Mongolia Things to Do

  Gandan Monastery, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
by happyhourkid
 
  • Gandan Monastery, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
      Gandan Monastery, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
    by happyhourkid
  • Gandan Monastery, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
      Gandan Monastery, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
    by happyhourkid
  • Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
      Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
    by happyhourkid
  • Lenin Statue, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
      Lenin Statue, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
    by happyhourkid
  •   Things to Do
    by Willettsworld
 
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Ulaanbaatar - Bogd Khaan Winter Palace

by Willettsworld

The Winter Palace of Bogd Khaan - one of the first museums in Mongolia - was built in 1924 and was where Mongolia's 8th living Buddha, and last king, Jebtzun Damba Hutagt VIII, lived for 20 years. The palace compound was built between 1893 and 1903, and is well known for its Gate of Peace, Temple and personal library of Bogd Khaan. For reasons that are unclear, the palace was spared destruction by the Russians and turned into a museum. The summer palace, on the banks of Tuul Gol, was, however, completely destroyed.There are six temples in the grounds. The white building to the right as you enter is the Winter Palace itself. It contains a collection of gifts received from foreign dignitaries, such as a pair of golden boots from a Russian tsar, a robe made from 80 unfortunate foxes and a ger lined with the skins of 150 snow leopardsOpen: 10am-5pm daily. Admission: T2,500, camera charge...

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Ulaanbaatar - Natural History Museum

by Willettsworld

This is the oldest public museum in Mongolia. It was opened in 1924 under the name "National Museum" in a small house situated in the centre of the city. It then moved, on its 30th anniversary, to its present location and was then, in 1992, separated into two museums with the National Museum of Mongolian History being moved just down the road.The museum exhibits Mongolia's geography, flora and fauna, including the requisite section with stuffed and embalmed animals, birds and even fish. Geologists will like the geology section (especially the awesome meteorites). Likewise, the birders will want to check off what they've seen at the Ornithological Gallery, stuffed (literally) with over 200 species. More impressive are the two complete dinosaur skeletons, which were found in the Gobi - the giant flesh-eating Tarbosaurus, 3m tall and four to five tons in weight, and the little duck-billed...

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Ulaanbaatar - Dashchoilin Monastery

by Willettsworld

This monastery in the northern part of the city centre was originally built at another location in 1890, but was destroyed in the late 1930s. The monastery was recently moved into three huge concrete gers that once formed part of the State Circus (the main entrance gate has a date of 1990 on it but I don't know if this is when it was moved here). There are plans afoot to expand the monastery to include a six-storey building which will house a 17m-high statue of Maidar. So far, the only part of the statue to exist is the 108-bead rosary, donated by monks from Japan (each bead weighs 45.5kg, making it the largest in the world).

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Ulaanbaatar - Choijin Lama Temple Museum

by Willettsworld

This temple, located just to the south of Sukhbaatar Square, was built between 1904 and 1908 by the 8th Bogd Khaan, Javzandamba, and dedicated to his brother Lama Luvsanhaidav. The Museum has a fine collection of woodcarving, appliqué, embroidery and sculptures, dated as early as the 17th century. The museum contains precious examples of Buddhist art including the paintings by Ts. Zanabazar, a renowned religious reformer and great artisan of 17th century as well as colourful masks for Tsam Dance ceremony embroidered with corals, bronze statue of gods in erotic poses, silk thankas and many other artefacts. Some of the paintings inside are pretty gruesome as they depict dismembered bodies and torture which is the last place you expect to find them.The monastery was closed in 1938 and probably would have been demolished but it was saved as a museum in 1942 to demonstrate the 'feudal' ways...

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Ulaanbaatar - Gandanteg Chenling Monastery

by Willettsworld

This is the largest monastery and temple complex in use in Mongolia which was built in 1810 and moved to its present location in 1838. Over the next century the Monastery grew to include nine dastans or institutes, a library and housed a community of around 5000 monks. Gandan became an important centre for learning and practicing Buddha's teachings, not only in Mongolia but for the entire Mahayana Buddhist community. The monastery is famous for its 26.5m high standing Janraisig, the Bodhisattva of Compassion In 1938, the communists suppressed religious communities in Mongolia. They destroyed around 900 monasteries, though a handful were turned into museums. The monks were killed, jailed, or forced to join the army. Five temples of Gandan Monastery were destroyed. The remaining temples were used to accommodate Russian officials or used as barns to keep their horses. In 1944 after a...

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Ulaanbaatar - National Museum of Mongolian History

by Willettsworld

The National Museum of Mongolian History was founded in 1991 and is located to the west of the Government Building in the city centre. The exhibits of the museum show the history and culture of Mongols from ages as early as the Stone Age and right up to the modern days. The 15,000 exhibits of the museum are divided into sections such as Ancient History, Ancient States Period, Traditional Clothing and Jewellery, Mongol Empire, Manchu Period, Traditional Mongolian Culture and Life and the Socialist and Democratic Periods. The museum is a must-see thing if you're in Ulaanbaatar as it is very well done and well presented. I spent a good couple of hours here and took many photos, some of which can be seen in one of my travelogues.Open: Everyday between 9.30am and 6pm. Admission: T2,500 and camera charge T10,000.

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Ulaanbaatar - Parliament Building

by Willettsworld

As you face North from the Sukhbaatar statue in Sukhbaatar Square, the large building is the State Parliament House, commonly known as Government House - which, like every ger, was built to face south. It's a modern building with an even more modern facade as this used to be the mausoleum for Sukhbaatar. In front of the Parliament House is a seated bronze Genghis Khan Statue, lording it over his nation. He is flanked by Ogedei (on the west) and Kublai (east).

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Ulaanbaatar - Sukhbaatar Monument

by Willettsworld

Located slap bag in the middle of Sukhbaatar Square (and therefore right in the middle of the city) is this monument dedicated to Damdin Sukhbaatar (1893-1923), who was a military leader in the 1921 revolution and is best remembered as one of the most important figures in Mongolia's struggle for independence against the Chinese. The words he apparently proclaimed at the time are engraved on the bottom of the statue: 'If we, the whole people, unite in our common effort and common will, there will be nothing in the world that we cannot achieve, that we will not have learnt or failed to do.' The city was actually renamed Ulaanbaatar ("Red Hero") in 1924 in his honour.

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Ulaanbaatar - Sukhbaatar Square

by Willettsworld

In July 1921 in the centre of Ulaanbaatar, the 'hero of the revolution', Damdin Sukhbaatar, declared Mongolia's final independence from the Chinese. This Square, lying right in the centre of the city, now bears his name and features a statue of him astride his horse. Today, the Square is occasionally used for rallies, ceremonies and even rock concerts, but is generally a serene place for taking lots of photos of the buildings that border it. As you face North from the statue, the large grey building is the State Parliament House, commonly known as Government House - which, like every ger, was built to face south. Directly in front of it is a mausoleum, built in 1921, which contains the remains of Sukhbaatar. In front of the Parliament House is a seated bronze Genghis Khan Statue, lording it over his nation. He is flanked by Ogedei (on the west) and Kublai (east). Other buildings include...

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Small towns

by Willettsworld

When we travelled around Mongolia, we passed through several small towns such as Lun, Bayangol and Bulgan. The towns are pretty bleak, serving more for practicality and function than being aesthetically pleasing on the eye. Virtually every house has a ger and the plot of land is bordered with wooden fence panels.

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Fun things to do in Mongolia

Top 3 Hotels in Mongolia

The Continental Hotel  Ulaanbaatar

 1 Review and 23 Opinions  during my stay in UB I was completely cought of guard by this hotel. now they have a new fitness... 

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Chinggis Khaan Hotel  Ulaanbaatar

 1 Review and 46 Opinions  Very good high end hotel. Modern, recently built. Very good service. We went there with very low... 

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Bayangol Hotel  Ulaanbaatar

 2 Reviews and 69 Opinions  I stayed here for a couple of nights - the first and last night’s of my Mongolian tour. This 4-star... 

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Questions and Answers

ozpaul profile photo

Q:  We have the opportunity of visiting Ulaanbaator for two days in December this year. Could anyone tell me how difficult it is to... 

Fluffy_bunny profile photo

A: That depends, do you know what -20 to -30 C fells like? The locals are used to it. Just because it's cold, doesn't mean the whole city goes into hibernation. Things are... 

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