Preparation
How to prepare for the steppe.
This page gives practical preparation guidance for booked guests and serious travellers: what to bring, how to pack for Mongolia's fast-changing steppe weather, how the cash split works, what food is like, and what mindset fits a remote Mongolian horse trek.
Documents, insurance, and money
- Comprehensive travel insurance is mandatory and must cover horseback riding or adventure activities, emergency medical treatment, evacuation, and repatriation.
- Bring passport, visa documentation if required for your nationality, insurance details, and emergency-contact information.
- Bring the local family cash amount shown on your confirmation in clean USD notes. The online $999-per-guest booking payment is handled separately through 8 Lakes Tours.
Packing basics
- Pack for all seasons, even in summer. The Mongolian steppe can swing from warm sun to cold wind, rain, and freezing-feeling nights quickly.
- Bring more warm layers than you think you need: base layers, fleece or down, warm socks, hat, gloves, and a proper waterproof shell.
- Comfortable riding trousers, waterproof outer layer, sun protection, and sturdy shoes or boots suitable for camp life.
- A personal first-aid kit, blister care, prescriptions, painkillers or anti-inflammatory medication you normally use and can safely take, toiletries, and any personal medical essentials.
Arrival and travel rhythm
- Fly into Chinggis Khaan International Airport in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
- Expect onward countryside travel toward Bat-Ulzii, the Orkhon Valley, and the Naiman Nuur / Eight Lakes region.
- Before arrival, Rob or the tour operator coordinates timing with you. Once your bus to Bat-Ulzii is booked by you or your hotel, contact the operator on WhatsApp and the host family pickup is arranged from Bat-Ulzii. There is usually one bus a day, so the handoff is simple once the bus is confirmed.
Food and dietary fit
- Traditional remote host-family meals are meat- and dairy-heavy: milk tea, yoghurt, cheese, meat, and animal products are normal.
- The dairy is part of the quality of the experience: host families always produce their own milk from yaks or cows, then serve it as milk tea, yoghurt, cheese, and other traditional foods.
- Vegetarian guests may be possible with advance notice, but strict vegan diets and serious dairy/lactose intolerance may make this the wrong trip.
- Contact the team before booking if food is a major health, allergy, or ethical requirement.
Countryside toilets and simple facilities
- Once you leave the city, do not expect Western flush toilets. Countryside facilities are usually simple outhouses with squat toilets.
- Accommodation can still be warm, welcoming, and comfortable in a rural way, but bathroom facilities are basic and there are no regular showers in the countryside.
- Bring wet wipes for cleaning hands and body between river washes. Optional daily river ice baths are part of the simple, therapeutic steppe rhythm when conditions allow.
Riding, fitness, and mindset
- Beginners are welcome, but guests should be reasonably fit and comfortable spending several hours outdoors each day.
- This is a real remote adventure: weather, horses, roads, and group dynamics can change the plan.
- Arrive flexible, patient, and ready for simple conditions, physical discomfort, shared space, and a slower host-family rhythm.
Communication and translation
- Guides and organisers handle the main logistics, but the host-family setting is cross-cultural and not every moment happens in perfect English.
- So far, Grok has worked best for simple back-and-forth communication with family members whose English is limited. ChatGPT voice mode also works well for translation. You can say: “Please translate the following sentence into Mongolian for me,” then speak naturally and play or show the translation.
- Other translation apps can still help, but Grok and ChatGPT are the two we would suggest trying first for real conversation.
- The host nomadic camp has strong Starlink and a solar-powered inverter for charging phones, cameras, and other electronics. It is surprisingly well equipped for modern essentials — even coffee makers — while remote trek days can still be more offline.
Not sure if this fits?
Ask before paying. We would rather check riding level, diet, expectations, dates, and comfort with remote conditions before you commit.
Ready to book? Return to the booking form.