Naadam Festival, Mongolia

Naadam in full colour

Locals dressed in their best attire during Naadam Festival

Competition is fierce during wrestling matches at Mongolia's Naadam Festival - Tavan Bogd Trek Naadam Extension, Mongolia

Competition is fierce during wrestling matches at Mongolia's Naadam Festival | Tim Cope

Locals enjoy dressing up in traditional 'deel' during Naadam celebrations - Tavan Bogd Trek Naadam Extension, Mongolia

Locals enjoy dressing up in traditional 'deel' during Naadam celebrations | Tim Cope

Naadam Festival, Mongolia

Tavan Bogd Trek Naadam Extension

Experience Mongolia's Naadam Festival with opening celebrations, traditional wrestling, archery and horse racing on the open steppe before your Tavan Bogd Trek.

Mongolia

4 Days from

$990 USD

Trip Code: NAD

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Essential Information

Extra trip options & supplements

*Prices listed are per person

Duration

4 Days

Activities

Naadam Festival

Accommodation

3 nights hotel

Meals

2 Dinners
3 Breakfasts

Difficulty Grading: Adventure touring
The theme behind most of our trips is active holidays and the fitter you are, the more easily you will adjust and enjoy yourself. On an adventure touring trip such as this you need to be in general good health and moderately fit. The grading overall would be introductory, with some "moderate" activity. Before departure aerobic-type exercise, which increases your breathing, is an obvious advantage. We recommend that for about two to three months prior to departure you try to exercise most days for 30–45 minutes of aerobic type activity.
2 / 10
Adventure touring

Trip highlights

Experience Mongolia's Naadam Festival in Ulaanbaatar
Join local crowds celebrating Mongolia's nomadic culture and traditions
Watch traditional Mongolian wrestling and archery competitions
Visit the Naadam horse racing grounds outside Ulaanbaatar

Overview

Experience Mongolia's Naadam Festival, an annual celebration of the country's culture, sporting traditions and nomadic heritage. Held each July, Naadam centres around Mongolia's three traditional sporting disciplines: wrestling, archery and horse racing.

Begin in Ulaanbaatar with the colourful Naadam Festival opening ceremony, where traditional music and performances accompany a parade of athletes and artists dressed in traditional attire. Following the ceremony, experience the excitement of Mongolia's national wrestling competition and traditional archery while joining local crowds celebrating around the National Sports Stadium.

The following day, travel beyond Ulaanbaatar to the Naadam horse racing grounds. Here, hundreds of horses race across the open Mongolian steppe in one of the festival's key events. Surrounded by local families and horsemen in traditional dress, the racing offers a memorable insight into Mongolia's enduring nomadic traditions.

This Naadam Festival extension is an ideal way to experience one of Mongolia's significant cultural events before continuing your journey through the country.

Itinerary

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On arrival at Chinggis Khaan International Airport, you will be met and transferred to your centrally located hotel by our representative. The rest of the day is free to relax or take a short walk to Sukhbaatar Square, where early festival events and performances are often underway. Your guide will join you for Days 2 and 3. Airport transfer only (1–2 hours, as traffic is heightened around Naadam) Accommodation: Bayangol Hotel or similar

Meals: Nil

After breakfast, at 10am, you'll join your English-speaking guide for a short walk to Sukhbaatar Square to witness the morning flag ceremony, state honorary guards on horseback carrying the State White Banners to the National Sports Stadium. The Naadam Festival Opening Ceremony begins at 11am, featuring a grand parade of athletes and performers in traditional costume, with music, and dance. The Mongolian president delivers the official address as the Nine White Banners are raised – a symbol of the power of the ancient khans. Following the ceremony, you'll have time to explore the festival grounds, taste local foods and watch the first rounds of wrestling and archery before walking back to your hotel. Accommodation: Bayangol Hotel or similar Please note: Naadam is one of the most popular times to visit Ulaanbaatar, so please expect large crowds and possible delays, patience and flexibility will help make the most of this cultural celebration.

Meals: B,D

This morning we drive around 1.5 hours to the Naadam horse racing grounds outside Ulaanbaatar, where the atmosphere is electric. Thousands of Mongolians in traditional dress gather to cheer on young jockeys racing across the open steppe. The races span six age categories and often feature hundreds of horses, showcasing Mongolia's deep equestrian heritage. After several hours at the event, we return to the city and enjoy dinner at a local restaurant, a chance to reflect on this cultural experience. Accommodation: Bayangol Hotel or similar

Meals: B,D

You are now on Day 2 of your Tavan Bogd Trek. After breakfast you will set out on a full day guided tour of Ulaanbaatar.

Meals: B

Map

Elevation

The map and elevation chart are for illustrative purposes only and meant to provide general guidelines.

Ready to start your adventure?

1 scheduled departure between 10 Jul 2027 and 10 Jul 2027.

Departs 10 Jul 2027 – ends 13 Jul 2027 (4 days)

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What's included?

Included

3 breakfasts and 2 dinners including a Naadam Festival Gala Dinner
3 nights at the Bayangol Hotel in Ulaanbaatar on a twin share basis
Naadam Festival Opening Ceremony ticket
Elevated seating at the Naadam horse racing grounds
Arrival airport transfer
Transportation to the Naadam horse racing grounds
English speaking local guide on Days 2 and 3

Not included

International flights
Travel insurance
Visa
Meals not listed in the itinerary
Personal expenses
Bottled water, aerated and alcoholic drinks
Tips and gratuities
Items not listed as included

Responsible Travel

Regenerative Travel Projects

Empowering Students Through Green Learning

This project, led by the Center for Citizenship Education in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, establishes school-based greenhouses to provide students with hands-on learning in natural sciences. By training teachers and engaging over 1,200 middle and high school students, the initiative transforms theoretical education into practical experience, enabling students to grow plants, propagate trees, and actively participate in greening their school environment.

Set in a ger district facing severe air pollution and limited educational resources, the project addresses both environmental and social challenges. It improves student engagement, builds practical skills, and contributes to healthier school surroundings by planting over 1,000 trees and shrubs annually, fostering a stronger connection between young people, their community, and the natural environment.

Support our work

Extra trip info

Who will I travel with?Accommodation Will My Trip Run?FAQs Why Book With Us

Group shot, 'African wilderness in comfort' trip | Peter Walton

Travelling with our local partners

This trip is run by one of our local partners, on a departure shared with travellers from other companies.

What's the benefit to you? More departure dates, and dates that reach their minimum numbers sooner, because bookings from several companies go into one group. Your guides live and work in the region.

Who is in your group? Expect a mix of travellers and nationalities, not only people who booked with World Expeditions.

What will we tell you when you book? We advise the name of the local partner at the time of booking, along with any terms of their own, such as an additional deposit. These apply alongside our Booking Terms and Conditions.

Travelling alone? On some partner-operated trips your own room is required. The room options on this page show which applies to this trip.

Comfortable hotels in towns and cities

In the towns and cities we use carefully selected, centrally located 3-4 star hotels. We aim to choose hotels with character which reflect the local traditions of the destinations. This picture shows the Bayangol Hotel in Ulaanbaatar as used on this trip.

Every departure date advises whether the date is confirmed, and roughly how full it is. Here is what each one means.

Is the departure confirmed?

Guaranteed to go This departure has reached its minimum number and will run.
It is the point travellers should wait for before booking any non-refundable flights.

Close to guaranteed This appears only when a date is close to reaching minimum numbers. If it shows 1 or 2 to guaranteed, book as a pair on a date needing two and it reaches its minimum. Your booking confirms the date for everybody already booked.

How full is the date I am looking at?

Space is filling or Space is filling fast This date has bookings and places are still open. Filling fast means limited spots available, so don't leave your decision too late.

Closing soon Down to its last few places, or close enough to departure that we are finalising numbers. Still bookable online.

Closed Not bookable online - either full, or inside the notice we need to arrange permits, flights and logistics. Ask us anyway, you never know!

Availability questions answered

Will this trip actually go ahead, or could it be cancelled?

If a date shows Guaranteed to go, it runs regardless of further bookings.

What does 2 to guarantee mean?

It means two travellers are enough to confirm the departure. It could be 2 more to add to the group, or the date only needs 2 people to run. Either way, if you book for two people, the date will become guaranteed to run.

What happens if my departure does not reach minimum numbers?

You will know the status before you book. Every date on this page is labelled, and dates marked “Guaranteed to go” are running regardless of further bookings. Where a date has not reached its minimum we either offer a surcharge to operate for a smaller group size so it can still run, or we cancel it. We contact you directly either way.

Will I get my money back if you cancel a departure?

If we cancel a departure due to not meeting minimum trip numbers, you receive a full refund of everything you have paid us less any non recoverable costs, where insurance may cover you. We cannot refund money committed elsewhere – additional non refundable deposits advised at the time of booking, flights, visas, vaccinations, gear - which is why it is worth waiting for “Guaranteed to go” before booking other arrangements around this trip date. Please read our Booking Terms and Conditions before you book.

Why can't I book some dates online?

Each trip closes online a set time before departure. Permits, internal flights and hut or campsite bookings all have to be arranged before we take payment. Call or enquire as it might still be possible to organise last minute places.

The date I want is closed. What are my options and why does it say to enquire?

Cancellations happen and places do open up on closed dates, so it is worth being on our list. We can also tell you which nearby date on the same trip has space, which is usually the faster route.

None of these dates suit me. Can you run this trip on another date?

Yes, as a private departure. We can run this trip on a date you choose, for your own group - family, friends, a club, or in many cases, just for the two of you. Tell us when you want to travel and who is coming, and we will build it around that.

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Naadam is one of Mongolia’s major cultural celebrations, centred around the traditional sporting disciplines of wrestling, archery and horse racing. The festival also features traditional dress, music and performances celebrating Mongolia’s cultural and nomadic heritage.

The opening celebrations, wrestling and archery are experienced in Ulaanbaatar, while the horse racing takes place at racing grounds outside the city.

Yes. Your extension includes a ticket to the Naadam Festival Opening Ceremony, which features traditional performances and a parade of athletes and artists before the national wrestling competition begins.

You'll travel approximately 1.5 hours from Ulaanbaatar to the horse racing grounds, where races involving hundreds of horses take place across the open steppe. Elevated seating at the racing grounds is included

Breakfasts at the hotel, the mandatory Naadam Festival Gala Dinner on 11 July and dinner on 12 July are included. Other meals and drinks are not included

Yes. An arrival transfer from Chinggis Khaan International Airport to your Ulaanbaatar hotel is included.

Yes. An English-speaking local guide is included for the festival activities on 11 and 12 July.

Yes. The activities on 12 July coincide with the official first day of the main tour, and the Tavan Bogd Trekking itinerary continues with Ulaanbaatar sightseeing on 13 July.

Pre-arranged festival access with opening Ceremony tickets and elevated seating at the horse racing grounds are included.
English-speaking local guides accompany your Naadam experiences.
Arrival transfer and transport to the horse racing grounds are included.
Experience the three traditions of Naadam, wrestling, archery and horse racing as part of Mongolia’s most celebrated festival.
This trip connects directly into your Tavan Bogd Trek.

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