Horseback Riding Tour to Turtle Rock & Aryabal

Great people to meet. I only hoped the horseback riding was longer (I only had an hour instead of the advertised 1.5 hours, perhaps because we went more quickly since I was a solo traveler?), but the scenery was beautiful. Great guide, English speaking, shared info about the culture along the way.

Wonderful time in Terelj park! The tour company was on time and the guide and driver were professional and helpful. I learned a lot about Mongolia’s history and current events. The temple was really special. My guide explained maybe Buddhist traditions. The horseback ride through the green woods above the temple and around Turtle Rock was great. We changed the riding pace and I felt safe the entire time. Lunch at their gorgeous lodge was great.

A good day out in the sun! Our guide Enhrgl was great: easy-going, informative and enthusiastic. He took some great photos of the horse ride. A couple of horses were skittish; we were led by ropes past traffic/cows for most of our ride. While we were eventually allowed to ride on our own when surroundings were calmer, I'm not sure if more experienced riders would enjoy being tied by ropes to the horse at the front. The ride was mainly past ger encampments, sadly not the most picturesque of landscapes at times. The hillside meditation centre was lovely but the statue complex unfortunately had the air of a tourist trap. Lunch at Big Sky Lodge was excellent with a home-cooked feel.

Lunch at Big Sky Resort was excellent. Bat was a charming guide to the Buddhist Meditation Center and it was well worth the effort to make the climb. That view was excellent! I have enough riding experience that I would have much preferred to ride without my horse being led. My stirrups were not adjusted for my height. I was refused an adjustment until the kid leading my horse noticed I had removed my feet from the stirrups. (I prefer to ride bareback so that was an option I was comfortable with.) At this point my stirrups were adjusted to my comfort. I raised teenagers so found amusement in his looks of annoyance. It was the difference between asking to head back to the stables and continuing the ride. The kid leading my horse watched TV or a movie on his phone, texted and called his friends. At one point he had a smack talk conversation with someone his age. That kid was herding horses from higher up the mountain to the valley we were in. It gave a sense of adventure to have his herd surround and pass us. I could have done without the hat slapping and shoulder punching between his buddy and the guy leading my horse. Later in the ride the kid leading me almost walked his horse into a pole while on his phone. I don’t know the relationship between Rara and the stable we used. Hopefully there are other options available in the future. The reputation of horses here are independent and skittish, frankly I don’t blame them. Given the young person leading my horse I was skittish too. I will seek an alternative horse riding experience before I leave Mongolia.

+3

This was a great experience! Easy logistics and packed in everything I wanted to do in the Mongolian countryside.

Wonderful experience! Guide was on time for hotel pick up, very nice clean vehicle. He was very informative on the drive to the national park. The ride was in beautiful country, my horse was well trained and was so much fun to ride. Again, the guide was very pleasant to speak with and gave alot of info about the Mongolian horse. Lunch was at a nice restaurant and I was provided with a tasty vegetarian meal. The final stop was at the statue, where we also enjoyed an informative tour of the museum. A great way to spend a day in Ulaanbaatar.

My tour guide's name is Bat. He is the best! He shared a lot of insightful facts about Mongolia's history and culture. He went beyond, gave me plenty of opportunities to take photos and I also got to try the Mongolian milk tea and dumplings. It was yummy! I would give him more than five stars for all the efforts and memorable experiences. Also the horse riding was so nice and fun. The good thing about doing this activity during winter time is that you can enjoy the places all to yourself.

+3

Great guide! I love the landscape of Mongolia, the guide would stop the car and let me takes as much pictures as I want. However ... The horse riding part came a bit short for the first time, basically just 1 round around the village. Then I told the guide about it, he did makes things right, the groom went for the second time through the woods.

English speaking tour guide was super helpful and easy to converse with, horses are very safe, stunning national park, turtle rock and Chinggis Khan statue complex are great stops! Lunch was good! A winner across the board. Just be ready for UB traffic on the way back lol. Nothing the tour can do about that!

We had a really good time with Belgudei. The nature at the park was amazing and really calmed us down after a while.