Events & Festivals

Mongolians celebrate many festivals, national holidays, and events throughout the year and most of the holidays present the specialties and cultural celebrations of the nation. During the traditional holidays, Mongolians love to wear the traditional costume called “Deel” and promote the one and only nomadic culture through traditional dress and accessories. Besides some biggest and most widely celebrated occasions such as Naadam Festival, Lunar New Year (Moon), and New Year, Mongolians organize seasonal and nomadic festivals to witness the beauty of nomadic culture.

Naadam Festival

Celebrated every summer, July 11-13th, Naadam Festival is the biggest cultural festival that promotes and preserves the traditional sports, cultural and artistic aspects as well as the anniversaries of 1st statehood, the Great Mongol Empire, and the People’s Revolution of Mongolia. The main entertainment of the festival focuses on wrestling, horse racing, and archery competition that continue for three days along with the most-awaited opening ceremony that features performances and artists of traditional-modern Mongolian culture.

Deeltei Mongol traditional costume festival is also an essential part of the Naadam festival where attendees came with their best-dressed look with Deel, the traditional Mongolian costume.

Lunar New Year

Mongolia is one of the East and Central Asian countries that follows the Oriental Calendar and celebrates the “Lunar New Year” every year between January to March depending on the phases of the moon. It is one of the biggest holidays which Mongolians prepare the longest. During Tsagaan Sar, translated as White Moon among locals, Mongolian families prepare the main dish “buuz”, dumplings, traditional foods, and gifts for the guests. Tsagaan Sar symbolizes a new beginning in the year, so everything in the house and the people should be clean, pure as a white color in the “White Moon” holiday.

Eagle Festival

In the province of Western Mongolia, Bayan-Ulgii, Eagle Festival is celebrated in the first week of October each year. Kazakhs, one of the tribes of Mongolia, are the people who are main ethnic group that lives in the area. Once a year, the best and most skilled falconers from the region gather to hunt with trained eagles. You will be able to watch and experience in lifetime eagle hunting tournament and amazing horsemanship with the crowds, hunters along with the vast Altai Mountain view by visiting the festival. People of the Bayan-Ulgii also celebrate their biggest traditional holiday “Nauryz” on March 22 every year. The Kazakhs wear their national costumes, and visit friends and families to celebrate the spring festival, of course with tables full of dishes, a variety of traditional cuisines.

Ice Festival

Northern Mongolia has become one of the main Mongolian winter destinations with the Ice

Festival for both foreigners and locals. During March, people are excited to participate and have fun at the icy surface of lake Khuvsgul with competitions such as ice sumo, ice staking, horse-drawn sleigh races, tug of war, shaman’s practice, traditional art performances as well as the cultural specialties of the reindeer people “Tsaatan” in the Taiga Mountains. Reindeer Festival also takes place near the Khuvsgul Lake during summer, on July 6 and 7, each year. Tsaatans gather together to introduce their specialties of customs and traditions during the Reindeer Festival.

Camel Festival

Camel Festival is another fantastic winter festival that introduces the majesties and life of the nomads of the Gobi Desert of Mongolia. The aim of this festival differs from the other celebrations as it’s organized to help improve the competitiveness of camels and increase the number of herds. The main goal of the Camel Festival is to exchange expertise, support locals, and boost participation in the natural protection and recovery in the Gobi Desert. If you’d like to explore the majesties of the Gobi Desert, especially during the winter times, Camel Festival is a must-visit celebration of the two-humped Mongolian camels.