GobiJun to Sep
Small-group journeys of five to thirteen days. Fixed departures through the Gobi, Kharkhorin, the eastern steppe, and Altai. All accommodation, meals, guides, and 4WD transport included in every tour.
Fill in the Plan My Trip form or write to info at raraavistravel dot com. Tell us your dates, group size, experience wanted, budget, dietary notes. A human reads every word.
Nomin or a senior guide replies within four hours. You get three suggested tours or a starting draft for a tailor-made itinerary. Questions answered, pricing confirmed, accommodation options outlined.
We refine until it fits. Swap a day, add a festival, extend a night at Big Sky. Deposit 25% to confirm. Full itinerary PDF, packing list, travel insurance guidance, and airport pickup details sent within 48 hours.
Land in Ulaanbaatar. Driver meets you with name board. We text ahead of every leg. 24/7 WhatsApp access to your guide for the entire trip. Every night in a RAHM property. Every meal included. Every detail chosen.
Every Rara Avis tour is all-in. That means: all accommodation (ger camps and RAHM properties), all meals from breakfast day one to dinner your last night, English-speaking lead guide, licensed 4WD vehicle with driver, all national park and UNESCO site entry fees, domestic flights where the itinerary requires them, airport transfers both ways, bottled water and snacks on the road, and 24/7 WhatsApp support throughout. What is not included: international flights, travel insurance (required), personal alcohol beyond tour dinners, tips (guidance provided), and optional activities marked as add-ons.
June to early October is the main season. July is Naadam Festival. September has the clearest skies and fewest travellers. Late May and October have the fewest tourists but variable weather. November to March is winter Mongolia: minus twenty to minus forty, but the Khovsgol Ice Festival (March) and Tsagaan Sar (January/February) are extraordinary. We run tours year-round. Tell us your dates and we will design what works.
Every tour has a difficulty rating 1 to 5. Moderate (3) means four to six hours of travel per day on unpaved roads, occasional walking at altitude, optional horseback, and some nights in basic ger camps without plumbing. Active (4) adds more walking, longer riding days, and remote campsites. Extreme (5) is our expeditions only. If you have mobility concerns or specific medical needs, tell us in the brief. We will tell you honestly what fits and what does not.
Our tours use three tiers. RAHM properties (Big Sky Lodge, Otugi Hotel, V28): private bathroom, hot water, heating, full restaurant. Premium ger camps: shared modern bathroom, hot water, solar electricity, bedding. Traditional family gers (only on deep cultural immersion tours, always optional): bedding provided, shared washing facilities, stove heated, authentic. Every tour page shows exactly which tier per night. Kenji, we hear you, we show the bathroom photos.
25% deposit confirms your booking. Full balance due 60 days before arrival. Payment by wire transfer, Wise, or credit card (3% surcharge). Cancellation policy: 60+ days out, full refund minus 10% admin. 30 to 60 days, 50% refund. Under 30 days, non-refundable but transferrable to a future date within 18 months. Travel insurance is required and should include trip cancellation coverage.
Citizens of 34 countries including the US, UK, Germany, Japan, Korea, Canada, and Australia can enter visa-free for up to 30 days. All other nationalities require a visa via the Mongolian embassy or online eVisa (mongolia.imigration.gov.mn). Your passport must be valid for at least six months from your entry date. We provide visa invitation letters on request at no cost. Tell us your nationality in the brief and we will confirm the current requirement.
All our lead guides speak English fluently. We also have guides with fluency in Japanese, Korean, Mongolian (of course), Russian, and working German. Japanese-speaking guides are available year-round. Korean-speaking guides available for most peak-season tours with advance notice. If you need a specific language, confirm at the time of inquiry and we will match the right guide.
Both. Our six signature tours run on fixed departures with small groups (max 10). If you want to travel privately, add days, remove days, combine two tours, swap a festival, or build something entirely different, see our Tailor-Made page. Private tours start at 800 USD per person per day based on a group of four. Three-generation family trips, honeymoons, photography tours, culinary trips, horseback-only trips, and academic research trips are all common requests.
Tell us your dates, your group size, and what you want to see. Nomin or a senior guide will reply within four hours.