Off-Grid: The Four Properties We Built in the Middle of Nowhere

Big Sky Lodge. Otugi Hotel. Orkhon Valley Ger Camp. V28. Four properties, built by hand, owned by us. The story of how and why.

Chingun O.

Ten years ago we stopped recommending other people's hotels. Not because theirs were bad. Because ours could be better — and because owning the operation meant controlling the guest experience end to end. Four properties later, this is where we are.

Big Sky Lodge — Terelj, 2019

Flagship. Off-grid. 90 kWp solar array — enough to run hot water, heating, kitchen, and guest Wi-Fi without a generator. Equestrian facilities on site. 2027 Steppe Reset retreat host property. Twenty minutes from Gorkhi-Terelj National Park headquarters. 90 minutes from UB airport by 4WD.

Otugi Hotel — Ulaanbaatar, opening 2027

Nine rooms. UB Business Tower, 23rd floor. Boutique. Designed by Mongolian studio UMA. Breakfast by our chef. For guests arriving late, overnighting before the countryside, or ending a trip in the city with a view of the Bogd Khan mountain.

Orkhon Valley Ger Camp — Jun-Aug seasonal

Twelve traditional gers with hand-painted doors. Private bathrooms (yes, really). Riverside location in UNESCO-listed Orkhon Valley. Optional horseback day trips to Kharkhorin, 40 km away.

V28 — UB, 2027 pre-opening

Our newest. Private wing in central UB. Four suites. Designed for Rara Avis guests only.

Why Own

Because when a guest at 2am needs hot tea in their ger, we can guarantee it. Because when the heating fails, our engineer is an hour away, not three days. Because the guide, the chef, the driver, and the ger family all work for the same company and they know your name before you land.