Ulaanbaatar City Tour: Spend the Perfect Day in the Capital
Book this tour of Ulaanbaatar and get to know Mongolia’s capital city through the eyes of a local.
This Ulaanbaatar City Tour can include:
- Gandantegchinlen Monastery: hear the monks chant early in the morning and see the 26.5-meter tall gold-leaf and gemstone covered Avalokiteśvara, built to depict the 8th Jebtsundamba.
- Chinggis Khaan Museum: have a guided tour at the city’s best museum.
- Black Market: walk through this very local market and shop for deels (traditional Mongolian clothing), cashmere, boots, shaman paraphernalia, and more. (We also do a half-day Black Market walking tour with a local.)
- Flames: shop for outdoor gear and clothing at this famous Mongolian brand’s shop
- Donnie’s T-shirt Shop: get a Mongolian-inspired graphic tee that makes a great souvenir!
- Welcome Records: shop for Mongolian records at this super cool record shop. Afterward, you can even eat lunch and listen to it next door at Mushroom Vinyl cafe.
- Tickets to a Cultural Show: Throat singing, hear traditional instruments, contortionists, tsam dancing, and more.
We are also happy to custom-curate this city tour if there’s something more specific you would like to see and experience.
Table of Contents
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s capital city, often doesn’t get enough credit as a city that’s worth taking the time to explore.
Instead, most people fly in, spend one night in Ulaanbaatar, and then depart for the countryside the next day. But that’s a mistake.
Ulaanbaatar deserves your attention. While it’s certainly no Hong Kong or Shanghai, Ulaanbaatar has its quarks and reasons to visit. With a strong cultural heritage, unique Soviet history, and surprisingly progressive mentality, Ulaanbaatar is a completely underrated capital city.
Getting to know Ulaanbaatar is the first in getting to know Mongolia.
Let me explain. As a foreigner who has now been visiting Mongolia for more than seven years, it’s in Ulaanbaatar where I learn more about Mongolia, and Mongolians, on an everyday basis. I’ve visited the Chinggis Khaan Museum more times than I can count and every time I’m there I still discover something new.
With the history of the Mongols and their influence on the world, taking the time to get the history and this side of the story starts with spending time in the capital.
Once you’ve done that, then it’s time to go to the countryside and live the Mongolian way.
Read my city travel guide for more helpful Ulaanbaatar travel tips →
What's Included
- Spend the day with an English-speaking local who will show you the ins and outs of the city.
- A custom-curated itinerary based on your interests. Entrance fees and other costs will be included in the price for your final itinerary. All itineraries start at $125 USD per person. Prices may increase depending on what you indicate you’d like to do during this day tour.
- The meeting point for this tour is Sukhbaatar Square.
- This is a walking tour. If you’re unable to do a walking tour, please let us know and we can make arrangements to have a car and driver for the day.
- Meals are not included in this day tour. Your guide will take you to a local restaurant where you’ll have an hour break to eat, hydrate, and get ready for the second half of the day’s itinerary.
Book Now
The price to book this Ulaanbaatar City Tour starts at $125 USD per person.
Choose from the activities below, or let us know if you want to experience something different!
- Gandantegchinlen Monastery
- Chinggis Khaan Museum
- Black Market
- Flames Mongolia
- Donnie’s T-shirt Shop
- Murin Huur Horse Headed Fiddle Shopping
- Tickets to a Cultural Show
Please fill out the Google Form linked below. Let us know what you’d like to see and experience while you’re in Ulaanbaatar and we’ll plan the perfect day for you.
Tips to Make the Most of this Ulaanbaatar City Tour
Here are a few tips to make the most of this Ulaanbaatar City Tour.
- This tour is typically a walking tour. Please wear comfortable shoes and clothing that you can wear all day. Please check the weather for the day of your tour and pack rain jackets or umbrellas if necessary.
- We recommend you bring a small bag or backpack with water, sunscreen, chapstick, and anything else you might need during the day. Mongolia is a very dry country that is also at elevation, please stay hydrated. (It also helps with jetlag!)
- Meals are not included in this tour. You will have a one hour break for lunch at a local restaurant. If you would like to stop for coffee or anything along the way, just ask your guide.
- This tour typically starts at 9 am and ends around 6 pm, with a one hour lunch break around 1 pm.
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If I could rate 9 stars out of 5 I would! Not only did I have an excellent tour around the city, Bre and Aagie also brought me to their favorite spots to eat and gave me incredible recommendations. They were flexible and let me add things onto the trip that I wished to visit, and continued to be more than accommodating throughout the whole time. Meanwhile in Mongolia went above and beyond to treat me not just like a customer, but as family.
Best way to start your time in Mongolia! Aagie and Bre are nothing short of amazing!!
I booked this tour for our arrival day since we got in very early morning. It was the perfect way to power through and get our bearings in UB! Aagie tailored the day to our interests and jetlag needs. We had such a great time learning, seeing, eating, and experiencing the city.
The quality and care the team puts into curating healthy tourism is the gold standard. I recommend any of their programs!