🇩🇰 Copenhagen → 🇲🇳 Ulaanbaatar · 1 week

Book Naadam Festival tickets (July 11-13) well in advance — the main stadium events fill fast, but the real magic is the children's horse racing 40 km outside the city at Khui Doloon Khudag. Hire a taxi and join the crowds on the steppe for a scene unchanged for centuries.

Arrive at Gandantegchinlen Monastery at 9-10am on a weekday to watch monks chant in the main hall — tourists are welcome but keep quiet. The 26-metre golden Janraisig statue inside is breathtaking, and weekday mornings are far quieter than weekends.

The National Museum of Mongolia on Juulchny Gudamj holds remarkable Hunnu-era artefacts and traditional deel costumes. Skip the ground floor and head straight to floors 3-4 for the nomadic lifestyle displays — allow at least two hours.

Try khorkhog (lamb slow-cooked with hot stones) at a local ger camp on the outskirts rather than in tourist restaurants — ask your guesthouse to arrange it. The best versions are cooked by the family who lives there, and eating it means also getting the hot stones pressed against your hands, said to bring good health.