Ulaanbaatar

Ulaanbaatar is the capital city of Mongolia and is home to 1.3 million inhabitants (almost half of the country's total population). I spent a total of 2 days in the city; 0.5 days when I first arrived and 1.5 days after my 12 day tour ended. From my research, it wasn't recommended to spend more than a few days in the city and in my short period, I believe I had more than enough time to see all that I wanted to see.


Chinggis Khan





The international airport felt very similar to small domestic terminals that I have been to. Outside the terminal, I went to the tourist information desk to get a map of the city and there I had a man approach me asking if I needed a lift to the city. I had read online that private taxis was very common and cheaper than going with the official taxi companies. That being said, I was a solo female traveller and I was a little bit hesitant and almost backed out after we left the airport. However, we agreed on the price of 20 000 Tugrik ($11 AUD) and he drove to the city. It was a bit of a crazy experience driving on the roads in Ulaabaatar. The white lines dividing the lanes were more symbolic, indicating when changing lanes was completely optional and everyone was speeding. I was a bit nervous on the drive however we eventually made it to the hostel and I left unscathed. Looking for the hostel was the next adventure and the language barrier was greatly highlighted when I tried to ask locals for directions to the hostel. Not going to lie, the building the hostel in was super sketchy. See images below.

After checking in and dropping off my bags, the next thing to do was to withdraw some cash from the ATM for my tour. It was a lot more challenging than I thought it would be due to the maximum limit I could withdraw from a machine. I needed a total of 2 million tugrik and the Mongolian currency only consists of notes. I ended up withdrawing a lot of money from different ATMs (all which looked slightly sketchy) and I was very self conscious about the fact that I was effectively a walking ATM.

I popped into KFC for dinner and ended up counting out my money in the toilet. HA. Yes really, it was the only place I felt secure enough to do that.


After my tour, I visited a few attractions such as The Black Market. I had read quite a few things about it, notably that it was rife with pickpocketers and to exercise great caution. Honestly, what people were saying online was a lot scarier and perhaps a little over the top. I didn't feel unsafe in the market at all. I suppose it's just common sense; in a place where there are a lot of people in close quarters, keep an eye on your belongings and don't be ignorant of your surroundings. The market had a bit of everything, from groceries, toys, furniture, clothing, horse bits, saddles and bridles, fabric, rugs and of course everything you would need to build / maintain a ger. I didn't end up buying anything there, partly because I didn't see anything that I really wanted and also because I wasn't prepared for the language barrier and haggling required.






As I am not a museum kind of person, I spent most of my time doing what I usually do, wandering around the streets to get a better feel of the city and to explore. I noticed a lot of people who were walking hailing down a vehicle, and a random car would pull over to pick them up.

I had withdrawn too much money from the ATM at the start of my trip and to use up all my money I spent more money on food than I normally would have.






Ulaanbaatar is not a pretty city by any means, but it definitely is such a contrast to the other 95% of the country.It has a Soviet-feel and also feels a little worn down. Prior to my trip, I didn't realise that so many Koreans visited Mongolia and that was reflected in the eateries in the city; the most common cuisines were Korean, Mongolian and then American.