Booking Your Trip
If you think that a trip with Zavkhan Trekking could be just what you've been looking for, here is what you need to do next:
Step 1. Contact us regarding availability. Our trips often become fully booked, so it does pay to confirm there is still a place for you. We are very happy to answer all your questions at this point, so you know exactly what you are getting yourself in to. We will send you a slightly more detailed trip plan for your preferred trip option. If the trip is almost full we can place a temporary hold on your place.
Step 2. Check flight availability. Flights can become scarce and rather expensive at the height of the season, so make sure you can get to Ulaanbataar. See here for advice on getting to Mongolia.
Step 3. Return the booking form. We will email you a booking form, which can be filled out and emailed back to us.
Step 4. Pay the deposit. (20% of the trip price, payment options are on the booking form). At this point your place on the trip is secure.
If something unforeseen happens and you can no longer make it on the trip (such as falling unexpectedly pregnant – yes, we have had that!), read about our booking conditions here. A formal statement of our booking conditions is included with the booking form.
The price for all trips includes:
Transfers to and from the airport/train station (including arrivals
before Day 1)- Transport while in Mongolia, including support vehicle for the duration of the trip, and internal flights
- Accommodation in Ulaanbaatar for two nights (Day 1, and one night upon returning to Ulaanbaatar). If you require extra accommodation, we can arrange this for you
- Accommodation outside of Ulaanbaatar, mainly in hiking tents but
also our own ger on Altai trips.
- All meals for the duration of the trip, from dinner on Day 1 to
breakfast on the final day, including snacks, tea and coffee
- English-speaking translator
- Local horse wranglers/guides
- National Park entrance fees (and border area in the Altai)
- Western trip leader (except Zavkhan Taster)
- A free T-shirt. No, just kidding!
The price excludes:
- We know you've got common sense, so we don't need to list all the
obvious exclusions such as visas, travel insurance and your international flights! If in doubt, please ask.
- Excess baggage fees on domestic flights. Up to 20kg of luggage per person is included in the trip price - if you need to take more you may need to pay a small fee to the airline (about $4USD per kg)
- Tips. There is absolutely no requirement to tip the local staff, but if you do wish to tip, as a way of saying thanks, we can advise on that. Please see the FAQs for more information.
When to arrive and depart UB
On all trips, Day 1 is the day on which the group meets in the
evening for our first dinner together, before leaving for the
countryside the next day. You should aim to arrive on Day 1 or earlier.
If necessary, you can arrive late in the evening of Day 1 – missing the
first meet-up is not the end of the world. A more serious issue is if
you arrive in the evening but your luggage doesn't, leaving little
chance to find extra clothing etc before leaving the next day.
Book your return flight for the final day of the trip (for a 17 day ride, that's Day 17). We will be returning to UB one day prior to this. If necessary, you can depart late on the day we return to UB (for example the 12.20am Korean Air flight). However we do not recommend this as obviously it can get quite stressful if our domestic flight back to UB is delayed.
If you would like more time to see UB, arrive on 'Day 0', or stay on after the trip. We recommend one to two days as a good amount of time to spend in the city. Ask us about arranging extra accommodation.
Single supplement
If you don't like the idea of sharing with a stranger (even same-sex), we will try to arrange for you to have a single room in UB and your own tent. A single supplement of $200NZD will apply. If we stay in a ger at any time, you will need to share (possibly with three generations of locals, two sheep and a goat).The trip I made with Zavkhan Trekking this past September was more than the trip of a lifetime. I left a piece of my soul in Mongolia, and I’m already counting the years until I can return...
Natalie, from the US