GOLDEN EAGLE FESTIVAL 2022
MONGOLIA

 

The Eagle Festival is an annual traditional festival held in Bayan-Ulgii province. In the eagle festival, Kazakh eagle hunters celebrate their heritage and compete to catch small animals such as foxes and hares with specially trained golden eagles, showing off the skills both of the birds and their trainers. Prizes are awarded for speed, agility and accuracy, as well as for the best traditional Kazakh dress, and more. The Eagle Festival is held during the first weekend in October, run by the Mongolian Eagle Hunter's Association. This tour offers you explore the western Mongolia and Great Eagle Festival.

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PROGRAM

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Day 1 (September 25): Arrival in Ulaanbaatar

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Take a flight from your country to Ulaanbaatar. Arrival and check-in at the hotel. You may take a rest or explore the city as we wait for everyone to arrive.

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Recommended flight from Bangkok:

 

• 21:35-10:40 (+1 day) BKK-ICN-UBN (KE 658/ KE 867) depart on September 24 and arrive September 25

• 1:10-17:00 BKK-ICN-UBN (OZ 742/ OM 302) depart on September 25 (Check in the night of September 24)

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Day 2 (September 26): Ulaanbaatar - Ulgii - Eagle hunter family

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Early departure from Ulaanbaatar at 6:50am. You will land in Ulgii city in the morning around 9 o’clock and have breakfast. Afterwards we will drive to Eagle hunter family. Kazakh people, they train eagles for hunting. Today we visit and experience their way of life, culture and tradition. We will make a stop to see the waterfall of Tavan Salaa. Overnight stay in a ger.

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Day 3 (September 27): Tobo Lake - Ulaan Hus village

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After breakfast with the family, we head to Tolbo Lake which is a freshwater lake in Mongolia. The lake is located about 50 kilometres south of Bayan-Ulgii. The elevation is 2080 meters high above the sea level. The shoreline is treeless with few mosquitoes and a lot of people and families camp here every summer. The lake covers 185 square kilometers of land.

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We have lunch at Bayan Ulgii restaurant. Then, we drive to Ulaan Hus village where we will stay with another Kazakh family. You will enjoy some traditional live music and dinner with them for the evening. Overnight in a ger.

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Day 4 (September 28): Tsagaan Salaa rock painting - Altai Tavan Bogd mountain

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After breakfast with the family, we depart for Tsagaan Salaa rock painting and picnic amidst beautiful nature.

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After lunch, we take off  Altai Tavan Bogd mountain. Altai Tavan Bogd is near the triple border with China and Russia. Its highest peak, the Khuiten Peak is the highest point of Mongolia at 4374 meters above the sea level. The Tavan Bogd massif is located mostly within the Bayan-Ulgii Province of Mongolia; its northern slopes are in Russia's Altai Republic, and western, in China's Burqin County. There are 3 big glaciers on it. The Altai Tavan Bogd national park covers 6,362 km². It includes the lakes Khoton, Khurgan, and Dayan. The protected area offers a home for many species of alpine animal, such as the wild sheep, Ibex, deer, beech marten, moose, snow cock, snow leopard and Golden eagle

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Stay at a local ger with the Kazakh family for the night and enjoy traditional dinner - Bashermak.

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Day 5 (September 29): Altai Tavan Bogd mountain

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Breakfast with the family. Today, we will explore the Altai Tavan Bogd by some easy-medium treks. Have a lunch picnic in the mountain.

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In late afternoon, we drive back to the same camp. If weather allows, we can do outdoor BBQ for dinner. Overnight in a ger.

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Day 6 (September 30): Altai Tavan Bogd mountain - Ulgii

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Breakfast at the camp. We drive back to the city of Ulgii and make lunch picnic along the way.

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Upon arrival, you can take time to relax at Dumana hotel or go shopping around the city center. We will have dinner together at a restaurant in the evening. Get ready to attend the festival for the next two days.

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Day 7 (October 1): Golden Eagle Festival

One of the oldest and most spectacular customs of Mongolian Kazak people, passed down from generation to generation, is hunting with specially trained eagles. The Golden Eagle Festival is organized in order to help revive this remarkable tradition and promote the younger generations in an effort to balance the preservation of Mongolia’s past traditions.

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Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to the opening ceremony of Golden Eagle Festival at 11am. You can spend the day taking photographs of the hunters and see the traditional hunts until 5pm. We then drive back to the same hotel and have dinner at a restaurant. Tonight, we enjoy a Kazakh concert in Ulgii theater.

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Day 8 (October 2): Golden Eagle Festival

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Breakfast at the hotel. Today is the second and last day of the Golden Eagle Festival. During the day, we will get to see horse racing, camel racing, and trained eagle competition. After the closing ceremony, we travel back to Ulgii and overnight at the hotel.

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Day 9 (October 3): Ulgii - Ulaanbaatar

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Breakfast at the hotel. Depart for a domestic flight back to Ulaanbaatar at 9am (flight time is subject to change). From the airport we will drive to your hotel and you can have some rest.

 

In the evening, we are going to enjoy the Tumen Ekh Ensemble Mongolian traditional concert. Featuring folk and traditional music, song, dance and contortion, Tumen Ekh is a must-see for visitors to Mongolia’s capital city Ulaanbaatar and those interested in the colorful art and culture of the land of the blue sky. You will experience the real Mongolian musical culture.

 

Final dinner and pack up for tomorrow's departure.

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Day 10 (October 4): Departure

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Transfer to the airport for your onward journey. Please inform our team your flight schedule.

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Recommended flight to Bangkok:

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• 8:40-22:30 UBN-ICN-BKK (OM 301/ KE 651) departing on October 4

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Price includes:

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• Domestic flight tickets

• All transfers and transportation

• Accommodation at the Kazakh nomadic families

• Accomodation in Ulgii and Ulaanbaatar

• All entrance fees of all national parks

• Road and toll fees

• Petrol and fuel

• All meals (B+L+D) except Day 1 and Day 10

• Local English-speaking guide

• Thai/English-speaking lead from TEAM SAGA​

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Price Excludes:

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• Daily personal expenses such as laundry, drinks, camera or video fees etc.

• Tips for your driver and guide

• Travel insurance

• PCR test if required

• Entry visa if required

• International flight to/from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

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Saga club discount: You are automatically offered our club membership after your first expedition. The following discount applies: 3% on 2nd trip, 5% on 3rd trip, 7% on 4th trip or 10% all after. This cannot be combined with the early bird discount. 

 

Payment & Deposit:

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• 50% deposit payment is required for reserving your spots

• Balance payment is due 60 days before the departure date. Failure to do so will result in cancellation of booking.

• If the booking is made within 60 days of departure date, full payment is required. 

 

Cancellation policy:

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• In any case of cancellation, 20% of the deposit payment is refundable or the whole amount can be kept as credits for any other Saga expeditions within 2 years of the cancellation date. 

• In any case of cancellation, if full payment is made, a full refund will be issued minus a 10% cancellation fee and any cost to the third parties.

• If the cancellation is due to COVID19, a full refund will be issued minus any cost incurred. We always attempt to maximize the refund for our client’s benefit! 

• In the event of premature departure during the expedition for any reason, no refund will be issued.

• Saga Expeditions is not responsible for any cancellations or changes in flights and visas. Please have your travel insurance for entire duration of your trip

 

Important note:

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All of our expeditions take you through one of the most challenging roads in the world. While the Saga team endeavors to make the itinerary as accurate as possible, it should be considered as an approximate agenda of activities rather than a rigid schedule. Trip itineraries are subject to last-minute, and on-the-ground revision due to weather, road conditions, government and local restrictions, and other reasons beyond our control. Note that the order of visits and excursions can be modified according to local conditions (i.e. state of roads, market days etc.). If some visits and/or tours could not be done due to external conditions, they will be replaced when possible. Your safety is always our first priority!