The Most Amazing Experience - (A long overdue review!) I solo travelled during end of 2023, with an amazing tour guide Bachi! I had the most out of this world experience during my stay in the semi gobi desert. We travelled from the city centre of Ulaanbaatar into amazing stretches of snow and mountains. The car ride lasts about 5 hours or so, which may seem long but the wonderful sights of the white covered desert, migrating animals, glimpses of Mongolian cowboys, the Trans-Siberian Railway, paired with Bachi's rocking music taste of Mongolian artists and knowledgeable stories, was a very much enjoyable experience, that I will remember forever! We stopped a few times along the way to eat, stock up at the supermarkets, take in the scenery and stopped at a shaman statue, where Bachi kindly shared a traditional ceremonial offering. The family I stayed with were lovely and accommodating, the older gentleman took me to see the deer in the morning which I was not expecting! So that was a great surprise. The camel ride was super super fun, seeing all the wild animals around was lovely too. The food was homemade, hearty and filling, perfect for the winter season. My whole trip was planned around this tour, and it was the best decision made, I learnt a lot about the culture and history! Thank you again Bachi and the family for this truly memorable experience! :) I hope you are all well! Tip: If you are travelling during the winter season, stock up on plenty of body warmers! It was about -25 c when I was there, and I was told it was -40 c the week before arriving. The yurt is warmed by a single furnace, which dies down over time, so it can get very cold. I brought my own sleeping bag which is made for below freezing temperature and would recommend this to others, though the family were very accommodating with keeping me warm, with lots of hot soups! As previous reviewers have noted, bring toilet rolls and be comfortable with doing your business outside as there are no bathrooms, or go during the stops along the car journey. The desert is extra beautiful in the winter season though, so definitely worth it!

モンゴル来たら必須！ - It was a great experience! We rode on a camel, took a lot of pictures, enjoyed a looooong(5-6 hours?) endless road trip to the ger with Mongolian musics that our guide Bachi selected. Talking about Bachi, he was so talented and has a various kind of experience in his life, so what he has storytelled amused us and never got bored thanks to him. The highlight is the overnight staying at a nomad fam gar. It was definitely once in a lifetime experience. Btw, if we could have also been to the hustai National park then it would be even better.

Semi-Gobi & Kharkhorin 2 days overnight trip - We got confirmation of pickup the day before departure. Our tour-guide Bat was waiting for us in our Hotel lobby on time (unfortunately we were 10 minutes late) as it is very important to get out of UB before the traffic jams. So be on time! Bat was very mindful and helpful throughout the trip and the 5-6 hours transportation to the nomad camp in ELSEN TASARKHAI felt short because of the good conversations we had with him in the car. Very relaxed and he had all the knowledge about Mongolian culture and history that we needed to know. In short, Bat was great so make sure to ask for him as a driver if you have the possibility to choose. The nomad camp overnight was allright, and the family great (especially their youngest kid!). The company could do a better job informing in advance about the skeeping conditions, as it might come as a culture shock for many tourists, especially westerns (no toilet, no napkins, no water, hard bed with one blankett, no pillow). These are just things that are good to ne aware of and if necessary you can prepare in advance. We only got 2-3 hours of sleep because of the cold and the other family in the neighbour Ger had had the same experience. Still, the experience was amazing with the camel ride and living among the free animals, amazing sunset and so on. Very natural and beautiful. Kharkhorin was about an hours ride from the camp. For people interested in the mongolian history I highly recommend. You dont need more than maybe 2-3 hours max to see the town, erdene zuu monastery + museum.

Do not book via Viator - This is not worth the money. The experience we had was indeed nice, the views were break taking, the nomad family was nice, tour guides were nice and helpful. HOWEVER, the package we booked included Hustai national park and we were never taken there. The local tourist guys informed that they have asked to update Viator but Viator has not updated their website. We ended up paying $470 which didn't even include the full package that was listed in the website. Super disappointed and would tell anyone to not book trips via Viator specially in Mongolia.