Quote:
Originally Posted by Cappy
Any recommendations on booking this?
I have been suggesting this type of trip for my dad/brothers for a couple years now, but never knew anyone that did it. Did you book through a tour operator?
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It was 2011, so things have probably changed a bit since then. It was basically two tours. The main one was from Ulanbaatar west, including the Gobi desert. Here's a couple that sound similar.
https://www.intrepidtravel.com/ca/mo...ongolia-160799
https://www.gadventures.com/trips/no...mongolia/8376/
The canoe part was a separate tour. My travel mate was really into kayaking and found a short 3(?) day canoe trip that went east of UB on the Tuul River, so we could see a different area. It was an easy canoe and we had a guide with us the whole way. I don't know that company.
While I was in the Gobi desert, I did run into a guy from Fort Mac who had just flown over there without plans, bought a camel to travel across the country and planned to sell it when he was done. At that time, it was easy to get a place to stay. Outside of UB, people lived in small communities consisting of a few gers (yurts) and stores. Most famlies had a summer and winter ger and in the summer, they would rent out their winter gers to tourists.
We also spent a few days in Ulanbaatar at the start and end of the trip, exploring on our own. At the time, it was a city the size of Calgary with about 5 traffic lights in the entire city and random holes in the sidewalks, with no warning, so it was a bit tricky to explore, but fun.
If you have a chance to go, I highly recommend it. It's a unique adventure not many people have. Just be prepared for very basic conditions everywhere (or at least in 2011).