In September, we received some tough feedback about one of our tours—feedback no one wants to hear, but the kind that prompts reflection, especially on equity in tourism and its true meaning. Tourism is about people—not just those we take on holiday but also those we employ. All our trip assistants are women, many of whom are mothers balancing work…
Have you ever read the book in the image below? If not, the synopsis is simple. A Fortune Teller Told Me by Tiziano Terzani, an experienced Asia correspondent, tells the story of his decision not to fly for an entire year after being warned by a Hong Kong fortune-teller in 1993. Instead of taking to the skies, Terzani re-explored Asia…
Last year, I wrote a post about how we need to have a rubbish revolution in tourism. This was as a result of our annual two-day rubbish clean-up of Terkhiin Tsagaan Nuur National Park in Mongolia where we noticed an increase in discarded wet wipes, sanitary items and hygiene products. Our wilderness areas (and our wilderness experiences) are being spoilt…
Meet our Zumbee … Zumbee is a dedicated and long-term member of our EL family – one of our team of female Mongolian trip assistants. Zumbee is from a herding family in Dungobi Aimag in Mongolia’s Middle Gobi although she is currently based in Ulaanbaatar (UB – Mongolia’s capital city) where she moved to start university. Zumbee came to us…
Toilets. Always high on the list of travel stories and experiences – especially the ones involving a dropped passport out of the back pocket into a long-drop pit toilet (I sense a nodding of heads). In health and safety terms, long-drop toilets should have a risk assessment heading all of their own. What if there are no toilets? Just hundreds…
Let me introduce you to a place. It is called Erdenedalai in Mongolia’s Gobi Desert in Dundgobi Province – also known as the middle Gobi. It’s where the open steppe starts to turn into the desert steppe. Where grass meets gravel plains. The views are expansive. Is it considered a highlight? A must-see destination? No. Not by guidebooks or tour…
Let me introduce you to Dakhar. Dakhar makes his home within the Tsambagarav Uul National Park – standing high above the provincial borders of Khovd and Bayan-Olgii Aimag in western Mongolia and forming part of the Mongol Altai Mountain Range. The 4208m peak that the national park is named after is a snow-capped mountain surrounded by wild open valleys. Dakhar…
Mongolia. May 2024 marks the 19th anniversary of my first arrival in this extraordinary country, and as I look back on that moment, I’m filled with a deep sense of nostalgia. It’s a bittersweet feeling, yet a powerful reminder of how profoundly Mongolia has shaped my life and become a part of who I am over the years. At the…
The coronavirus is a crisis for many industries including the travel and tourism industry. The tourism industry has always been resilient – recovering from the Eyjafjallajökull ash cloud, the Boxing Day tsunami and multiple terror attacks – but the coronavirus and its impact on travel and tourism is something bigger, something more wide-sweeping and something unknown. Prior to the pandemic,…
Up until 2019, we offered dog sledding itineraries as part of our series of Mongolia winter experiences. However, even though often the dog sledding was often the highlight of their trip for our guests, in early 2019 we decided to stop offering dog sledding options. The main reason is cultural – we describe our winter experiences as being a celebration of…
The Kazakhs are Mongolia’s largest ethnic minority group representing 3-4% of Mongolia’s population (Mongolia’s entire population is just over 3.2 million people – 2020 Census). A majority of Mongolia’s Kazakhs make their home in western Mongolia in Bayan Ölgii Aimag (Province) with another group in Khovd Aimag and then smaller groups spread throughout the country including the capital Ulaanbaatar. A percentage of…
This Friday is Black Friday – synonymous with consumerism and excess but there is an alternative option – to help make a statement against what Black Friday has come to represent. Personally, I’ll be sticking my finger up at the event and here are a few ideas on how to mark the day by doing something different using my beloved Mongolia…
Let’s talk about rubbish. As in discarded rubbish – especially discarded rubbish left in our areas of nature. Specifically wet wipes, hygiene products and sanitary items. This is specifically about Mongolia but also applies to wilderness areas in other countries. We have just completed our annual two-day rubbish clean-up of a national park here in Mongolia. And yes, there were…
“To begin, begin.” A deceptively simple sentence, yet its truth resonates deeply in the journey of life—and travel. William Wordsworth, the poet behind this quote, wasn’t calling for a complicated analysis. He was offering a reminder: to start anything, we must take that first step. It’s as straightforward as it sounds. But why do so many of us delay it?…
Look at the image above. Not the most prepossessing image is it? But, what do you think it represents? Any ideas? For me, it reminds us as travellers that real life is everywhere when we travel. It is actually the business plan of a young fashion designer who lives in the ger districts of Ulaanbaatar – Mongolia’s capital city. A…