Visit Gorkhi-Terelj National Park from Ulaanbaatar
Are you looking for great or easy day trips from Ulaanbaatar? Or perhaps you want to stay in a yurt but only have enough time for one night. Maybe you just want to get outside the city and do some hiking and see cultural stuff. If all that sounds great, then it’s highly recommended to visit Gorkhi-Terelj National Park. Just a few hours drive from Ulaanbaatar, Gorkhi-Terelj National Park offers great hiking, horse back riding, cultural attractions, and so much more!
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Gorkhi-Terelj National Park or just Terelj National Park is a national park just outside of Mongolia’s capital city, Ulaanbaatar.
Gorkhi-Terelj National Park is considered to be one of Mongolia’s most visited and popular national parks, probably because it’s one of the closest ones to Ulaanbaatar.
The park itself is 2,920 km² and is known for its pristine nature, wildlife, and unique rock formations, Turtle Rock being the most famous.
Booking a Terelj National Park Tour
Technically, you can visit Terelj National Park without a tour or guide. There is a bus from Ulaanbaatar but they are infrequent and only drive to certain attractions within the park. You can also rent a car and drive yourself, but after being driven through Ulaanbaatar, I don’t recommend it.
The easiest way to visit Gorkhi-Terelj National Park is by booking a day or overnight tour. By booking a tour, you get a vehicle transfer, a guide, lunch (included with some tours), stops at main attractions, and if staying overnight, the accommodations should be included.
I booked a 5 Day Terelj National Park and Central Mongolia and a visit to Terelj National Park from Ulaanbaatar was our first day.
You don’t have to do a 5 day tour to visit Terelj National Park. Here are one to two day tours that I recommend from either Get Your Guide or Viator.
- Day Trip to Terelj National Park and State of Chinggis Khan
- Private Jeep Tour to Chinggis Khan Statue and Terelj National Park
- 2 Day Tour: Terelj National Park and Chinggis Statue
- Horse Riding Experience in Terelj National Park
- Nomad Family Home Stay in Terelj National Park
We ended up doing the 5 Day Terelj National Park and Central Mongolia Tour and loved our time in Terelj National Park. The Chinggis Khan Statue was impressive and Terelj National Park was just beautiful.
I found that most tours offer the same packages, it is worth browsing all the tours on either Get Your Guide or Viator to see what tour best fits your itinerary.
Where to Stay in Terelj National Park
If you book a tour either through Get Your Guide or Viator, chances are the tour will include an overnight stay in a yurt.
If you plan to do a solo trip to Terelj National Park, you can book yurt stays through places like Agoda or Booking.
Between Turtle Rock and Arayabal Temple, there are yurt camps everywhere that range in price from cheap to higher end.
Top Things to do in Terelj National Park
Terelj National Park is an easy day trip from Ulaanbaatar. In fact, many locals come here for the weekends to escape the chaotic traffic and city life of Ulaanbaatar to enjoy the nature, secludedness, and cultural attractions.
I personally think, to fully enjoy a visit to Terelj National Park, you should stay the night in one of the yurt camps and take your time exploring the park. Below is our Terelj National Park itinerary and what was included in our tour.
Genghis Khan Statue Complex
The Genghis Khan Statue Complex is the biggest equestrian statue in the world and it’s on the way to Gorkhi-Terelj National Park. It’s usually added on to every tour that going to Terelj National Park.
The statue itself is 40m tall or 130 ft. It’s a stainless steel statue and Genghis Khan is facing east, the direction of his place of birth.
Today, visitors can enter the statue, walk the stairs to the top, and access the museum. It’s all worth the entrance fee. There is even a cafe inside and souvenir shops.
Turtle Rock
Probably the most popular attraction in Gorkhi-Terelj National Park is Turtle Rock.
Why is the rock called Turtle Rock? You guessed it, it resembles a turtle. From one side, you can see the head and shell.
Turtle Rock is 24 meters tall and can be enjoyed from a distance or up close. Visitors can hike on Turtle Rock, just use caution.
Aryabal Meditation Temple
Another stop and must see site in Gorkhi-Terelj National Park is the Aryabal Meditation Temple.
One our day tour of Terelj National Park, this temple was the last stop before we departed back to our yurt camp.
Getting to Aryabal Temple from Turtle Rock is easy but I recommend an offroad vehicle as the road is unpaved and not in the best condition.
The temple itself was built in the early 1800’s by artists from both Mongolia and Tibet and monks came here to meditate.
In Buddhism, 108 represents the Kangyur which is the Tibetan Buddhist Canon. 108 is a favorable number in Buddhism, therefore there are a total of 108 steps that lead to Aryabal Temple.
Along the route, there are 144 Buddhist teachings written on boards. There is a structure, prior to the signs. Inside the structure you can spin a wheel, it will land on a specific number. You can find that number on one of the signs and read the teaching of Buddha.
I believe I landed on number 121. “Wisdom not conjoined with skillful means is bondage, but wisdom conjoined with skillful means is liberation.”
Horse or Camel Riding
Horse riding is a popular activity in Gorkhi-Terelj National Park. If you want to try something different, you can even ride a camel.
Many of the yurt camps offer horse riding experiences but horse riding is also offered at some of the major attractions within the national park. I saw both horses and camel tours being offered at Turtle Rock.
I had a chance to ride both horses and camels in Mongolia. Honestly, I preferred the camel. I found it to be slightly more comfortable and getting on and off the camel was an adrenaline rush.
Conclusion
If planning to visit Gorkhi-Terelj National Park from Ulaanbaatar, you can easily spend a day if not two exploring the park and seeing it’s fabulous attractions. I recommend staying overnight but you can still get a good sense of rural Mongolia by just doing a day trip. After all, you get to see the famous Genghis Khan Statue, Turtle Rock, Arayabal Temple, and a few other notable attractions. A visit to Gorkhi-Terelj National Park is a must when visiting Ulaanbaatar.
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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.
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