture and hanging out with cute children and baby farm animals. On several nights I shared a ger with only my guide (I'm female and he is male). There was never any problem. My guides are from the countryside, and are used to sharing a ger with both male and female family members, so gave me privacy to change my clothes. Everyone (adults and children) was fascinated by my evening ritual of removing items from my backpack and changing into my pajamas. I could practically hear the oohs of surprise at as I pulled my sleeping bag out of its tiny stuffsack. Sometimes I felt awkward with everyone watching me in my pajamas, but I also found myself interested in watching their evening ritual of getting ready for bed -- washing their face, opening cupboards and removing so much bedding, and turning the sofas into beds. So, I realized, we were both enthralled in watching how other people live. Drinking Water I had one water bottle with me. Traveling by vehicle, we could buy drinking water in 2-liter bottles in villages. While horsetrekking, I would point at my bottle in the evening before going to bed, and my guides always understood that tourists want boiled water. They would let the family know, and in the process of making breakfast, when the woodstove was already hot, a kettle of plain water would be boiled for me. No problem at all! I did not carry any water purification tablets or pumps. |
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cheap self-tour ($50 or less per day)
To arrange a tour with additional people, plan to spend a couple of extra days in UB to find those travelers. The biggest expenses are gasoline/petrol and drivers salary. Therefore, with more people in your tour bus (typically a Russian army van) to share those costs, your tour will be less expensive. Guesthouses and drivers are not in the business of finding additional people to join you, but may let you post a note on a bulletin board. I traveled on my own, which is more expensive when gas/petrol is involved. Gas/petrol is approximately the same prices as in California (approximately $4 per gallon or $1 per liter).
You are not required to have an English/German/other language tour guide. These people are great, and there were several times I wished I'd had a guide. A few times, guides for another tourists who I met, were kind enough to do some translation for me, or answer a few of my questions. I had so many questions!
Cheap camping gear can be bought at the Black Market Bazaar. This is probably cheaper than renting gear from your guesthouse or tour company. I camped a few nights, but found that the gers are so nice and cozy with a woodstove inside. The beds are single size, and generally perfectly comfortable for a tired body. I didn't mind paying $7-10 per night to sleep in a bed. Typically, ger camps charged $15 for dinner, breakfast, and a bed for the night. $3 extra for lunch.
Food can be bought in market towns every 2 or 3 days, so you can prepare your own food. However, if you are not on a very cheap budget, I highly recommend you do not buy your own food, whenever possible. When staying at a ger camp you can always buy a hot dinner, which costs $3 or $4. I had goat stew, pasta with yak meat, soups, and dumplings. For breakfast I had fried bread with fresh yak butter, topped with as much sugar as you can stand. I loved yak butter! It's naturally sweet, even without sugar added. I travel to try new foods and learn more about the culture and people. Also, when I bought dinner at the ger camp, I was invited to eat in the kitchen ger. This allowed me to see the inside of a ger that is lived in. The sleeping gers for tourists are not lived in, so don't have the furniture with family photos, or the Buddhist altar, horse gear, and other items I found fascinating.
You are not required to have an English/German/other language tour guide. These people are great, and there were several times I wished I'd had a guide. A few times, guides for another tourists who I met, were kind enough to do some translation for me, or answer a few of my questions. I had so many questions!
Cheap camping gear can be bought at the Black Market Bazaar. This is probably cheaper than renting gear from your guesthouse or tour company. I camped a few nights, but found that the gers are so nice and cozy with a woodstove inside. The beds are single size, and generally perfectly comfortable for a tired body. I didn't mind paying $7-10 per night to sleep in a bed. Typically, ger camps charged $15 for dinner, breakfast, and a bed for the night. $3 extra for lunch.
Food can be bought in market towns every 2 or 3 days, so you can prepare your own food. However, if you are not on a very cheap budget, I highly recommend you do not buy your own food, whenever possible. When staying at a ger camp you can always buy a hot dinner, which costs $3 or $4. I had goat stew, pasta with yak meat, soups, and dumplings. For breakfast I had fried bread with fresh yak butter, topped with as much sugar as you can stand. I loved yak butter! It's naturally sweet, even without sugar added. I travel to try new foods and learn more about the culture and people. Also, when I bought dinner at the ger camp, I was invited to eat in the kitchen ger. This allowed me to see the inside of a ger that is lived in. The sleeping gers for tourists are not lived in, so don't have the furniture with family photos, or the Buddhist altar, horse gear, and other items I found fascinating.