3-Day Local Naadam Experience and Nomadic Homestay

This 3-day local Naadam festival tour isn’t your typical experience – don’t just watch the festival, join in! Watch horse racing, wrestling, and archery up close. Book now June 30 – July 2, 2025.

What is a Furgon? And Why are they Everywhere in Mongolia?

Camping and Homestay Packing List: 10 Things You Need

Highlights of this 3-day local Naadam festival experience include:

Stay with a local family for 2 nights and sleep in a traditional Mongolian ger (yurt).
Embark on a sunset horseback ride through the beautiful valley the herder lives in.
Experience a small local Naadam where you can get up close to the action.
Don’t just see the three many sports, horse racing, wrestling, and archery – experience them for yourself! You’ll have the unique chance to learn from the locals and join in. You won’t find this level of participation and interaction with any other Naadam festival tour.

Don’t just watch Naadam – experience it! (If you don’t know what Naadam is, read this guide to Mongolia’s best festival.)

Thanks to our friends at Fairfield Guesthouse in Tsetserleg, this tour gives you the chance to see a Naadam festival like never before. This kind of access isn’t just for entertainment, this is an authentic Naadam festival.

Watch local wrestlers compete to win gold. Then, if you think you’re manly enough, challenge them to a match of your own!

Afterwards, watch as master archers gracefully shoot at their targets before teaching you how to do the same.

The highlight of the festival is always the horse racing and today is no different. Cheer on the young locals racing to the finish line to claim victory for their family.

Why do I think this Naadam experience is so special?

As someone who has been in Mongolia for more than seven years, I love the access this experience gives you. If you attend any other festival in the country, I guarantee you won’t have the chance to jump in and have a hands-on experience like this.

This is a one-of-a-kind experience that gives the herders and local families a chance to share this festival with you. You aren’t just a spectator, you’re a participant!

Stand beside them as they proudly share their heritage and culture with you. These are memories they won’t ever forget – and neither will you.

This trip starts and ends in Ulaanbaatar and doesn’t include any accommodation in the capital. We will depart from a designated meeting point on the morning of June 30 and will drop you off at that same meeting point on the evening of July 2.

If you need a place to stay, these are the best hotels to book in Ulaanbaatar →

You will need to bring a sleeping bag and sleeping pad for this trip for the nomadic herder homestay. Think of this like a Mongolian camping experience!

Below you’ll find a day-by-day breakdown of this 3-Day Local Naadam Experience, and what it includes.

Meals included in this tour are indicated as Breakfast (B), Lunch (L), and Dinner (D).

Day 1 / June 30, 2025: Leave Ulaanbaatar and Drive to Arkhangai Province

We will meet at a designated point in Ulaanbaatar’s city center early this morning to pack up the furgon and hit the road.

During today’s journey we will:

Stop for a local lunch.
Reach our herder host family by the early evening.
Go for a sunset horseback ride to help herd in the animals.
Have your first taste of Mongolian buuz.

Meals: L/D; Overnight: Nomadic Homestay

Accommodation Notes: Our nomadic family hosts will have a separate ger (yurt) for us to share as a group and sleep in, separate from the family’s ger. A sleeping bag and sleeping pad are required for this trip. There will be no beds in this shared yurt. You should also plan that there will be no running water, electricity, and that all toilets will be pit-style.

Day 2 / July 1: Local Naadam Experience

Today is the day, it’s time to experience your first Naadam Festival!

Highlights of today will be:

Live wrestling matches & open challenges (this is your chance to see if you can beat a Mongolian wrestler!)
Traditional Mongolian archery
Horse riding and speed races
Traditional cultural games and activities

Meals: B/L/D; Overnight: Nomadic Homestay

Day 3 / July 2: Say Goodbye to Our Host Family and Back to Ulaanbaatar

Now that you’ve tried your hand at the three manly sports, and channeled your inner herder spirit, it’s time to head back to Ulaanbaatar. Say a thankful goodbye to our gracious hosts and make the long, but stunning, drive back to the capital.

Drop-off at a designated meeting point in the city center.

Meals: B/L

What's Included

All accommodation and transportation during the trip dates.
An English-speaking professional licensed guide.
All activities listed on the itinerary.
Meals* (breakfast, lunch, dinner) as outlined on the trip itinerary.

*Please let us know of any dietary restrictions before booking.

What's Not Included

A sleeping bag and sleeping pad are required for this trip. These items will not be provided. If you need a sleeping bag or sleeping pad, please let us know. Depending on availability, we may be able to rent you a set.
Flights, airport transfers, and hotels in Ulaanbaatar.
Visa costs and fees.
Travel Insurance that covers medical evacuation and cost of participation (required).
Personal expenses such as laundry, alcoholic beverages, telephone calls, optional activities, and meals which are not included in the trip itinerary.
Tips and additional gratuities.

Visit our tour cancellation policy page if you have any additional questions.

Book Now

The price to book this 3-Day Local Naadam Experience and Nomadic Homestay is $1,185 USD per person.

Experience Mongolia’s Naadam festival.
Stay and live alongside nomadic families.
Take in the untouched beauty of Mongolian nature on horseback.

This unique cultural experience happens June 30 – July 2, 2025. Book now – spots are limited!

To book your spot, please complete the Google form linked below. Once received, we will reach out with everything you’ll need to complete your booking.

Through [Breanna's] expertise I was able to sleep in local gers, experience the mysticism of a shaman, and ride a horse for three days without feeling like any of it was overly wrought. Breanna mastered that fragile balance of guiding my group without shielding us from the reality of traveling through such wild country.

Can’t stop thinking about my holiday - loved the country, the Mongolian people were so generous and welcoming, every day was an adventure. Thank you to Breanna & Aagie of Meanwhile in Mongolia - they really know how to show you the real Mongolia. The memories will live long in my mind.

I was not expecting to have such a culturally immersive experience as I did when going to Mongolia. This was hands down the most culturally distant place I have ever gone. I went on an organized tour equipped with a Mongolian driver as well as an interpreter. This is not a country I would recommend just "winging". Many destinations have no roads, no signs, and no other way of finding them without local knowledge.

As someone who went on a trip with Breanna in Mongolia - HIGHLY RECOMMEND. It changed my life. Love her and Mongolia and the amazing women I met alone the way.