When people dream of Mongolia, they often imagine vast empty steppe, endless skies, and a sense of solitude. And yes, Mongolia is huge — the size of Western Europe — but travel here doesn’t always mean travelling alone. In recent years, the country’s growing tourism industry has brought more visitors to the same handful of highlights, and at certain times of year even Mongolia can feel busy. That’s why we created The Quiet List — a brief guide to just a few of Mongolia’s raw, less-visited places where the greatest rewards are silence, space, and a deeper connection to some of country’s most remote (eternal) landscapes.
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Mongolia: Bigger Than You Imagine
Mongolia is vast — the size of Western Europe — yet many travellers still follow the same well-worn routes. It might seem surprising that in the world’s 18th largest country we’d be talking about crowds, but such is the success of Mongolia’s tourism industry that some highlights, at certain times of year, can feel a little too busy. At moments, it can feel as if tourism is slowly chipping away at the fabric of the places we love.
Introducing The Quiet List
For first-time visitors, this often isn’t noticeable — everything is new, and the joy comes from connecting with Mongolia’s culture and landscapes for the very first time. But for those returning on a second or third journey, it’s natural to seek something deeper. That’s why we created The Quiet List — our ideas for journeys that take you beyond the highlights and into landscapes that see far fewer visitors.
These aren’t easy trips. The landscapes are remote, raw, and often unforgiving — places where nature feels both timeless and fragile. Facilities are limited, the weather unpredictable, and access usually means long days on unrelenting dirt tracks. You’ll need to be comfortable with camping, resilient to discomfort, and willing to trade convenience for something far richer.
But the rewards are immense. These landscapes — and the communities who live within them — are just as much a part of modern Mongolia as the famous sand dunes, eagle hunters, or reindeer herders. Through our Wild Research experiences, we’ve journeyed to many of them over the years — and we’ve come to love their silence, their resilience, and their power to surprise.
Here are just a few of the places we highlight in The Quiet List. But one thing is essential: you have to embrace the road trip. Take off your watch. Stop wondering when will we get there? Because the truth is, you’re already there — surrounded by epic landscapes that are as much the experience as the destination itself.
Uvs Aimag – Mongolia’s Great Lakes Basin
Any of the lakes in Uvs are remote and dramatic — Shaazgai Nuur, Khyargas Nuur, or Achit Nuur. Together they form part of a fragile desert-lake ecosystem within the immense Great Lakes Basin, supporting migratory birds and local herding families. Isolation and silence are their defining features. Learn more about Mongolia’s lakes here.
Zavkhan Aimag – Mongolia in Microcosm
Otgon Tenger Uul is the highest peak of the Khangai Mountains and one of Mongolia’s most sacred mountains. For centuries, it has been a place of pilgrimage, drawing those seeking connection with the land and with something larger than themselves.
Zavkhan as a whole is a mountain steppe region but also home to lakes ( including the wildly beautiful Ulaagchinii Khar Nuur), rivers, sand dunes, forests, and dramatic mountain passes. It is Mongolia in microcosm.
Bayankhongor Aimag – Beyond the Classic Gobi
Adjacent to Mongolia’s well-known southern Gobi, Bayankhongor holds its own treasures — steppe to the north and desert to the south.
Boontsagaan Nuur is a vast freshwater lake on the edge of the desert — a place where water meets sand and life meets hardship. Nearby stands Ikh Bogd Mountain, its ridges dominating the horizon.
Sukhbaatar Aimag – Where Gobi Meets Steppe
This is where the northern steppe collides with the Gobi. The Dariganga region is dotted with over 200 extinct volcanic cones, including Shiliin Bogd, where locals climb at dawn to greet the sun.
It is stark, exposed, and wind-scoured. But the volcanic landscapes make it a fascinating corner of Mongolia.
Dornod Aimag – The Eastern Grasslands
In Mongolia’s far east lies one of the world’s last great grasslands. The Menen Steppe is an immense unbroken expanse where the horizon stretches forever. To stand here is to feel both the vastness of the land and the fragility of life upon it.
Dornod can also be combined with Buir Nuur, a freshwater lake bordering China, and the Dornod Mongol Strictly Protected Area, home to gazelle migrations and rare birdlife.
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Gobi-Altai Aimag – Mountains and Desert Basins
Often overlooked for the more famous western provinces of Bayan-Ölgii and Khovd, Gobi-Altai is a land of sacred mountains and desert basins.
Eej Khairkhan Mountain rises suddenly from the desert floor, long revered as holy. Or venture into the Shargiin Gobi, a remote basin rich in wildlife, or explore Tsagaan Agui (White Cave), an archaeological site containing Paleolithic cave art and tools.
Selenge Aimag – Everyday Mongolia
Easily reached by train from Ulaanbaatar, Selenge Province offers a quieter experience compared to central Mongolia’s icons. Here you’ll find gentle valleys, fertile farmland, and river confluences.
This is a region of everyday Mongolian life rather than major tourism icons — a chance to connect with local rhythms and histories.
Why Embrace The Quiet List
These places demand flexibility, resilience, and a willingness to step beyond your comfort zone. The roads are long, the conditions unpredictable, and comfort is never guaranteed.
But what they give in return is rare: space, silence, and the chance to connect with communities who live far beyond the crowds.
The Quiet List isn’t about avoiding Mongolia’s highlights. It’s about remembering that Mongolia is vast — and its less-visited regions are just as extraordinary, just as authentic, and just as much a part of the country’s story.
If you’d like help planning a journey to any of the places on The Quiet List, we’d be happy to share ideas and guidance — just reach out to us.
Jess @ Eternal Landscapes
