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Last Update: 30 Aug 2011
Riding Holidays | Mongolia
Mongolia is the world’s second largest land-locked nation and has borders with only two countries, Russia and China. The centuries of isolation that politics and geography have helped to create have helped to create much of the mystique that Mongolia evokes. The country is characterised by mountains in the north and the Gobi Desert in the south, with vast steppes in between. It experiences harsh, cold winters and very short summers and so horse riding holidays in Mongolia are only really possible from June to September.
Horse-riding is central to life in the country so a Mongolian equestrian vacation is just as much a cultural experience as an equine experience. Traditional Mongolian nomads hold more than 3 million animals, which means there are more horses in Mongolia than people (the population is c. 2.9 million). Horses are prized amongst the nomads, and a nomad with many horses is considered to be very wealthy. Horse-racing over large distances is one of the three most popular sports in Mongolia and is particularly showcased during the Naadam festival in July.
On a Mongolia horse riding vacation you will be riding the native horses. These are small, up to 14 hands, and stockily built. They bear a slight resemblance to the Przewalski horse, and there are herds of wild Przewalski horses living in Mongolia since their reintroduction in 1985. Mongolian horses live outside all year round, grazing on the grassland steppes, so they are very hardy. They are calm, friendly and reliable to ride, often choosing canter as their preferred gait.
Horse riding holidays in Mongolia can be either a long trail ride, moving on every night and camping along the way, or you can choose to base yourself at a Ger camp and ride out everyday from there. The trail rides are only for experienced riders, whilst the daily rides from Ger camps can accommodate novice riders. It is possible to join horse riding trails in northern Mongolia, riding through river valleys, meadows of wild flowers and forests or to join horse treks in the Gobi Desert, riding across the treeless steppes, grasslands and sand dunes.
Riding Holiday
