Selena Travel

Hunting with Eagles in Mongolia

8days/7nights

Tour grade: Medium

From: US$ 2,000

Style: Traveller

  • Majestic Western Mongolia – Golden Eagle, Kazakh tribes, staying at an Eagle hunter family
  • Mongolian Winter – snowcapped mountains and the beauty of Mongolian wilderness
  • Ulaanbaatar – Gandan Monastery, Museum of National History
  • Endless photos opportunity!
  • Meet people and make friends! You will be part of a group of 4-8 people during the tour as it is a group departure.

Tour Overview

One of the Mongolian ethnic groups is the Muslim Kazakhs of Turkic origin. The Kazakhs have the tradition of hunting with trained Golden Eagles that has been passed generation to generation. One of the last true wilderness areas of Asia, the stunning beauty of the magnificent Altai Mountains will be the backdrop for this extraordinary Eagle Hunting tour. A highlight of any trip to this region is interacting with local Kazakhs and learning about their unique culture. The skilled and trained Golden eagles hunt rabbit, fox and wolf and the way the Kazakh hunters train the eagles is fantastic!

The Golden Eagle is one of twelve species of large predominantly dark-coloured eagles in the genius Aquila found worldwide; a large brown bird of prey, it has a wingspan averaging over 2 m and up to 1m in body length. Adult Golden Eagles range widely in size across their range. The largest races comprise the largest eagles of the genus Aquila. Length may vary from 66 to 100 cm, wingspan can range from 150 to 240 cm, and weight is from 2.5 to 7 kg. Historically, nomadic Kazakhs depended on Golden Eagles for hunting. 

Tour map

Brief itinerary

  • Day 1: Arrival in Ulaanbaatar, tour of the City
  • Day 2: Ulaanbaatar – Olgii
  • Day 3 - 5: Hunting with Golden Eagle
  • Day 6: Hunter’s Family to Olgii
  • Day 7: Olgii – Ulaanbaatar
  • Day 8: Departure from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
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Tour images

Full Itinerary

Day 1:

Arrival in Ulaanbaatar, tour of the City

Arrive in Ulaanbaatar, meet at the airport and transfer to the hotel. The city tour of Ulaanbaatar takes you through some of the principal sights of this unique city. You visit the Gandan Monastery, Genghis Khan monument on the Sukhbaatar square and the Museum of National History. 4* good hotel LPS: All museums will have winter time schedule and will open 3 days of week days. 

Day 2:

Ulaanbaatar – Olgii

We take the flight to Olgii, the centre of Bayan-Olgii province. Visit the museum of Olgii town. Then transfer to the eagle hunter's family. Experience their lifestyle.  Overnight with eagle hunter family B+L+D

Day 3 - 5:

Hunting with Golden Eagle

Hunting with the trained Golden Eagles for wolf, fox and rabbit in the mountains. Hunting with golden eagles is a fantastic experience that you will only have in Mongolia and nowhere else. Meals and overnight at the hunter's ger. Overnight with eagle hunter family B+L+D

Day 6:

Hunter’s Family to Olgii

We drive back to Olgii and transfer to a local hotel. Visit the city mosque and the bazaar. Dinner and overnight at the hotel or ger camp. Local hotel B+L+D

Day 7:

Olgii – Ulaanbaatar

After breakfast we fly back to Ulaanbaatar for ~3 hours and transfer to the hotel. Then we visit the Bogd Khaan’s Palace Museum – the residence of the last king of Mongolia and the Buddha Park. Farewell dinner at Mongolian BBQ restaurant. 4* good hotel B+L+D

Day 8:

Departure from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

You are transferred to the airport/train station after breakfast. End of service. B

Date & Price

Single Supplement Charge

US$200

 * Single supplement is only available at hotels in Olgii & Ulaanbaatar


Included services

  • Full-time services of your English speaking local guide throughout the tour
  • Sightseeing and entrance fees according to the itinerary
  • Private transfers and transports (Saloon car/4WD minivan + Experienced driver)
  • Twin share accommodation: 4* hotel in Ulaanbaatar, Kazak hunter’s Ger, & local hotel in Olgii 
  • Hunting arrangements 
  • ULN – Olgii – ULN RT flight + 15 kg luggage free of charge, all government taxes
  • Meals as listed (B-breakfast, L-lunch, D-dinner)
  • Daily supply of bottled water
  • Visa support invitation letter where applicable
  • Exclusive Hunting with Eagle tour souvenir!
 
Not Included in the Price  
  • International Airfare/train ticket 
  • Travel insurance. 
  • Items of a personal nature such as laundry, drinks, camera or video fees at any sites etc. 
  • Tips for your guide and driver (discretionary).
  • Optional activities such as camel riding, archery, fishing etc

Tour Background

Accommodation on Selena Travel tours 
Ulaanbaatar: Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia has many hotels ranging from basic 1* to high-end 5*. Some international hotel chains have opened such as Kempinski, Ramada, and Best Western to name a few. Some of Selena Travel Mongolia tours do not include hotel accommodation in Ulaanbaatar, where clients are advised to take care of their own accommodation in Ulaanbaatar. Please refer to your tour program (Included services and Exclusions section) for more details. 
Your Selena Travel advisor is happy to assist you with hotel booking on your request. Below you will find some suggested hotels in Ulaanbaatar:  
  • Best Western Gobi Kelso ***
  • Springs hotel ***
  • Ramada hotel ****
  • Kempinski Khan Palace ****
  • Best Western Premier *****

Outside Ulaanbaatar: Please take in mind that traveling in the countryside of Mongolia is often tough, a trip is conducted in remote areas where there’s no hotel and paved roads exist.

Outside of Ulaanbaatar, tourist Ger camps are the best accommodation for travelers. A Ger is Mongolian traditional dwelling made of felt layers and wooden construction, and the Mongols have lived in Gers since the time immemorial. Tourist Ger camps offer comfortable Gers with 1-4 beds with good bedding, and also have western style showers and WCs (mostly shared). A few Ger camps offer en-suite Gers at additional charge (please ask your Selena Travel advisor for this). Due to remoteness some tourist Ger camps may not excel in service, so travelers may not always expect high pressure showers, bubble baths or gourmet food etc. 
 
Food on Selena Travel tours 
During your tour in Mongolia you will be eating in good restaurants in Ulaanbaatar, we have a great variety in restaurants in the capital city. Once you are outside the capital, Ger restaurants in Ger camps and local cafes in the small towns and villages will be the places where you will be eating. Ger restaurants often have set menu, but their food is usually very good (Ger camps provide mostly continental breakfast, lunches consist of salad, soup, main course and dessert, whilst, dinners are usually salad, main course and dessert).
During your longer driving days you will take packed lunch from Ger camps (often vegetable salad, main course such as fried chicken/noodles/dumplings and a chocolate bar etc). Vegetarians are well taken care of both in Ulaanbaatar restaurants and tourist Ger camps.
 
Luggage allowance on Selena Travel tours 
When you travelling overland in a vehicle (minivan & jeep), it would be suitable if you have 20kg luggage per person (max). However, please kindly note that domestic flight luggage allowance per person is 15 kg (10 kg for the check in luggage and 5 for the carry on luggage). For 1kg extra luggage you pay US$2 - 5. 
 

 

DESTINATION & ATTRACTIONS BRIEF INFO

Hunting with trained Golden Eagles: Historically, nomadic Kazakhs depended on Golden Eagles for hunting. One of the last true wilderness areas of Asia, the stunning beauty of the magnificent Altai Mountains will be the backdrop for this extraordinary Mongolia Eagle hunting tour. A highlight of any trip to this region is interacting with local Kazakhs and learning about their unique culture. The skilled and trained Golden eagles hunt rabbit, fox and wolf and the way the Kazakh hunters train the eagles is fantastic!

Approximately ninety percent of the population of Bayan-Ulgii, Western Mongolia is Kazakh and though their pastoral-nomadic lifestyle is similar to that of Mongolians, these Kazakh-speaking nomads are predominantly Moslem. Passed down from their Turkic ancestors, many Kazakhs still hunt with trained Golden Eagles whose vision is eight times more acute than humans. Female eagles are preferred since they are believed to be more aggressive and weigh as much as fifteen pounds (nearly one-third more than the males).

Kazakh women are renowned for their skills in embroidery and appliqué-hand-crafted felt carpets line the floor of their gers and delicately embroidered tapestries adorn the walls in a dazzling mosaic of colors. Female eagles are preferred since they are believed to be more aggressive and weigh as much as fifteen pounds (nearly one-third more than the males). Kazakh women are renowned for their skills in embroidery and appliqué-hand-crafted felt carpets line the floor of their gers and delicately embroidered tapestries adorn the walls in a dazzling mosaic of colors.

Tour Map

Tour Reviews

Mar 19, 2024.  The Gobi & Karakorum Explorer

Aug 10, 2012. Gobi & Karakorum Explorer tour Our recent "The Gobi & Karakorum Explorer" tour with you was excellent, everything exceeded our expectations! It was a super trip in our lives and we loved our Mongolia holiday so much. Our guide Joe was kind, well organised, accurate and informative, polite and caring and always provided us with timely information. And our driver Jack is super, very friendly, professional and always on time. We are wild travelers, having been to many places in the world - but Mongolia is still truly unspoiled and uncontaminated. Selena Travel's services were perfect right from the very first email. We would like to thank Selena Travel, our guide and our driver for having made this Mongolia experience a truly beautiful one with so many wonderful memories.

by Rafaella, Benedetta, Lidia

Aug 08, 2012.  Gobi & Karakorum customized 11 days tour

Sending you some of our nicer pictures. Some are chosen for their beautiful scenery while the rest are just us happily playing and goofing around. There are a couple of shots of us doing some Mongolian wrestling, as suggested by Oyuna since we missed out on the mini-Naadam festival. She said since we missed it, we might as well organise our own festival by playing some Mongolian games. Haha... We had so much fun playing those games!!! :)OK, I hope you like the pictures we send you. Best regards to everyone at Selena Travel and thank you once again for all your assistance.

by Margaret Suganda

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