Birdwatching Mongolia
Key Information
Trip Length: 10 days/ 9 nights.
Trip Type: Easy to Moderate.
Tour Code: SMT-BWT-10D
Meeting/Departure Points: Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (excluding flights).
Small Groups: 2-16 travelers-guaranteed!.
Valid Season: Late May-September.
Regular Group Departures-2023: May 22, June 12, July 17, August 07, September 11
Regular Group Departures-2024: May 27, June 17, July 22, August 05, September 09
Tour Customizable: Yes.
Tour Highlights: Upon your arrival in Ulaanbaatar New Airport, meet Samar Magic Tours team. Mongolia Bird watching Expedition takes place in remote wilderness areas of Mongolia. This Expedition requires flexibility, tolerance and spirit of adventure of every journey participant due to the remote wilderness areas. Cars have a hard time. Anyhow the tourism infrastructure has somewhat developed.
Best Times for Wildlife in Mongolia: Late May-September is the best time to visit Mongolia, when most of the bird summer visitors have arrived and many passage migrants are moving through although this is usually too late to see Black-billed Capercaillies. Be prepared for cold temperatures, especially at night, and snow even in June.
Grus monacha : The hooded crane is a small, dark crane. It has a grey body. The top of the neck and head is white, except for a patch of bare red skin above the eye. It is one of the smallest cranes, but is still a fairly large bird, at 1 m (3.3 ft) long, a weight of 3.7 kg (8.2 lbs) and a wingspan of 1.87 m (6.2 ft). The hooded crane breeds in Mongolia.
The hooded crane is evaluated as Vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
Grus Grus: The common crane, also known as the Eurasian crane, is a bird of the family Gruidae, the cranes. The common crane is a large, stately bird and a medium-sized crane. It is 100–130 cm (39–51 in) long with a 180–240 cm (71–94 in) wingspan. The body weight can range from 3 to 6.1 kg (6.6 to 13.4 lb), with the nominate subspecies averaging around 5.4 kg (12 lb). The common crane is omnivorous, as are all cranes. It largely eats plant matter, including roots, rhizomes, tubers, stems, leaves fruits and seeds.
Grus nigricollis:The black-necked craneis a medium-sized crane in Asia that breeds on the steppes on Mongolia. It is 139 cm (55 in) long with a 235 cm (7.8 ft) wingspan, and it weighs 5.5 kg (12 lbs). It is whitish-gray, with a black head, red crown patch, black upper neck and legs, and white patch to the rear of the eye. It has black primaries and secondaries. Both sexes are similar. Some populations are known to make seasonal movements. It is revered in Buddhist traditions and culturally protected across much of its range. This medium-sized crane is mostly grey with a black head and neck. The lores and crown are naked and dull red. A small patch of white feathers are present below and behind the eye. The tail is black and makes it easy to distinguish at a distance from the similar looking common crane, which has grey tail. The black-necked crane summers mainly in the high altitude of Mongolia.
Grus vipio: The white-naped crane is a bird of the crane family. It is a large bird, 112–125 cm (44–49 in) long, approximately 130 cm (4 ft) tall and weighing about 5.6 kg (12 lbs) with pinkish legs, grey and white striped neck, and a red face patch. The white-naped crane breeds in northeastern Mongolia. Its diet consists mainly of insects,seeds,roots, plants and small animals. Due to ongoing habitat loss and overhunting in some areas, the white-naped crane is evaluated as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
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Day 1
Ulaanbaatar. Samar Magic Tours.(L)
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Day 2
Hustain Nuruu.(B)(L)(D)
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Day 3
Hustain Nuruu National Park.(B)(L)(D)
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Day 4
Karakorum (Central Mongolia).(B)(L)(D)
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Day 5
Karakorum-Orkhon Valley-Tsenkher Hot Springs.(B)(L)(D)
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Day 6
Orkhon Valley-Lake Ugii. (B)(L)(D)
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Day 7
Lake Ugii. (B)(L)(D)
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Day 8
Bayangobi Desert-Khogno National Park. (B)(L)(D)
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Day 9
Bayangobi Desert-Ulaanbaatar.(B)(L)(D)
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Day 10
UB New Airport. Departure Mongolia. (B)
| May-September | Holiday Inn Hotel 5*, Premium Palace Hotel 4* or silmilar |
|---|---|
| 12 persons or more | $ US 2,199 or 2,255 € |
| 4-11 persons | $ US 2,249 or 2,305 € |
| 3 persons | $ US 2,299 or 2,355 € |
| 2 persons | $ US 2,399 or 2,455 € |
| Individual Supplement (2 nights in UB City) | $ US 135 or 139 € |
2023/2024 Land tour costs per person in $ US or in Euros (€), based on double room from (10 days, excluding flights)
Free: If you have a group of 16 persons (15 paying persons + 1 free, based on double room: 8) Excluding flights, and the single room at hotels in Ulaanbaatar city.
What's Included?
2 nights at selected & confirmed hotel in Ulaanbaatar(according to the request!), based on double indicated room, with breakfast.
7 nights in the tourist GERS camps, based on standard gers for 2 people or more (according to the request!).
Full Board as indicated (B-breakfast, L-lunch, D-dinner) with 1 litr of mineral water per person, a day.
All transportation on comfortable 4WD LAND CRUISER TOYOTA vehicle or DELICA MITSUBISHI 4x4 in private, including the petrol.
Services of English or Spanish speaking local guide(according to the request!).
Birding Local Guide.
Entrance fees to the all specified protected areas, national parks, museums, and the monasteries.
One Mongolian traditional folk songs concert.
Meeting true nomadic families.
1 hour excursion to explore the dunes on the back of a Bactrian camel.
1 hour of relaxing baths in the Tsenkher Hot Springs.
Gentle hiking through wonderful landscapes.
Rates and services.
Management and payment for the support visa letter, authorized by Mongolian Immigration, for citizens who cannot obtain the Mongolian visa electronically or do not have consulates (*if necessary).
Accommodation in Mongolia
Ulaanbaatar: Premium Palace hotel 4*, Novotel hotel 4*, Holiday Inn hotel 5*, Kempinski hotel 5*, Blue Sky & Tower hotel 5* or similar (2 nights).
Hustain Nuruu Wild Horses National Park: Tourist Gers camp (2 nights).
Lake Ugii: Tourist Gers camp (2 nights).
Karakorum: Tourist Gers camp (1 night).
Tsenkher Hot Springs: Tourist Gers camp (1 night).
Bayangobi Desert: Tourist Gers camp (1 night).
What's Not Included?
The international flights.
Occasional flight delays or cancellation.
Excess baggage.
Visa.
Early Check-in!.
Late Check-out!.
The binoculars, telescopes and tripod.
Equipment commonly used for birding.
Any rescue costs or costs of early departure.
Changing of date of departure from Ulaanbaatar.
The traveler is responsible for having proper travel documents, such as a valid passport, proper visa, the necessary passport pictures, and the International airfares.
Travel insurance.
Items of personal nature such as gratuities to porters at hotels, telephone / telex / fax charges, laundry, beverages, meals, optional activities, and services not specified in the itinerary.
Any circumstances beyond of our control, such as the imposition of quarantine restrictions, weather conditions, etc.
