Packing Tips for Mongolia: What to Pack & How to Prepare
Are you traveling to Mongolia and wondering what to pack for your trip? Or how to prepare for a trip to Mongolia? I spent a week in Central Mongolia, stayed in yurts with nomadic families, rode horses, rode camels, toughed the cold autumn nights, and so much more! I feel like visiting Mongolia was much different then any other trip I’ve took in the past. I did my research prior to my trip and arrived well prepared. I’d like to share my packing tips for Mongolia, recommendations, and what to expect and how to prepare for a trip to Mongolia.
**This post contains affiliate links. If you click on one of the links or banners throughout the page, whether it be TripAdvisor, Booking.com. Agoda.com, or any other affiliate, I might receive commission at no extra cost to you. For more information, you can visit my affiliate link page here. Thanks for the support!
**As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mongolia is a developing country and does take some effort to plan for. The environment is harsh here, during the summer it can get extremely hot and winter months can be brutally cold. Once you are outside of Ulaanbaatar, the country gets pretty rural. That is not to say you will pass by the occasional town or supermarket, but it’s best to prepare for being away from civilization for a few hours if not days.
If planning on staying in yurt camps or with nomadic families, resources can be minimal. After spending a week in Mongolia, here are my packing recommedations to help you better prepare for your trip to Mongolia.
Toilet Paper
We found that many places in Mongolia, even places in Ulaanbaatar did not have toilet paper, including some restaurants and other establishments.
We did our research prior and have been to other countries where this was common. We simply packed two smaller rolls of toilet paper with us, put them in zip lock bags and had no issues.
The yurt camps and nomadic families had basically squatty potties, open bathrooms with a hole in the ground, and no toilet paper.
We also brought wet wipes with us. Fortunately, you can buy this stuff to at supermarkets in Ulaanbaatar. But we planned ahead and brought our own.
Plastic Bags
Plastic Bags were also useful on our trip to Mongolia. We always bring plastic bags with, especially for shoes. There is nothing worse then getting mud or sand all over your suitcase from your shoes. We just place them in a plastic bag and then place them in our suitcase.
You can separate laundry as well with plastic bags. But plastic bags are multi use so you can use them to carry items, throw trash away, or just place things in them to keep dust off.
Ziploc Bags
One of my most recommended packing tips for Mongolia are Ziploc bags. I always place a couple in my backpack and suitcase and have been doing this for years.
If you are traveling to a hot destination, place your valuables including documents and passports in a Ziploc bag. This will keep moisture including rain and sweat off your important items.
Headlamp
Once you get outside of Ulaanbaatar, don’t expect to see many city lights. Some of our yurt camps we stayed at didn’t even have electricity. We used a car battery to power on a lamp for the inside of the yurt.
We went to Mongolia in October and it got dark earlier, like around 6pm. So unless you plan on staying in the yurt until the next morning, you’ll want to pack a headlamp or flashlight with.
Or what if you have to wake up in the middle of the night to use the restroom. It seemed toilets were placed a bit outside the camp, so you have to walk a minute or so. You’ll definitely want a headlamp for walking to the bathroom at night.
I like Black Diamond headlamps. Some of them are waterproof and have rechargeable batteries. These can also be found on Amazon.
Camera Equipment
Mongolia is a photographers paradise. There is a lot of unique wildlife species and the landscapes are beautiful. I loved just taking photos of the yurts, especially at night.
I always travel with my Nikon D7500. I use an iPhone too for certain photos but the quality between the phone and a real camera are just unmatched.
For wildlife photography, I packed my Sigma 150-600mm Cotemporary lens.
The Sigma 150-600mm lens is a telephoto zoom lens that allowed me to get beautiful shots of Przewalski’s Horses and Elk at Hustai National Park.
This lens is available on Amazon, if interested, make sure to select the appropriate mount for your brand of camera (Nikon F Camera, Canon EF Camera, Sigma SA Camera).
I also recommend a tripod, especially for shooting at night.
In Mongolia, if the weather is nice, prepare to see beautiful night skies. My goal was to photograph yurts with stars in the background and almost every night, I accomplished this.
To take photos of the starry night sky, you need a tripod. I use a SLIK tripod, these can also be purchased on Amazon.
If you are interested in the camera settings I used for night photos, just let me know!
Clothing Layers
We went to Mongolia in October. Even in October, temperatures dropped to about -6°C (20°F) at night. I heard even in summer time, nights can cool off. Winter months, Mongolia can see temperatures down to -40°C (-40°F).
I can’t speak for summer, but when we went in autumn, I brought thermal under layers with and very glad I had that. I wore my thermal, both pants and shirts the entire time, and had a jacket that I could take on and off.
For Mongolia, I think it’s good to pack a little extra then normal. Pack a thick pair of socks, under layers, bring a jacket, and don’t forget a beanie and gloves.
I also recommend bringing some shorts and lighter clothes. In October, during the day, temperatures were mild.
Hiking, Walking, and Shower Shoes
Another packing tip for Mongolia, bring different types of shoes. I brought a pair of hiking shoes, walking shoes, and flip flops for showering.
During our Central Mongolia tour, we ended up hiking quite a bit. Even if it wasn’t planned, when we got back to our yurt camp and had time to spare, we hiked up hills and did small walks in the prairie.
I recommend bringing walking shoes for Ulaanbaatar. We ended up walking a lot here and I didn’t want to ruin my hiking shoes, so I brough a pair of comfortable walking shoes.
Lastly, I recommend bringing a pair of flip flops or some type of shower shoes. Mainly because at one of the yurt camps, there were shared shower facilities.
Pepto-Bismol and Other Medication
I like to stay honest and tell my readers exactly how things are. The food in Mongolia is not for everyone. I loved it, but I really enjoy eating mutton. I ended up eating a lot of mutton and meat in general in Mongolia.
That being sad, at some point on my trip, toward the end thankfully, I had some stomach issues. Thankfully, we packed enough Pepto-Bismol for a few days to keep our stomachs in order.
Jill can get car sick sometimes, she packed Dramamine (motion sickness medication). Some days, we spent hours driving off road on very bumpy roads. So, when traveling to Mongolia, bring motion sickness medication if you have problems in cars.
Conclusion
My packing tips for Mongolia is all based on a week long trip I took to Central Mongolia in the month of October. All these recommendations are what I felt is necessary to bring or prepare for a trip to Mongolia. Many of these items are useful for general travel to other countries as well. Mongolia is a developing country and some items might not be as easy to come by, so do your research prior to traveling to Mongolia, especially to better prepare for the time of year and season you are visiting. I hope this helps and if you have any other recommendations on packing tips for Mongolia or things to bring, please let me know!
Enjoying my photos and want to see more? Check out my Picfair Store. 📸
Plan Your Trip: 🗺️✈️🇲🇳
Booking Accommodations ⛺️🛖
For booking recommendations on the best deals and locations, check out Agoda or Booking.com
Activities and Tours 🏖️🚁
Find fun activities and things to do through Tripadvisor. If you are looking for tours and day trips, Viator and Get Your Guide have a lot of great options.
In need of a car rental? 🚗🚘
I recommend checking with Rental Cars.
You May Also Like
Tsuken Island Okinawa, aka “Carrot Island”
Visiting Yehliu Geopark from Taipei by Bus
