Terelj
Strange rocks, river valleys and ger camps in a national park that begins 37 km from the capital, with brown bears in its hills.
- Arrival
- Chinggis Khaan International · UBN
- To the park
- About 66 km by road from central Ulaanbaatar
- Private jets
- UBN, open H24, customs on arrival
- Best time
- June to August
The city
Rocks, rivers and gers.
Gorkhi-Terelj became a national park in 1993 and covers 292,000 hectares. The road from Ulaanbaatar turns off after 37 km, crosses the Tuul and runs on to the settlement of Terelj in its valley, some 66 km from the city centre. Some of the rocks are named for what they look like, Turtle Rock the best known, and the park is popular with climbers. Brown bears live in the park and more than 250 kinds of bird have been counted.
Most visitors stay in ger camps in the southern part, many of them run by Juulchin, once the state travel company, and ride out on hired horses or camels. Summer is short: June to August is the season, July the warmest month at about 21 °C. By November the days are well below freezing.
- Turtle Rock Melkhii Khad, a rock that does look like a turtle, and the park's best-known landmark.
- Khagiin Khar Lake A glacial lake about 20 metres deep, some 80 km up the valley from the camps.
- Chinggis Khaan Equestrian Statue Chinggis Khaan on horseback, 40 metres high, at Tsonjin Boldog, about 20 km south, with a lookout in the horse's head.
Arriving
From the steppe airport to the hills.
Chinggis Khaan International, opened in 2021, lies about 50 km south of Ulaanbaatar and some 60 km in a straight line from Terelj. Its runway is 3,600 metres long.
- Beijing 1 h 50
- Seoul 2 h 50
- Tokyo 4 h 10
- Riyadh 7 h 50 long-range jet
- Sydney 13 h 20 long-range jet
When to go
June to August.
Continental, with very long winters: January averages a high of minus 17 °C. Summer brings highs of 19 to 21 °C and most of the year's rain, which falls from June to August, the months the national tourism office gives as the season.
- -17° J 3
- -13° F 4
- -4° M 7
- 6° A 18
- 14° M 29
- 19° J 77
- 21° J 94
- 19° A 93
- 13° S 44
- 5° O 15
- -7° N 9
- -15° D 4
Where to stay
In the park.
Shown for information. We have no arrangement with any of these hotels.
Flying to Terelj?
Choose how you arrive.
A Business or First Class seat on a scheduled airline, or an aircraft of your own. Tell us the date and how many are travelling, and we reply with one final price, our margin included.