We did a day tour yesterday and it was fantastic! We visited Terelj National Park, turtle rock, a monastery with chanting monks, went to a great lookout over the city, the Ghengus Khan Statue and museum and has a tasty lunch with a nomadic family in their ger, complete with an ox drawn carriage ride across the snow. It was a really cold day and snowing in the morning, but the minivan was warm inside and the driver was very good and safe. Our guide was very friendly, knowledgeable and had perfect english. Everything went to plan and our 12 and 14 year old children really enjoyed the day as much as we did! We would highly recommend this day tour.

The Rara Avis team picked us up from our hotel and we started our day tour with temps at -27c. Bitterly cold. we visited the Gandantegchinlen Monastery and looked in on the young Buddhists who were going through their morning recitals. Then we departed for the Chinngis Khan memorial. Stunning views with the cold temps bringing very clear skies. From there we left for the Gorkhi-Tereij park. We stopped for lunch in a local Ger. Our host meet us with a cart drawn by an ox and took us to his Ger, crossing over the frozen river on the way. Lunch was excellent and eating in a distinctly local environment was a pleasure. Our driver leant my son his heavy coat to go over the one he already had on as the temperatures continued to fall. From there we took a drive through the park and visited the Turtle rock. Then back to the city where our guide took us to a couple of shops that we'd asked for. The team then dropped us off at our hotel. All in all an excellent day. The Rara Avis team were excellent, our guide had very good English and gave us a running commentary on the history of Mongolia. I'd fully recommend this trip to anyone. Families would especially benefit from taking a tour with Rara.

My tour guide Yogi was excellent. His English is a step above other tour non-native English speaking guides I've worked with. He was friendly, enthusiastic, and willing to adjust the tour to my personal interests. The itinerary was efficient, we hit on all the major spots I wanted to see. The stop at the monastery was informative for someone who knows very little about Buddhism (and Mongolia's history with it). The black market was really interesting and we spent the perfect amount of time exploring it. Highlight locations were the city lookout point and the museum. (Most skippable was the winter palace. Not entirely uninteresting, but not the most engaging.) The real highlight though was the opportunity to have in depth conversations in English with someone born and raised in Mongolia about every topic from politics to history to what life is like for the average Mongolian. Can't recommend Yogi enough! All around fantastic experience, perfect comprehensive introduction to this fascinating country!

The tour was very good for the reasons you would expect: Transportation to important and interesting sites The guide provide interesting additional information of the area The "normal day" lunch in a Ger (Yurt) was fun and the food good. You guide can help you with simple things (that maybe are so simple like buying a hand made hat at a roadside stop and then finding an ATM that will accept your card. Other helpful shopping hints (Cashmere is VERY affordable in Mongolia) But the most important reason for the tour is a plus/minus thing: Unfortunately, the traffic in Ulaanbaatar is, simply put, terrible. Almost unbearable traffic jams and difficult driving. The plus is having a skilled local driver is a big BIG plus to the tour.

The tour was great the guide and the driver were perfect, we appreciated all what was done during this tour, the visit of Genghis Kahn statue, the Terelj National Park with a local lunch in a Yurt and the visit of the Turtle Rock and the Aryapala temple. All was perfectly organized and we had a lot of time to appreciate the different activities but we had ordered a private tour for two clicking on “Private & Custom Tours” and a third person participated to the tour (at least she was very nice). We paid more than 240 USD for this tour for two while we should have paid less than 160 USD for a tour with 3 people. I would like to understand from TripAdvisor and from the tour organiser why this has happened?

I became slightly sick part way through a Gobi Desert trip, and Rara Avis completely revised our itinerary. They got me to a pharmacy for some drugs and were willing to get me to a hospital (I declined). We're now staying in a hotel in Ulaanbaatar and venturing out on day trips - a concert, a Husted National Park visit and more.

Driver was there at the airport upon arrival with no wait time. The car was very clean and comfortable. Driver was personable,spoke excellent English, a good conversationalist, and pointed out places of interest along the way to the hotel. Since this was my first time in Ulaanbaatar, the driver made suggestions of sites to visit and provided names of some good restaurants close to my hotel. Would definitely recommend use of this service.

I'd highly reccomend a tour with Rara Avis. Our guide Yogi was very knowledgable and a genuienly friendly person. We visited the Gengis Khan statue, had traditional Mongolian Food in a Ger and travelled through some beautiful countryside. I really learnt a lot about Mongolian culture and history and some of things I was told were repeated by other Mongolians so the knowledge is definitely factual. The trip lasted the whole day and is a great way to see the amazing Mongolian countryside. If I came back to Mongolia in the future I would definitely consider one of Rara Avis' longer tours.

Very interesting place to visit. The biggest horse monument in the world, about 40 m high, with museum inside.

The tour was really great. The tour guide is very nice and can speak English very well. He helped me plan the trip as exactly what I wanted! He is very knowledgeable and through him I understood the city a lot. Not only this, as my return flight was on the same day but at late night 11pm, after the tour, the tour company arranged me another car to drive me to the airport with a very reasonable price. What I could say about the tour is perfect and professional!

We were picked up early by the bus and our guide (FYI there isn't confirmation, you just trust they will come per the booking lol). Gunj was our guide - he was very funny and informative with awesome English. We went to the Buddhist temple which was a surreal experience, then the Soviet statue with a great overlook of the city. Next we went to the Chinggis Khan status & museum. The statue is so photogenic, and the museum is very informative; dioramas really bring the Mongol empire to life. Next, we went to Gorkhi-Terelj, which takes 1+ hrs and is beautiful. Lunch was served in a ger complete with an ox taxi to the ger campground! Lastly, we saw Turtle Rock before heading home. Overall a great mix of photo opportunities, seeing the landscape, and getting some historical background with Gunj. Would recommend this as a day activity while you're in Ulaanbaatar!

We were on the Trans-Mongolian Railway and made a stop at Ulan Bator for 2 days. We signed up for a 24-hour “Mongolia in 2 days” tour, which included a stop at the Chinggis Khaan Complex, an overnight stay inside a Ger at Terelj National Park, a horse-riding experience and a visit to a monastery. Based on the activities, the price seemed steep, but I’m not sure about the other tour operators and what else they would have offered in a 24-hour itinerary. It was end October (Autumn) and it was low season at the Ger camp that we were brought to. (The 2 of us were probably the only visitors as we didn’t see or hear anyone else in the camp). It was pretty cold for us, and at night the temperature outside dropped to -9 degC. Unfortunately, during the freezing night, the firewood ran out and the fire died inside the Ger. To add on to our misery, we realized the Ger wasn’t a properly insulated one – the cold wind could still enter the Ger (from the sides and from below!). I thought I would be a frozen body the next morning. The next day, we were brought to try out horse-riding. Lunch was traditional Mongolian food at the horseman’s Ger. This was when we realized how a proper Ger should be – well-insulated, comfortable and warm, and that no wind could enter! We wished we would have stayed at a more proper Ger like this one instead. But we were still happy with our guide Gunj. He had been to many countries and could speak really good English, was pretty entertaining and definitely knowledgeable about the places we visited and could answer our questions about the country.

if you have sometime extra in ulaambaatar,you should go to see the statue of the ginghis khan..short bus ride from ulaambaatar,we did it ourselves without a tour,very affordable,although if not a big different if you go with a tour,i mean the cost.

This was a great day out and Bill answered all our questions. The statue was very impressive and there was a local there with Eagles which gave you the chance to hold and take pictures. Lunch was made by a local family which we had in a ger in a very scenic area, we stopped at turtle rock for photos. It was a very nice trip, but it did finish 2 hours earlier than stated.

I had booked for 7 October 2018 and the car did not show up. The cell phone provided was not working, switched off. 9 hours later I got an email explaining they weren't able to provide the service, and that money would be refunded 3-7 days later.