General information:
Capital: Ulaanbaatar
Language: Mongolian
Religion: 53% Buddhism, 38.6% Non-religious, 3% Islam, 2.9% Shamanism, 2.2% Christianity, 0.4% others
Population: 3.2 million (2020)
English-friendly: Yes, most people are able to speak a bit of English.
Wi-fi reliability: Good Wi-fi connection are easy to find in Ulaanbaatar and other cities.
Currency: Tögrög
Average cost per day: 20$ without excursions, at least 40$ per day if you are planning an excursion with a guide.
Visa: Some nationalities do not need a visa (Germans) some others do (Italians). It is pretty straight forward to get a Mongolian visa abroad. If you are planning to get it in Beijing, click here
Safety: Good
When to go:
Spring (April-May): Springtime breaks in March and April and temperatures are generally still below freezing. There may be opportunities to travel around the country but it’s windy and dust storms hit the central and southern part of the country. Average temperature: – 4 °C – 15 °C
Summer (June – September): By far the best period to travel in Mongolia but obviously also the most crowded and expensive. It won’t be hard for you to find a guide and someone to share the cost of the excursion with. Average temperature: 22°C – 30°C
Autumn (October – November): We travelled to Mongolia in November 2019 and we spent two weeks in Ulaanbaatar waiting for our visas. It was very cold. The average temperature during the day was -15 °C and -20 °C (or even less) at night. There were still few opportunities to explore the country with a guide and some people went for it. We were not so brave, our autonomy outside was maximum 2h. If you are travelling to Mongolia in autumn or winter buy a pair of yak socks, they are super warm! Average temperature: -10 °C – 8°C
Winter (December – March): Mongolian winter are extremely cold, you won’t be able to reach a lot of tourist destinations and probably you won’t even resist more than a few hours outside without freezing! Average temperature: -10 °C – 25°C