Ulaanbaatar is the entryway to any trip to Mongolia. While this is not a wonderful world city, there is enough to do here to keep busy for a day or two upon arrival or departure. I was traveling with a small photography group this trip and linked up with Premium Mongolia Travel as our in country coordinator. This is not an easy country to travel alone in and have a fulfilling personal experience but UB (as it is commonly called) is easy to explore solo.

EXPERIENCE

This is a capital city worth exploring. Note that this city has high pollution due to lots of coal power plants, so consider that before planning lots of time to walk around. A great place to start is the Main Square is called Chinggis Square. Here there is a large statue and impressive open space to take it all in from. My initial impression of UB was surprised by the Russia meets China dynamic. I was surprised to see the Cyrillic alphabet everywhere despite Mongolia seeming so connected to China in my mind. I was also surprised by the clear national obsession with Genghis Kahn that is very much still alive in this country. While this seems like ancient history to me, the legend, lore and glory of this conquerer are a part of daily life in Mongolia and a tremendous source of national pride.

Next I was surprised to learn that the majority of Mongolian people are in fact Shamanist rather than Buddhist. This is a world religion I have not experienced much of and was eager to know more. Clearly I was even less prepared from my visit to Mongolia than I had realized and was feeling in urgent need of some background on this country full of so many eras of diverse history. I headed straight for the National History Museum to get up to speed. My favorite parts of this museum were the traditional costumes and textiles. They are beautifully preserved and some of the most intricate indigenous dress I have ever seen. There is also a wonderful collection of masks that feel very Chinese influenced. I loved how the rooms were arranged by era allowing the complex modern culture of Mongolia to start forming for me– Eras of Soviet rule, Ghengis Kahn and Chinese influences all woven together. While I am far from an expert on Mongolian history, I felt like this museum provided me with a little context with which to begin my journey.

A great next stop to follow up with is The Fine Arts Zanabazar Museum for masks, embroidery and paintings. This museum further captures the diversity of this country with art reflective of various eras and religious influences. I thought some of the work in this museum was among the prettiest art I have ever seen. The museum is full of beautiful embroidered wall hangings and garments as well as lots of Buddhist prints. From here head over to the State Department Store for some shopping. The base floor has a wonderful grocery store and it goes up from there to reveal about six small floors of shops including a few European favorites and lots of local cashmere kiosks.

Devote several morning hours to the Gandantegchinlen Monastery, it is of Tibetan style and right inside the city and a great place to experience Mongolian Buddhist culture. Founded in 1727, this monastery is home to about 150 monks of all ages. I’d recommend going for morning prayer call and then exploring the various structures to see what you can get a peak at. This place is very colorful and full of red robed monks that are going about their business but somewhat welcoming of tourists as long as you’re respectful about photography limits. There is a giant 87 foot statue of Megjid-Janraiseg in the main structure which is quite impressive.

While in UB you cannot miss taking a drive out to the giant Genghis Kahn Statue outside the city. The statue is really in honor to his horse but it is quite a site. Where here climb to the top for a great view of the endless landscape. There are local costumes here to try on, which seems silly but is sort of fun since they are authentic– try being a queen for the day.

Nearby the city, in Töv Province (Aimag), is Hustai National Park also known as Khustain Nuruu National Park. The park was a two to three hour drive each way from UB. This place is very unique and special because it is home to the Przewalski Horses. Thanks to the biologists and conservationists in this park, these horses have made a miraculous recovery from being totally extinct in the wild. Today approximately 300 horses live in the park and can be spotted in harems in safari like drives. We had a little trouble finding them for the first few hours here, but eventually we were able to get a look at these beautiful animals roaming and running completely freely on the hillsides.

I spent my last days in UB avoiding the traffic and pollution and instead choose to check out the Aroma Thera Spa & Salon at the Best Western for a 60 minute hot stone massage and pedicure. I highly recommend a warm and relaxing finish to the trip after roughing it around rural Mongolia.

STAY

On my visit I spent six nights total in UB divided evenly between the beginning and end of the trip were all at Hotel Nine which was very nice. It is very easy to walk the entire city from here in a day and the location is very close to an ATM and the main square. The hotel offers a quite nice breakfast and has warm rooms, clean showers and great wifi. The Best Western next door also looks very nice, and has more amenities like the Spa and Fitness Center and the Shangri-La has a nice reputation too.

EAT

Like many of my recent travels to remote corners of the world, Mongolia is a little limited in its access to high quality dining. The food in UB is decent if you know where to look. While here check out Namaste for Indian, I’d recommend the butter chicken and garlic naan. The Rosewood has a great reputation for bread and fresh salads. One of the more unique dining experiences I had here was at Pyongyang, a North Korean restaurant. Here I had a local beer and the buckwheat noodle dish which was served with several fermented tasters, similar to what we’re accustom to seeing at a South Korean restaurant in the US. Coffee shops and grocery stores are really nice and have most things available.

While here I had hot pot and sushi at Nagomi Sushi Restaurant which was decent. Given that this country is landlocked, I’d recommend going for the hot pot option even though the locals seem quite excited to finally have a sushi restaurant in town. On our way back through we had a pretty impressive dinner at Silk Road Bar and Grill where I had a really nice Caesar salad and Tandoori Chicken, this is a nice spot for a fancier meal as they have a decent wine list. Double Shot, which seems to be a coffee and Western dining franchise is located conveniently under Hotel Nine, which is handy for on the go coffees and familiar cocktails.

Overall UB is a fast growing and interesting city. While it is not a place you can spend countless days, it is an interesting fusion of many influences that I am still attempting to wrap my mind around. Make the most of your time here if you make it to Mongolia.