The Naadam Festival & Solar Eclipse Tour
7th - 25th July 2009
There is no better time to visit Mongolia than during its National Games, the Naadam Festival, when nomads from all over the country come together to compete in wrestling, archery and horsemanship. This exclusive small group adventure combines the Naadam Festival with 2009’s total solar eclipse in China, the longest eclipse that will occur anywhere in the 21st Century.
A few of the highlights on this exciting and diverse 19 day tour include:
- 2 Days at Mongolia’s National Games Festival
- Overland Jeep adventure staying in Mongolian ger camps
- Horse and camel riding opportunities in the wilderness
- Hustain Nuuru National Park to see rare wild horses
- Hangzhou’s stunning West Lake
- An overnight stay on China’s legendary Mount Huangshan
- The total solar eclipse viewed from a Yangtze River island
- Cosmopolitan Shanghai
The carefully planned itinerary starts in Mongolia to spend 2 days at the National Naadam Festival for the opening ceremony, wrestling bouts, archery events and amazing horse races with boys as young as 5 years old competing. After all the fun of the festival head out into the Mongolian wilderness in a convoy of 4x4 vehicles, exploring contrasting landscapes of endless steppe, towering sand dunes and rich river valleys. The 5 day overland Mongolian adventure includes visits to nomadic families, ancient monasteries, therapeutic hot springs and the chance to see an astonishing variety of wildlife including the takhi wild horse.
Saying farewell to Mongolia, fly to Hangzhou in Eastern China, once described by Marco Polo as the most splendid city on earth, for a 2 night stay on the shores of West Lake. The tour then continues into rural China for an overnight stay on the summit of the mesmerizingly beautiful Mount Huangshan (Yellow Mountain), and to discover the time-forgotten scenes around the village of Hongcun. The 21st Century’s longest total solar eclipse will be viewed from a site on a Yangtze River island, where the group will be joined by an expert local astronomer. After the eclipse the tour includes a brief stay in Nanjing, capital of China during the Ming dynasty, before finishing in the cosmopolitan city of Shanghai.
Departure Date |
Price per person (sharing) |
Single supplement |
7th July 2009 |
£2,895 |
£425 |
 Click here to download the detailed day by day itinerary.
|
|
