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We recommend booking Gandantegchenling Monastery tours ahead of time to secure your spot. If you book with Tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. See all 15 Gandantegchenling Monastery tours on Tripadvisor

What hotels are near Gandantegchenling Monastery?

Hotels near Gandantegchenling Monastery: (0.20 km) Town Yard Hostel and Tours (0.53 km) Danista Nomads (0.34 km) Sunpath Mongolia Tour & Guest House (0.80 km) Zaya 2 Hostel (0.35 km) Good Karma Hostel View all hotels near Gandantegchenling Monastery on Tripadvisor

What restaurants are near Gandantegchenling Monastery?

Restaurants near Gandantegchenling Monastery: (0.11 km) Gandan Zoog (0.32 km) Gobi Cave Turkish Restaurant (0.37 km) Molly Malone's Irish Pub and Restaurant (0.37 km) Saranban Korean Restaurant (0.44 km) The Temple Restaurant at Nomado View all restaurants near Gandantegchenling Monastery on Tripadvisor

Gandantegchenling Monastery, Ulaanbaatar

646 reviews

#8 of 74 things to do in Ulaanbaatar

Historic Sites • Architectural Buildings • Religious Sites

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Suggested duration

1-2 hours

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Tours & experiences

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Private Jeep City tour with English Speaking Driver
10
Recommended
100% of travellers recommend this experience. This number is based on the percentage of all Tripadvisor reviews for this product that have a bubble rating of 4 or higher.
4WD Tours
from
RM 432.56
per group (up to 4)
Nomadic Odyssey Mongolia Tour
1
Historical Tours
from
RM 16,558.05
per adult
LIKELY TO SELL OUT*
The Essence of Mongolia 3 Days
1
4WD Tours
from
RM 3,628.70
per adult (price varies by group size)
LIKELY TO SELL OUT*
The Essence of Mongolia 4 Days
1
4WD Tours
from
RM 4,565.91
per adult (price varies by group size)
Private Tour: Ulaanbaatar City Tour
3
Full-day Tours
from
RM 672.87
per adult (price varies by group size)
LIKELY TO SELL OUT*
The Essence of Mongolia 5 Days
1
4WD Tours
from
RM 5,839.56
per adult (price varies by group size)
Best of Ulaanbaatar Tour
1
Bus Tours
from
RM 1,110.24
per adult (price varies by group size)
Private City Tour - Ulaanbaatar
Historical Tours
from
RM 668.06
per adult (price varies by group size)

11-Day Private Horseback Riding in the 8 Lakes
Bus Tours
from
RM 7,928.50
per adult

The area

Best nearby

Restaurants

285 within 5 kms

Gobi Cave Turkish Restaurant

25

0.3 km$$ - $$$ • Mediterranean • Turkish • Middle Eastern

Molly Malone's Irish Pub and Restaurant

26

0.4 km$$ - $$$ • Italian • Chinese • Irish

The Temple Restaurant at Nomado

6

0.4 km$$ - $$$ • Mediterranean • European • Asian

Gandan Zoog

3

0.1 km$ • Indian • Asian • Thai

Saranban Korean Restaurant

Yu-Long Chinese Restaurant

9

0.6 km$$ - $$$ • Chinese

Mumbai Palace

1

0.6 kmIndian

The Bull Hot Pot Restaurant

1

0.5 kmAsian • Mongolian

The Bull Hotpot Restaurant

283

1.1 km$$ - $$$ • Asian • Mongolian • Vegetarian Friendly

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Attractions

29 within 10 kms

Hustai National Park

524

1.2 kmNational Parks • Nature & Wildlife Areas

Galleria Ulaanbaatar

132

1.8 kmShopping Malls

National History Museum

774

1.6 kmHistory Museums

Migjid Janraisig Sum

189

1.6 kmReligious Sites

Choijin Lama Temple Museum

370

2 kmSpeciality Museums

Bogd Khaan Palace Museum of Mongolia

312

2.9 kmHistory Museums

Naran Mall

3

1.1 kmShopping Malls

Mongolian State Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet

61

1.9 kmBallets • Operas

4.3 kmPoints of Interest & Landmarks • Monuments & Statues

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See what other travellers are saying

Frank T
64 contributions
Get Special Intention Prayed For
On our visit it was quite busy with local worshippers. There was a service in progress and we watched from the rear of the temple. There were a lot of old and young monks taking part. Felt free to write a special intention on a piece of paper and hand it to one of the celebrants for a nominal fee who will pray over it and burn the paper. There is a massive Buddha statue inside. The building is more like a complex than a singular temple.
Visited July 2022
Travelled as a couple
Written 5 July 2022
marstar0109
Seoul, South Korea300 contributions
One of the highlights of my Ulaanbaatar visit
After visiting I said to my guide that visiting Ulaanbaatar only in order to see this monastery is worth it. The 26.5m statue inside it is just spectacular. There is this amazing, mysterious atmophere about the inside of this place, the chanting in the background, the smell of wood, the dark interior... I simply loved it. The whole complex has a few buildings, one of them is this much more modern one, which is also an interesting place to see. Overall I recommend a visit!
Visited January 2023
Written 29 January 2023
Summerasalifestyle
Malibu, California2,832 contributions
Always go to a church, temple or monastery…
I always try and go to such places. Guessing it might be good for my soul in the here or here after. Amazing architecture that’s beautiful and historical balanced by the newer stuff. Yes yes yes About $10 usd.
Visited July 2023
Written 23 July 2023

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.

Popular mentions

4.0

646 reviews

Excellent

248

Very good

277

Average

96

Poor

17

Terrible

8

Lee K

Prairie Village, KS1,034 contributions

Beautiful and historic.

Jun 2023 • Friends

Built in 1838, this is the largest and most important center of Buddhism. Beautiful buildings and ornate statues. We were able to hear the morning chants and meet with a monk.

Written 31 July 2023

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Summerasalifestyle

Malibu, CA2,832 contributions

Always go to a church, temple or monastery…

Jul 2023

I always try and go to such places. Guessing it might be good for my soul in the here or here after.
Amazing architecture that’s beautiful and historical balanced by the newer stuff.
Yes yes yes
About $10 usd.

Written 23 July 2023

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

marstar0109

Seoul, South Korea300 contributions

One of the highlights of my Ulaanbaatar visit

Jan 2023

After visiting I said to my guide that visiting Ulaanbaatar only in order to see this monastery is worth it. The 26.5m statue inside it is just spectacular. There is this amazing, mysterious atmophere about the inside of this place, the chanting in the background, the smell of wood, the dark interior... I simply loved it. The whole complex has a few buildings, one of them is this much more modern one, which is also an interesting place to see. Overall I recommend a visit!

Written 29 January 2023

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Happy Trails

Tucson, AZ50 contributions

Disreputable Monastery

Dec 2021

At one time this was a great monastery.The building itself remained a"showpiece" after communist purges of the early 20th C that destroyed all other monasteries SInce 2006 Gandan has gone from bad to worse. Monks follow few rules. . Now you have to watch your purse when you visit. "Monks" here might be actors or outright grifters accepting donations that go to them, not for students or upkeep of the monastery. It is a lovely place to visit as a historical relic, but there are better more reputable sacred monasteries that have been rebuilt that will not steal from you.

Written 2 November 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Noah Harry

Rochester, NY11 contributions

Gandan

Aug 2022

Really amazing place to visit and see Buddhist artworks. Also, the new big temple is worth to visit when you are in Ulanbatar

Written 11 October 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

PortlyPenguin

Sterling, VA47 contributions

absolutely stunning!

Sep 2022

this entire complex of Monasteries is beautiful... walk around, go in and see everything.. talk to people

Written 3 October 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Frank T

64 contributions

Get Special Intention Prayed For

Jul 2022 • Couples

On our visit it was quite busy with local worshippers. There was a service in progress and we watched from the rear of the temple. There were a lot of old and young monks taking part. Felt free to write a special intention on a piece of paper and hand it to one of the celebrants for a nominal fee who will pray over it and burn the paper. There is a massive Buddha statue inside. The building is more like a complex than a singular temple.

Written 5 July 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

GlobeTrotting55015

Brisbane, Australia136 contributions

Beautiful temple and monastery

Jun 2022 • Friends

We visited on a particularly busy day but we’re still able to walk around the complex and monastery. Quite peaceful despite the many visitors this day

Written 2 July 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

chaletaria

London, United Kingdom540 contributions

Whole area is worth a trip

Sep 2019

This is the most important monastery in Ulaanbaatar and mostly saved from the Soviet-inspired religious purges. Worth a visit. No signs etc, so take a guide book or brush up on Tibetan Buddhism (as this is the most practised in Mongolia)

Written 25 May 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

John OF

The Hills Shire, Australia13 contributions

One of the most popular temples with the local people.

Jan 2020

An interesting complex in the middle of Ulaanbaatar where one is able to go upstairs and photograph the 26.5m high Buddha in the main temple for an extra fee.

Written 20 February 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Gregory W

United States416 contributions

What are your favorite things to do/see in Mongolia? A group of three of us are taking the train from Moscow to Beijing. We like to get off the beaten path. Trip is Sep & Oct 2018

80GlobalTraveler30

Shenzhen, China244 contributions

I hope others respond as well, as my time did not allow traveling the fullest extent of the country. In town (UlaanBaatar), you only need a day to get the main sights. I recommend the national museum - very detailed, much information, and quite educational. Just west of Chenggis Khan Square. You need to organize some trip that includes a ger. You'll be hitting the end of tourist season so the crowds won't be as bad and the temperature may even be 'pleasant.' Nights, however, can be quite cold in the mountains. A ger holds in the heat quite well and only chills down once the fire goes out. With enough layers you'll stay plenty warm. Terelj is beautiful with the fall colors, so be sure to see that. If you're fascinated by deserts, visit the Gobi. As I look at all the options, you have a wide assortment of other choices. Hopefully others will add to this and make your decision easier. (As I mentioned earlier, I'm limited!) Overall, I found the people fantastic! Enjoy!

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jtflyer

Singapore, Singapore8 contributions

Hello Tripadvisor community, Is Gandantegchenling Monastery opened at night? Thanks! Jérémie

amoregor

Moscow, Russia16 contributions

Hi, Jeremie. I visited the Monastery last autumn, and it seemed to me that the territory is opened all night long, because I didn't see any big fence. It looked like a part of the city, some kind of a Buddhist quarter. Although all the temples are closed at night, I guess, but it is not 100% info. Good luck!

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