Altai Eagle Festival & Altai Mountains Photo Tour (10 days)
What to expect
Best of Altai Mountain
For those who dream of exploring Altai Mountain, this is the trip to take.
Many Photo Opportunities
This is one tour during which you will want to have your camera ready, because you never know what you will see.
Potanin Glacier Experience
Explore a breathtakingly beautiful piece of nature when we join up with locals and ride pack camels to the Potanin Glacier.
Meet the Eagle Hunters
You’ll be able to see the majestic birds up close and meet with the hunters.
Many Photo Opportunities
This is one tour during which you will want to have your camera ready, because you never know what you will see.
- Meet the eagle hunters and visit Kazakh family
- 2 full days of eagle festival
- See Altai mountain peaks
- Enjoy the wonderful skill
- Make many memories
- Enjoy the Kazakh concert
- Watch fun horse games
- Horseback riding
- See ancient petroglyphs
- Std twin room at 4* hotel
- 2 person per tent, camping equipment
- Private transfers
- Shared accommodation at Ger camp
- Private transfers English speaking guide
- All meals as listed
- All entrance fee
- Camel ride
- Internal air tickets - free luggage allowance is 15 kg
- Letter of Invitation
- Personal expenses
- Optional activities
- Camera fee for museum & monastery
- Travel Insurance www.WorldNomads.com
- Single supplement
Overview
It’s known in the world that Kazakh and Kyrgyz nations have traditions of hunting small animals with the aid of birds of prey such as falcons, hawks, and eagles. For centuries in the central asian steppe, falconry was a royal game of the Khans and nobles. An ancient custom has survived among Kazakhs who live in the Altai Mountain of Mongolia. Today, you can witness an art of the man and bird friendship at the festival which has expanded into the independent tourist attraction venue for photographers and visitors from all over the world.
We present you a golden opportunity to take photographs of Kazakh traditional eagle hunting to fill up your treasure chest with the rare photographs of an exotic nomadic culture.
The price per person will depend on the size of the group as shown below.
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To book this tour choose a date
We went to the Golden Eagle as a family of 4 (including a 7 year old and a nearly 3 year old). We asked for a private tour as we imagined we'd be the only people with two young kids and this allowed us to be very flexible.
Bat was the person we dealt with by email in advance and he was very helpful (including liaising with the Ulgii hotel to buy a cot for our son to sleep in!)
We had a great time. This was largely due to our wonderful guide Serikgul and equally wonderful driver Birlik. They were always very happy to be flexible around our needs and were great with the kids. Birlik was like a new grand-dad for our kids (our 2 year started asking to sit with them instead of us for his meals!).
The festival itself was great, but so was going to the cultural concert and the countryside visit to a family in a ger for lunch was probably the best of all. While we were reasonably careful around hygiene, we weren't fanatical about it, and I'm pleased to say nobody had an upset stomach at any stage.
Many thanks to Discover Mongolia for a well-organised, smooth-running, authentic and very interesting experience.
As a single vegetarian traveler I could join a small international group for a 10 days visit to Ulaanbataar , the Eagle festival and The Altai mountains . I had an excellent contact via mail with Oyuna . Once in Momngolia all was perfect.
Pick up from and to the airport , the tours; guides and drivers and cook were very good ! We had very good ( vegetarian (for me )) meals during and after the tour in local restaurants .
I can recommend Discover Mongolia to every one. It is advised to take a travel agent because the Mongolian language is impossible to read ( streetnames ) and understand . Driving in Mongolia 's nature is without gps signal or streetsigns so you do need an experienced driver. I can say it is so beautiful and great that I would love to go again !!!! Discover Mongolia definitely deserves a 5 star review *****
Discover Mongolia looked after us perfectly from our arrival right through to our departure, guides spoke brilliant english, drivers were fantastic and meals beautiful.
Itinerary
Upon arrival in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, you'll be greeted at the airport and escorted to 4* hotel.
Take a city tour to Gandan Monastery where you will see a huge gold plated Buddha, the symbol of Mongolian national pride and cultural revival.
And there are other highlights - Sukhbaatar Square and National Museum of Mongolia - where you will see artifacts from Mongolia and Central Asia from the Stone Age to present time.
Excursion to Zaisan Hill Memorial to get your bearings with a panoramic view of the whole city.
Overnight in the hotel. (L+D)
Meet our driver in the hotel lobby and be transferred to the airport for your flight to Ulgii town. Ulgii’s population is mostly Kazakhs (93%), descendants of kok-turk nomads of central asia. We differ a lot although Mongols and Kazakhs stand united under Mongolian flag. Enjoy the town’s marketplace.
Overnight in a local hotel. (B+L+D)
Take a drive to Tsambagarav Mountain and visit Kazakh family. There, you will have an opportunity to experience their way of life, their culture and traditions. Have lunch with a Kazakh family while you enjoy a spectacular view of the Holy Tsambagaraw mountain.
Back to Ulgii and overnight in a local hotel. (B+L+D) (170km)
Today we will have a full day drive following Tsagaan Gol Valley (White River) to Altai Tavan Bogd National Park (a.k.a The Holy Five). Altai Mountain range is Mongolia’s largest and highest mountain range with high peaks over 4000 meters above sea level.
“Shiveet Hairhan” Sacred Mountain is a famous spot, where you will see the largest petroglyph galleries date back from the period of bronze age to Huns (approx. 200 B.C.).
Overnight in local ger. (B+L+D)
Take a horseback trek to the Altai Tavan Bogd referring to the peak “Huiten '', the highest- 4374m. Enjoy this stunning setting with the awe-inspiring massif snow capped peaks. You will reach out the 30km long enormous Potanin’s glacier, an ancient ice river that was discovered in the 19th century by explorer Potanin.
Back to camp and overnight in local ger. (B+L+D)
After early breakfast, drive via Ulaankhus soum through desert-mountain plateau. Meanwhile, snow-capped beautiful Sogoog Mountain will make your eyes happy.
Overnight in the local hotel. (B+L+D) (200km)
Eagles can be athletes too. The rodeo of eagle hunters. A fantastic opportunity for photographers and adventurers to see these magnificent birds of prey up close. There are approx. 200 eagle hunters in Bayan-Ulgii province. Almost all of them will gather together to test their finely trained birds in singular contests of speed and agility.
(B+L+D)
During the festival, we also see some Kazakh Traditional Horse Games like “Bush Kushi" (fight for the goat skin on horseback), Try to "Kiss woman on horseback" while lady is beating the man with horse whip, "Pick up flowers from the land on horseback" etc.
Transfer to the airport and fly to UB. Today is your chance to do some shopping for souvenirs and cashmere in Ulaanbaatar. Later in the evening, you will attend a live Mongolian traditional music and dance performance. A perfect ending for a perfect journey.
After breakfast, you will be transferred from your hotel to the airport. (B)
Good to know
- The best time to make this trip
May to September is the best season, with the peak season in July for the Naadam Festival. July and August are also the wettest months of the year but be assured, our climate is such that you will still have many sunny days at this time. The best time to visit the Gobi is June or September.
- Accommodation:
We believe that comfortable, welcoming accommodation is vital to the enjoyment of your trip. You will be staying in a standard 3-4 star hotel in Ulaanbaatar and a tourist ger camp (traditional dwelling) with currency (220V), shower and other useful services (2 to 4 people per ger) in the countryside. All accommodation offered by Discover Mongolia is personally checked by our staff to ensure high standards.
- Meals:
In Ulaanbaatar, you will be dining at fine European and Asian cuisine restaurants. Mutton, beef, rice, and noodles form the basis of the Mongolian diet, so your meals will be based around this. However, the trail rations may include vegetables, eggs, peanut butter, cheese and sometimes yak! On some days there will be lunchboxes from tourist camps. It is good food and our experience has been that guests are happy with this arrangement. Please let us know in advance if you are a vegetarian. Alcohol is not provided on the trip but tourists are free to bring their own.
- Transport:
Discover Mongolia use the highest level, latest model, air-conditioned private vans or 4WD vehicles for the maximum comfort on your touring days. A day's drive in the countryside will be approx 200-250km.
- Personal things to bring with you:
Warm thin layers of clothing are the best such as bring a waterproof jacket, and a hat and headscarf to protect you from the sun and winds. Don't forget insect repellent, sun cream, lip-gloss, water purifying tablets and first aid kit (medicine for headache, cold, diarrhea, runny nose; bandages; any medicine prescribed for you ). All your camera equipment.
