Mongolia’s Ancient Mysteries & Modern Marvels - 2023

Board your overnight flight to Seoul, South Korea today.

We arrive in Seoul tonight and transfer directly to our deluxe hotel in the heart of South Korea’s capital. An evening arrival affords us the luxury of settling in and getting a good night’s rest before beginning our discoveries.

This morning, embark on an electrifying and sobering excursion to the world’s most heavily armed border. The Demilitarized Zone, separating North and South Korea, is at roughly the 38th parallel. The DMZ was formed in 1953 when the North and South Korean governments agreed to an armistice (with prodding from their respective Chinese and American allies). On average, the buffer zone is about 2.5 miles wide and though it is lined with troops, electric fences, land mines, and tank traps, it has also become a pristine nature reserve. When the two Koreas need to negotiate, they enter the DMZ at the village of Panmunjom and confer at the JSA (Joint Security Area). Heavily armed North and South Korean soldiers stand off here in a tenuous truce, and this is as close as you can get to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (aka North Korea). You will also have the chance to enter one of the four tunnels beneath the DMZ that were secretly dug by the North Koreans and later discovered.
Also featured is the Dorasan Station Observatory, where you can peer through binoculars across the border into the North. You’re going to want to have your camera or GoPro ready — the entire experience is thrilling and is filled with opportunities to take great photos to show friends and family back home! We’ll enjoy lunch at a local restaurant here.

Then, we'll spend the remainder of the afternoon touring Seoul’s historical monuments. Your first stop is Changdeokgung, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Korea’s “Five Grand Palaces.” The entire complex of halls, pavilions, gardens, gates, bridges, and shrines was designed to harmoniously blend with the park-like setting.

This evening, join your fellow travelers for a Welcome Dinner at a traditional Korean restaurant.

Included Features:

• Visit the UNESCO-listed Changdeokgung Palace
• Tour the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)

Today you’ll continue to peel back the layers of Korean culture, starting at Gyeongbokgung: built in 1395 as the main residence of the ruling Joseon dynasty, this palace complex has undergone several restorations as well as repeated destruction during the 16th-century Japanese invasions of Korea, WWII, and the Korean War. However, the splendor of what remains is enough to explain why Gyeongbokgung is called “the palace greatly blessed by Heaven.” While there, you’ll visit the on-site National Folk Museum and learn about everyday Korean life through the ages.

Delve further into traditional Korean life when we walk through Bukchon, a village of traditional Korean houses known as hanok. Your tour continues in the Insadong neighborhood, a popular enclave of art galleries and old tea houses. Here, you’ll attend a class on making traditional hanji (Korean mulberry paper) fans.

Today’s special lunch — Korean barbecue, or galbi — will be a refreshing contrast from the barbecues you’ve experienced back home. You’ll not only enjoy some of the delectable dishes that have garnered such fame for this east Asian cuisine, but also learn more about their preparation and prevalence in Korea.

At the end of the tour, you’ll transfer to the airport for your flight to Ulaanbaatar.

Included Features:

• Half-day Seoul city tour, with visit to Gyeongbokgung
• Stroll through Bukchon Hanok Village
• Visit the National Folklore Museum

Cultural Discoveries:

• Hanji paper fan-making class at Insadong
• Galbi Korean barbecue lunch

Today will be a memorable occasion as you’ll visit a nomadic encampment on the edge of town. Here, you’ll get the unique opportunity to see how a typical Mongolian family lives in a ger (wood and felt tent) dwelling, as well as enjoy a demonstration of traditional horsemanship, livestock management, domestic crafts, and distilling.

After lunch, embark on a panoramic city tour that will introduce you to important sights of Ulaanbaatar, including Sukhbaatar Square (where the leader of the country’s revolution, Damdin Sukhbaatar, declared independence from China in 1921) and the National History Museum. A local guide will lead the way through Mongolia’s largest museum, which holds nearly 60,000 artifacts relating to the history of Mongolia and central Asia.

This evening, join your fellow travelers for dinner at your hotel.

Included Features:

• Half-day Ulaanbaatar city tour
• Excursion to the National Museum of Mongolian History

WOW Feature:

• Showcase of Mongolian nomadic lifestyle at a nomad encampment

After breakfast, we’ll transfer to the National Sports Stadium to experience the pageantry, excitement, and athleticism that is Naadam. It begins with parades, an opening ceremony, and a speech by the Mongolian president. There will be more cultural performances before the first event commences: Mongolian wrestling. This single-elimination tournament pits up to 512 pairs of wrestlers against each other in nine or ten rounds. The first man to touch the ground loses and the victor is deemed an arslan, or “lion.” Next, we visit the archery field and watch as male and female teams vie to hit 33 targets. The final event is a race that celebrates the Mongolian tradition of horsemanship. Riders aged 5 to 13-years-old saddle up on thousands of horses from all over Mongolia, racing up to 18 miles. You will enjoy a boxed lunch as we cheer on the racers and return to the capital in the late afternoon.

Your day will end with a special Naadam dinner tonight.

Included Feature:

• Full day at the Naadam festival opening day

Cultural Discoveries:

• Watch the Naadam festival opening ceremony
• Watch the three games of Naadam

A morning flight brings us to the South Gobi Desert. From here we’ll ride out to the Yolyn Am Gorge, a rugged oasis of sheltered canyons, unique wildlife, and a river of ice known as the Gobi Glacier. Keep your eyes peeled for furry pika and birds of prey like the golden eagle or saker falcon. Before departing, we’ll also peek into the nature museum at the park’s entrance. Then, we’ll head to our first desert camp resort, Dream Gobi Camp. Here, take in the stupendous beauty of the steppes from your own ger, a round Mongolian tent made of felt and wood. Settle in, relax, and explore the facilities before an included dinner. Tonight, perhaps you’ll relax by the fire or do some stargazing beneath Mongolia’s “eternal blue skies.”

Included Features:

• Visit Yolyn Am Gorge and the Gobi Glacier
• Visit the Yolyn Am Nature Museum

Cultural Discovery:

• Stay in a Mongolian ger tent

Today you’ll embark on a 4x4 desert safari to Khongoryn Els, a dreamscape of shifting dunes whose colors change with the light and whose sand particles emit a hypnotic “singing” sound. Upon arrival, enjoy a different desert perspective during lunch at the Gobi Erdene Lodge.

In the afternoon you’ll ride back across the magnificent dunes on a “ship of the desert,” a two-humped Bactrian camel. This camel safari takes about half an hour and allows you to experience this unique form of transportation amid the sand dunes of the Gobi Desert. Should guests not wish to ride a camel, there is also an opportunity to do some light trekking near the oases at the Khongor sand dunes. Later, enjoy a relaxing evening.

WOW Feature:

• Full-day excursion with 4x4 safari at Khongoryn Els

Cultural Discovery:

• Camel ride along the sand dunes of the Gobi Desert

The morning is at your own leisure. After lunch, we’ll explore Bayanzag to admire its flaming “Red Cliffs.” It was here that the American paleontologist Roy Chapman Andrews unearthed the world’s first-discovered dinosaur eggs and other important fossils, such as the Velociraptor and Protoceratops. Andrews himself was said to have been an inspiration for the Indiana Jones character of Steven Spielberg’s epic adventure films. We’ll enjoy a bit of light trekking around the site before savoring a delightful picnic dinner. Imagine the scene: the light of the fading sun painting the cliffs as we enjoy our meal, perhaps recounting the day with fellow travelers as you soak in the stunning scenery. It’s the perfect ending to a remarkable day.

Included Feature:

• Visit the “Red Cliffs” of Bayanzag

Cultural Discovery:

• Sunset picnic dinner featuring Mongolian barbecue

Flying from Dalanzadgad, you’ll arrive back in Ulaanbaatar and spend the morning at Zanabazar Museum of Fine Arts, whose collection of Mongolian art from prehistory through the early 20th century is the best of its kind. It is also a repository of works by Zanabazar, a 17th-century artist and Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader who is known as the "Michelangelo of Asia."

Continue on to Gandan Monastery, Mongolia’s most important Buddhist center. Built in 1809, this is one of few institutions that survived the Stalinist purges of the 1930s. You’ll get a chance to see this active monastery, where 600 monks maintain long-standing Buddhist traditions. After lunch at a local restaurant, check in to your hotel and enjoy the afternoon at leisure. Dinner awaits at another local restaurant.

Included Features:

• Visit Gandan Monastery
• Tour the Zanabazar Museum of Fine Arts

Today, you’ll start with the unforgettable Genghis Khan Statue. Standing 131-feet high atop a 33-foot-high coliseum, this stainless-steel behemoth is the world’s largest equestrian statue and a fitting tribute to a man who stood larger than life. Exhibits within the coliseum depict important events in Chinggis’ life, including his legendary discovery here of a golden horse whip that foretold his destiny. You can ride an elevator and emerge from between his legs to gaze at the lush Mongolian steppe from a deck atop his steed’s head.

Next, wade through Naran Tuul Market, Ulaanbaatar’s largest market, to explore the mind-boggling array of goods on sale. This is where people from all over the country come to get textiles, equipment for their horses and livestock, jewelry, and even entire gers! Then, stop by a cashmere boutique where you may acquire a souvenir — Mongolia is the world’s second-largest producer of the prized wool, so you’ll find cashmere scarves, hats, and coats in abundance here.

A delicious Mongolian feast awaits tonight at your Farewell Dinner, along with a marvelous musical performance. You’ll be dazzled by the costumed folk dancers and Mongolian throat singers, masters of an art form in which individual singers are able to produce multiple tones at once.

After dinner, transfer to the airport for your overnight flight to Seoul.

Included Feature:

• Visit the Genghis Khan Statue Complex

Cultural Discoveries:

• Visit Ulaanbaatar’s largest market
• Farewell Dinner with traditional Mongolian performances, including throat singing

After arriving in Seoul in the early morning hours, you’ll have use of a day room near the Incheon Airport. Take some time to rest and relax with a leisurely breakfast. After lunch on your own, transfer to the airport for your flight home.