From Wikitravel

Ulaanbaatar (Улаанбаатар), also Ulan Bator or simply just UB, is the capital and, with a population of around 1,000,000, also the largest city in Mongolia. In fact, according to recent estimates, this means approximately 1/3 of the country lives here. It is located just east of the center of the country.

[edit] Understand

Ulaanbaatar has a long and mysterious history, and is only now undergoing an industrial revolution. When under communist control, the city was forbidden to waste funds on beautification projects, and this policy is no doubt partly responsible for the city's present drab and uninteresting architecture. Still, as traditionalists, Mongolians love their capital. They understand that it is not an Asian beauty, but in their hearts they are aware of the city's history, culture and many struggles. Foreigners who take the time to get to know the faces that are hidden behind the gray walls will discover a hospitable and warm-hearted people. Explore the city from different angles, while at the same time do not ignore the abject poverty of many of the ex-nomads who in recent years have come to the city to find work after severe winters have killed their livestock. In this way, you will learn to unlock the city's many secrets and discover an Ulaanbaatar that is not initially revealed to the casual visitor.

Although summer temperatures are around 20°C, the city shivers in minus zero temperatures for five months of the year, with January and February being the coldest months with temps hovering between -15°C to -30°C. As a result of these prolonged periods of intense cold, the city has an average annual temperature of -1.3°C, giving it the dubious distinction of being the world's coldest capital.

[edit] Get in

[edit] By plane

The majority of visitors arrive in Mongolia through Chinggis Khaan International Airport (ULN), which is located 18 km to the southwest of Ulaanbaatar. The airport was reconstructed in 1990, and the immigration, customs formalities and luggage delivery are relatively efficient.

MIAT (Mongolian Airlines) offers direct international flights to ULN from Berlin, Moscow, Irkutsk, Seoul, Beijing, and Tokyo. Domestic flights from ULN to Dalanzadgad, Moron, Khovd, Bulgan Khovd, Altai, and Arvaikheer are also available.

Official web site for Mongolian Airlines: MIAT

[edit] By train

Direct (but long) journeys are possible from Moscow, Russia and Beijing, China on the Trans-Mongolian line of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Trains also run to the Chinese border towns of Erlian and Jineen 3-4 times a week.

Trains from Beijing run once a week (on Tuesdays) and seats can only be reserved at the International Hotel in Beijing (a ten minute walk north of the main Beijing rail station). The journey takes about 30 hours. Make sure to pack a face mask as sandstorms in the Gobi desert may cause difficulty in breathing.

[edit] By car

You can drive from the airport cars rental at the Chinggis Khaan I.A. (International Airport) to where ever you want to go. Or taxis will take you to where ever again but it will be very pricey!

[edit] By bus

Once in the country, it should not be difficult to find a bus going to UB, at least from larger towns. However, bus stops are difficult to locate, with buses usually just stopping in populated areas. Furthermore, Mongolian buses are notorious for being late and on some routes for not even arriving on the scheduled day. Be forewarned!

[edit] Get Around

Taxis are cheap, charging around T300-350 per kilometer.

Buses are regular and have a set charge of T200. Electric trolley-buses cost T100 but are slower and run fewer routes. Smaller buses (really just vans) are equally accessible at T200. These have someone who hangs out the window at each stop shouting the name of the destination in rapid Mongolian. Fairly hard not to notice.

Walking is also an option as the city is quite compact.

[edit] Budget travel

• OTAM Agency- [1] Open Tour Around Mongolia

Mongolia is a developing country. Therefore, the infrastructure is not fully developed yet and the biggest problem for travelers is transport service. OTAM is a brand new tourist service which will give you THE cheapest opportunity to explore this vast and beautiful country: the home land of the Great Emperor Chinges Khaan. OTAM agency runs minivans around Mongolia every 2 days. Hop on/off at the some fixed stops or anywhere you want. You will be picked up by the following minivan or later. As long as you let us know how long are you going to stay in the chosen place. Read more [2]

[edit][add listing] See

• Gandan Khiid - the city's main monastery - services at about 10AM.
• Chojin Monastery - a monastery combined with a museum.
• Natural History Museum - a huge collection of expertly stuffed animals, and massive dinasour skeletons from the Gobi desert. Admission - T2500, 10am-5.30pm, last admission, 4.30pm.
• National History Museum - a nicely put together display of Mongolian history, with a lot of English and Dutch support. Admission - T2500, 10am-5.30pm, last admission, 4.30pm.
• Sukhbaatar Square - the big open space in the center of the city with an equestrian statue of the 1921 hero Sukbaatar, and seated statue of Chinggis Kahn.
• Bogd Kahn Museum
• Zaisan Tolgoi (Head)- located on a hill near the city. It represents the Russian and Mongolian heroes who fought together during WWI and WWII.
• The Buddhist statue located near the Zaisan Tolgoi - a very nice place to visit.

NB: Most tourist sites have a camera/video fee in addition to the entrance fee.

[edit][add listing] Do

• Attend Naadam - the largest and most famous festival in Mongolia, which consists of competitions in the three traditional Mongolian sports of wrestling, horse racing and archery. The festival is an annual event and runs from July 11th to 13th.
• Take a walk to Zaizan Memorial.

[edit] Learn

• Mongolian - there are several language schools in the city.

[edit] Work

• Volunteer. Work is available for overseas visitors in the volunteer sector.
• English. Teaching English as a second language is an option for native English speakers. Mostly positions are in Ulaanbaatar, though they could be anywhere in the country. Those who find a teaching position after arriving in the country will need to travel to Seoul or Beijing to apply for a working visa. The school may or may not pay for this.

[edit][add listing] Buy

UB has a host of souvenirs aimed at Western and East Asian tourists. While the quality of the goods varies, the price is always high.

What:

• Traditional clothes, boots and hats, cashmere garments, jewelery, leather wall hangings, miniature gers, bow and arrow sets and paintings.

Where:

• Peace Avenue and the Circus area are the main shopping areas.
• The 5th floor of the State Department Store is entirely devoted to souvenirs, but prices are higher than in some of the smaller stores.

How to get cash: It is relatively easy to find an ATM machine with a VISA logo to withdraw cash. As long as your ATM, debit or credit card has the VISA logo, you can withdraw tögrög, the local currency. (Other card types are also accepted, simply not as widely.) The more expensive shops take credit cards, but almost everywhere else runs strictly on cash. Note that most credit card companies will pass on the 3% "foreign currency conversion fee" to you.

[edit][add listing] Eat

Ulaanbaatar has an excellent range of Western, Asian and Mongolian options. No other city this side of Beijing has close to a comparable selection. Even better, meals here are quite reasonable. You can get perfectly reasonable pizza for $3, even a night out at a fancy French food shouldn't pass $20. Consider splurging on a couple good meals here, especially if headed out for a long trek into the country.

Korean and Chinese restaurants dominate the city. As Asian restaurants in America tend to tailor their menu to the Yankee palate, so in Ulaanbaatar do the East Asian restaurants tailor their menu to the Central Asian palate.

[edit] Budget

• My Homemade Khushur serves a favorite Mongolian dish, mutton fried in dough. One khushur is 150T, and three is a pretty adqueate meal. On Peace Avenue near the State Department Store.

[edit] Mid-range

• Ubdeli Restaurant, placed on Seoul Street. The UB deli is popular with foreign expats, tourists and the trendy locals alike. In addition to a great breakfast menu, we serve gourmet sandwiches as well as delicious pizzas, pastas and salads for lunch and dinner. And they also have free WiFi internet service to make your stay more convenient and comfortable. Website of Ubdeli Restaurant.
• American Ger'll, right across the Peace Bridge on the right has the best American-style, thick crust pizza in town. The large pizza will feed 5-6 people for about $20.00 US. They also have an extensive foreign menu, including the best coffee drinks in UB. With one of the friendliest and most well-trained staff in town, you should get there early, because this place is a favorite among Mongolians and expats alike.
• Planet Pizza, near Sukhbaatar Square. Offers an American-style, thicker crust pizza, and costs around $8 for a two-person size.
• City Cafe, across the street from Sukhbaatar Square. Great food and location, wonderful staff, good prices. If you want tasty and healthy Chinese food, this is the place to go.
• California Restaurant, on Seoul Street not far from the State Department store. Extensive foreign and Mongolian menu. Beautifully decorated, this is one of the best restaurants in town. It's a bit small, but in the summer there is additional outside seating. Reservations are advised.

[edit] Splurge

• Los Banditos serves Mexican and Indian food. It sounds terrible until you taste the spicy chicken malasa or crispy tacquitos. They are at a new location not far from Sukhbaatar Square. The prices are higher now, but the atmosphere has improved and most mains are still in the $5-8 range.
• Chez Bernard Cafe, Peace Avenue (main street in Ulaanbaatar), between the Central Post Office and the State Department Store [3] - excellent breakfasts, snacks and good selection of coffee - open all day. This cafe is famous among travelers as the place to gather information about journeying through Mongolia and for organizing tours. Prices are comparatively high, but the service is excellent. There are better cafes in town, but the location alone makes it worth a visit, especially in the summer. In the winter it is very quiet with few customers, as it serves mostly back packers.

[edit][add listing] Drink

• Oasis Nightclub and Lounge is located on Seoul center of the city, it is by far the swankiest and coolest nightclub and lounge in Ulaanbaatar, featuring a Cuban influenced outside bar with enormous sofas and lounge areas as well as a wood fire pizza oven and an American grill. The interior has cosy VIP nooks, a beating dance floor and a large bar to serve exotic cocktails all night long.Visit Oasis Nightclub and Lounge website.
• Ikh Mongol is a cavernous club just south of the State Department Store. Choose between the main dining area, the fancy VIP upstairs, or seculded tables in the back. Most weekends have concerts from Mongolian acts. The restaurant brews several beers on tap, or get some of the more popular Mongolian brands for around T2000 a half-liter.
• Brauhaus goes for a German brewhouse look and succeds. This bar is big but usually not noisy. It serves X Beer, a quite tasty local brew. Half-liters run around T2,500.

[edit][add listing] Sleep

Nowadays, there are a lot of small hotels, and as as it is often very difficult to get a room in a one of the big hotels travelers may need to stay at one of these. NB: During the annual Naadam festival, it is almost impossible to get any kind of accommodation in UB without prior reservations.

[edit] Budget

• "Youth Mongolia" Guest house. This smaller and nice guest house has a almost best location than other main big guest houses of Ulaanbaatar. An Asian style guesthouse Youth Mongolia is located in the center of the city, and very clean and much cheaper than other guesthouses in the city and not too many beds in the rooms like other guesthouses. Close to next the biggest foodmarket in Ulaanbaatar (25 meters away). Russian style building. Door no. 67, 1st floor 5th entrance, building 14-b. Further information in [www.mongoliantourworld.com] and email is [nomadsmongolia@yahoo.com]
• Mongolian Resort's Guesthouse, the coolest guest house in Mongolia! Located on historic Seoul street, the guest house is nestled between some of Mongolia's most popular eating and drinking destinations like the UB Deli restaurant and the trendy Oasis nightclub. Their apartment rooms, located in buildings around the guesthouse come complete with a full individual bathroom, sitting room and bedrooms.Their lounge area is equipped with a television, a large collection of the latest DVDs, and WiFi internet service to make your stay more convenient.The Lonely Planet guide describes them as the only real guesthouse in the country. Click Mongolia Resort Guest house to visit their website.
• Zaya Guesthouse, Tserendorj Street Bld 63, App 10,11,12. Tel:+976 11 331-575. E-mail: backpackza@hotmail.com [4]. Budget accommodation in convenient location. Also arranges tours.
• Serge's: Dorm beds ($4/night) and rooms available. Will always try and find a bed even during the busy Nadaam season. Also has a travel agency.
• Happy Guesthouse [5] - an excellent guest house run by some young Mongolians in a central location - hot showers and western style toilets - a very nice place to stay.
• UB Guesthouse A clean, well-organized and centrally located hotel that also arranges tours around the country. E-mail ahead for a free pickup from the train station. Dorms beds, $5; Single room, $10; Double room, $14. A light breakfast, tea and coffee are included.
• Idre's Guesthouse, [6]. Friendly family-run guesthouse with $4 dorm beds. Rooms are clean, staff are helpful, and tickets and tours can be arranged without hassle.

"Idre's Guesthouse" Bayangol disrict 1, [http://www.idretour.com/ Tel: ++976 99112575, E-mail: idrehouse@yahoo.com

[edit] Splurge

• Mongolian Properties Short Let Apartments Mongolian Properties, the leading real estate agency in Mongolia, offers a number of 1,2,3 and 4 bedroom apartments for short term rent during the summer months. All the available properties can be viewed on the website.Mongolian PropertiesPrices vary from 40USD a night to 150USD. The quality and comfort of the apartments very much depend on price and availability.
• Sukhbaatar Square Shangrila Hotel Opening late 2007.

[edit] Contact

• Internet cafes - there are many Internet cafes liberally scattered around the city and they cost around T400-800 per hour.
• Mail - the central post office is located on the south west corner of Sukhbaatar Square, and besides stamps it also sells a wide variety of reasonably priced postcards (though they may take up to two months to reach their destination!), some very large, decorative collections of stamps (which are not for use) and a few nice calendars.
• Telephone - the city has an international call center. However, if you have access to a private phone, the most convenient way to make an international call is to use a prepaid card, such as BodiCom.

[edit] Stay safe

UB doesn't have a particular problem with crime, though pickpocketing is not uncommon. However, it is advisable to avoid the ger districts after dark as this area doesn't have street lighting and is frequented by drunks and stray dogs. Walking on the streets, however, is a dangerous affair as one needs to contend with ice from about October to March, open manholes and extremely chaotic and wild driving habits. Furthermore, most sidewalks are not paved and so can be very muddy and slippery during a thaw or after rain.

Unmarked taxis are common and shouldn't be feared. However, it is wise to get a local to interpret if possible. Be ready to negotiate fares.

Child beggers are not uncommon on the streets, but watch out for groups of them, as one may be trying to pick your pocket. Also be aware that any money you do donate will go straight to their teenage "pimps", and so you may not be helping them as much as you think.

Walking at night shouldn't be too great of a concern, it isn't for the locals. But stick to areas where you can see lots of locals (especially women) if just so they can be a nice reminder of this. :)

[edit] Get out

• All of Mongolia awaits. Drive an hour out of the capital and you're in deep in a land of herders, gers and bumpy dirt roads. Arrange a tour in any one of Ulaanbaatar's hundreds of tour operators, or brave local minibuses and hitchhiking to reach far flung destinations.
• For less-adventurous or time-strapped travellers, the most popular one night excursion is to Terelj, a nearby grassland park. Again, you can arrange a tour (around $30-40 a person)that will include transport, lodging and admission fees at dozens of places in Ulanbaatar.
• For travellers on the Trans-Siberian Express route, tickets onwards to China or Russia can be purchased from the International Railway Ticketing Office (8am-8pm), just outside the main station (ask inside for directions). Most tickets can be reserved a month in advance, but tickets for the main express trains between Moscow and Beijing (train numbers 3 and 4) go on sale 24 hours before departure. Travel agencies may be able to help you reserve them earlier.

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