Gobi Desert Tour Review 2026: Tsagaan Suvarga & Ger Stays
Planning a Gobi Desert tour in Mongolia? Read our review on finding travel companions, staying in traditional Gers, and exploring Tsagaan Suvarga.
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Planning a Gobi Desert tour in Mongolia? Read our review on finding travel companions, staying in traditional Gers, and exploring Tsagaan Suvarga.
@Chamstar's Quick-Dip Travel
Hello there,
experiencing the deep flavors of a country in a short amount of time—
I'm your quick-dip travel blogger, Chamstar! :)
June, July, August, and September
are known as the absolute best months to travel to Mongolia!
And among them, July and August are the peak of the peak season.
Right now is the ultimate peak season!!!!
Let's dive into the Mongolia Gobi Desert Package Tour together~
✈️Chamstar's Quick-Dip Travel✈️
✔️Today's Dip Point
The perfect vibes of Mongolia travel during peak season!
✔️Today's Taste Point
Tasting the breathtaking views of Tsagaan Suvarga!
🇲🇳 Mongolia Local Package Tour
Mongolia
Finding Travel Buddies for a Mongolia Package Tour
Since it's incredibly difficult to travel around Mongolia completely on your own,
most people opt for guided tour packages.
For these package tours, the more people you have,
the cheaper it gets, so it's best to go in a larger group.
Usually, people find travel companions beforehand and go together.
That's why finding your travel buddies is often considered
the official starting point of your Mongolia trip.
Through a Mongolia travel community,
I put together a group of 6 girls in total!
After finding my group, we set up a group chat
and booked our Gobi Desert package tour from there :)
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Check out the Gobi Desert Package Tour here
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
After meeting our guide at the Ulaanbaatar Airport,
we headed into downtown Ulaanbaatar and stopped by a large supermarket
to stock up on essentials for our Gobi Desert trek.
Once you venture deep into the Gobi Desert,
you won't have daily access to supermarkets,
so make sure to stock up on snacks, sauces, and other goodies!
Throughout my trip to Mongolia,
I stayed in traditional tourist ger camps,
and only on the very last day did I return to Ulaanbaatar
to stay in a modern hotel.
Since Ulaanbaatar acts as both the start and end of your journey,
you'll want to plan your packing and prep accordingly!
Starex Van ➡️ Tsagaan Suvarga
After finishing our shopping spree,
we loaded into our Hyundai Starex and headed to Tsagaan Suvarga.
I heard the ride quality in a Starex was way better than a Furgon (Starex >>>> Furgon),
but honestly, even the Starex wasn't exactly a smooth ride!
Thinking about how bumpy a Furgon would have been made me realize
choosing the Starex was definitely the right move.
Since we'd be taking tons of photos once we arrived at Tsagaan Suvarga,
keeping my hair in rollers during the drive was an absolute must!
Cruising along the unpaved desert roads
made me feel like I was straight-up dropped into the Mad Max universe!
The endless desert scenery unfolding before my eyes
was exactly what I had dreamed of seeing in Mongolia,
and my heart was beating with pure excitement!
(The catch is, you eventually just end up falling fast asleep later anyway)
Since you're driving off-road,
don't expect a smooth, gentle ride!
Our driver was navigating toward our destination,
and suddenly the road would completely disappear... and then magically reappear out of nowhere..
Traveling in Mongolia is a place where "now you see a road, now you don't"
repeats itself in an endless loop :)
Tsagaan Suvarga, Mongolia
📍 Tsagaan Suvarga
HQX2+F78, Өлзийт, Dundgovi, Mongolia
After tackling some seriously wild off-roading,
we finally arrived at today's destination, Tsagaan Suvarga!
Tsagaan Suvarga was actually under the ocean back in the Paleozoic Era,
but after the tectonic plates shifted and underwent ages of weathering,
it transformed into the stunning landscape we see today.
That's why you can see these beautiful, colorful sedimentary layers,
and because they look so much like Buddhist stupas,
it was given the name 'Suvarga'!
In Mongolian, Tsagaan Suvarga literally translates to:
White (Tsagaan) + Stupa (Suvarga)
So it actually carries a deep Buddhist meaning.
Tsagaan Suvarga is made of silt layers, which is somewhere between sand and clay.
Since it's not made of solid rock,
when you walk on it, the ground crumbles slightly under your feet like soft sand.
If you happen to visit the day after it rains,
you'd better be prepared to get some mud on your shoes!
When you visit Tsagaan Suvarga,
you'll need to do a bit of trekking
to fully soak in the views and snap the best photos.
It can be surprisingly tricky to walk on because of all the loose sand,
so I highly recommend wearing sneakers instead of sandals!
Everywhere we looked, the scenery was so unreal and beautiful
that it felt like we had stepped right into a movie scene.
Tsagaan Suvarga is actually much hotter and drier than you'd expect,
but don't let the heat tempt you to wear short sleeves!
Instead, wear a lightweight, breathable long-sleeve shirt
and make sure to pack sunscreen to reapply along the way.
What's the number one rule when visiting a place this beautiful?
You absolutely have to capture every single moment in photos!
Our guide took so many group photos for us,
so we got tons of memories from all kinds of fun angles.
Tsagaan Suvarga is often called
the "Grand Canyon of Mongolia,"
and you can really feel that grand scale, can't you?
Photos honestly don't do it justice—you absolutely have to see it in person!!
After taking a million photos and exploring,
we followed our guide to a spot where
they have a convenience store and an ice cream shop.
You absolutely have to get a soft-serve ice cream here!
It’s like a sweet oasis for your hot and tired body after all that trekking.
After finishing our tour of Tsagaan Suvarga,
the journey to our ger camp for the night
treated us to some more epic, bumpy off-roading.
Mongolian Tourist Camp - Ger
📍 Tsagaan Suvarga Tourist Camp
HQHM+FVJ, Dundgovi, Mongolia
A ger is a traditional portable dwelling built on the grasslands
designed for the nomadic lifestyle and convenience of Mongolian herders.
The tourist ger camp we visited this time
is run by locals specifically to provide comfortable lodging
for travelers exploring the region.
Gers at tourist camps are a total hit or miss.
Some places have no outlets in the ger,
making it impossible to charge devices or use lights,
others have no signal, meaning no mobile data at all,
and some have public restrooms but no shower facilities.
They really vary so much!
So make sure to pack plenty of power banks before you go,
and always charge your devices the moment you spot an outlet!
Luckily, my ger had outlets,
so I could charge my phone and power bank.
But since the electricity was powered by a temporary generator,
it actually shut off late at night!
No outlet = No electricity = No charging = ...?
But hey, a digital detox in this day and age?
Talk about a total blessing in disguise! ~
While wandering around, I ran into this super friendly kitty!
I thought I'd seen plenty of dog-like cats before,
but this one was cuddly just like a house pet :)
I seriously... wanted to pack it in my suitcase and bring it home!
Stepping straight from the inside of the ger
right onto the raw earth felt so cool and surreal.
I was trying to capture it on video,
but had to turn it off quickly when people walked by—my little secret! haha
Since this is a tourist camp rather than a nomadic family's home,
there are actual beds inside the ger!
Even with a bed, it gets freezing and buggy at night,
so a sleeping bag and heat packs are absolute essentials.
Around sunset, everyone gets busy
running around trying to inflate their air loungers.
Once you run hard to scoop up enough air and tie it off,
you get the perfect makeshift sofa
to gaze up at the gorgeous Mongolian sky :)
Lying outside with no buildings or artificial lights around,
the sky looked absolutely breathtaking -
I spent some time just staring up at the sky,
getting lost in stargazing and just spacing out.
By the way, it gets pretty chilly at night,
so make sure to pack a warm jacket (like a lightweight down jacket)!
Snacks and drinks we picked up at the supermarket before setting off!
One of the most crucial parts of planning a trip to Mongolia
is finding the right travel companions online..!
I was a bit worried at first about traveling with strangers,
but we vibed so well and had the absolute best time!
And as it turned out, we all had
the exact same worries before the trip, lol! 😂
You can practically feel the exhaustion radiating from the photo.
Yes... yes... I was completely wiped out... yep...
Since this trip doesn't come with cozy hotel rooms,
pacing your energy is absolutely crucial.
Make sure to listen to your body and check in with yourself along the way.
Don't pull all-nighters during your trip—prioritize your sleep!
Waking up refreshed the next morning!
To power through today's packed itinerary,
I got fully prepared before heading out.
And by "fully prepared," I mean "with a full stomach."
For meals, the guide, every morning and evening,
They personally cooked up a delicious fusion of Korean and Mongolian dishes for us!
Mongolia Gobi Desert Package Tour,
The Gers and Tsagaan Suvraga
A destination where you can truly become one with nature
A destination where you can experience a refreshing digital detox
A destination where you can fill your eyes with an endless sea of stars
Mongolia, where it broke our hearts to watch each day slip away,
Let's go make some memories during the peak season!
Check out the Mongolia Gobi Desert Package Tour itinerary here
I found a total of 6 female companions through a Mongolia travel community, created an open chat room, and then booked the package. Since tour packages become cheaper as the number of people increases, it is better to go with a large group.
It is known to have a better ride than a Furgon, but in reality, since you are driving on unpaved roads, it is hard to expect smooth handling even with a Starex. The vehicle shakes a lot because it is an off-road section where the path frequently disappears and reappears.
It is recommended to wear sneakers rather than sandals because it is hard to walk due to the abundance of crumbling sand. Also, although the environment is hot and dry, you should wear a thin long-sleeved shirt and apply sunscreen frequently for UV protection.
The availability of outlets varies by ger, and because they use a portable generator, the electricity is cut off at night, making charging impossible. Therefore, it is essential to bring several power banks from Korea and charge them in advance when electricity is available.
Even if there is a bed inside the ger, it gets very chilly at night and bugs may appear. Therefore, you must bring warm outerwear such as a lightweight padded jacket, along with a personal sleeping bag and hot packs to maintain your body temperature.
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