Lonely Planet Mongolia

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• Publisher: Lonely Planet
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN: 9781786575722
• eBook ISBN: 9781787019034

Ulaanbaatar

Sights

Activities

Festivals & Events

Sleeping

Eating

Drinking & Nightlife

Entertainment

Shopping

Ulaanbaatar

%011, 021, 051 / Pop 1.4 million

Why Go?

If Mongolia’s yin is its pristine countryside, then Ulaanbaatar (UB; Улаанбаатар) harmonises as its vibrant yang. It's a sprawling, industrialised city of pulsating commerce, wild traffic, sinful nightlife and bohemian counterculture. The contrasts within the city are intriguing: Armani-suited businessmen rub shoulders with mohawked punks and del-clad nomads fresh off the steppes; one minute you’re dodging the path of a Hummer H2 and the next you’re entranced by chanting Buddhist monks at Gandan Khiid. It's the coldest capital in the world, but come summer the city bursts into life after slumbering through a long winter.

Ulaanbaatar is not always the easiest city to navigate, but with a little patience travellers can take care of all their logistical needs, visit world-class museums, watch traditional theatre, sample international cuisine and party till three in the morning. Indeed, this ever-changing city may be the biggest surprise of your Mongolian adventure.

When to Go

AEarly Jun Enjoy temperate, sunny days before the summer tourists arrive en masse.

AMid-Jul The city comes to a halt for Naadam and its wrestling, archery and horse racing.

AAug Lounge at street cafes and swill beer during the last throes of summer.

Best Places to Eat

A Luna Blanca

A Hazara

A Tenger Restaurant

A Rosewood Kitchen + Enoteca

A Millie's Espresso

A Bull

Best Places to Stay

A Zaya’s Hostel

A Lotus Guesthouse

A Urgoo Hotel

A Best Western Tuushin Hotel

A Hotel Nine

Ulaanbaatar Highlights

1 National Museum of Mongolia Weaving through Mongolia’s ancient past at this impressive museum.

2 Gandan Khiid Walking the prayer circuit around the country’s largest monastery.

3 Winter Palace of the Bogd Khan Pondering the eccentric collection of curios and ...

Table of contents

• Table of Contents
• Welcome to Mongolia
• Mongolia's Top 13
• Need to Know
• If You Like...
• Month by Month
• Itineraries
• Trans-Mongolia Railway
• Outdoor Activities
• Organised Tours
• Road Trip
• Naadam
• Regions at a Glance
• Ulaanbaatar
• Central Mongolia
• Northern Mongolia
• Eastern Mongolia
• The Gobi
• Western Mongolia
• Understand Mongolia
• Mongolia Today
• History
• The Mongolian Way of Life
• Traditional Gers
• Spiritualism in Mongolia
• Mongolian Cuisine
• Tribal Mongolia
• Wild Lands & Wildlife
• Directory A-Z
• Transport
• Health
• Language
• Behind the Scenes
• Our Writers