Mongolia Naadam Festival Tours
Everything You Need to Know About Traveling During Mongolia’s Naadam Festival
Mongolia’s Naadam Festival, held annually on July 11–12, is the country’s most iconic celebration and one of the best summer festivals in Mongolia. For travelers seeking vibrant cultural experiences, Naadam offers unmatched energy, tradition, and spectacle.
Often called “Eriin Gurvan Naadam” or “The Three Manly Games,” the festival highlights Mongolia’s traditional sports: wrestling, horse racing, and archery. Women compete in archery and girls participate in horse racing, while wrestling remains a male competition.
In 2010, Naadam was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. While the national festival takes place in Ulaanbaatar, smaller rural Naadams occur across Mongolia throughout July and August, offering deeper cultural immersion.
The National Naadam Festival begins with a grand opening ceremony at the Ulaanbaatar National Sports Stadium—featuring dancers, athletes, musicians, horsemen, and flag bearers carrying Genghis Khan’s nine white horsetail banners. Competitions follow over two days, though festivities continue in every province.
Visitors can also enjoy traditional games played with shagai (sheep ankle bones), folk music, cultural performances, and community events that celebrate Mongolia’s nomadic heritage.
Mongolia Naadam Festival Tours
Everything You Need to Know About Traveling During Mongolia’s Naadam Festival
Mongolia’s Naadam Festival, held annually on July 11–12, is the country’s most iconic celebration and one of the best summer festivals in Mongolia. For travelers seeking vibrant cultural experiences, Naadam offers unmatched energy, tradition, and spectacle.
Often called “Eriin Gurvan Naadam” or “The Three Manly Games,” the festival highlights Mongolia’s traditional sports: wrestling, horse racing, and archery. Women compete in archery and girls participate in horse racing, while wrestling remains a male competition.
In 2010, Naadam was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. While the national festival takes place in Ulaanbaatar, smaller rural Naadams occur across Mongolia throughout July and August, offering deeper cultural immersion.
The National Naadam Festival begins with a grand opening ceremony at the Ulaanbaatar National Sports Stadium—featuring dancers, athletes, musicians, horsemen, and flag bearers carrying Genghis Khan’s nine white horsetail banners. Competitions follow over two days, though festivities continue in every province.
Visitors can also enjoy traditional games played with shagai (sheep ankle bones), folk music, cultural performances, and community events that celebrate Mongolia’s nomadic heritage.
Mongolia Naadam Festival – Horse Racing
Naadam horse racing is entirely different from Western-style sprint racing. Instead of short tracks, Mongolia’s races stretch across 10–30 km of open steppe, testing endurance, training, and the bond between horse and rider. Up to 1,000 horses from across Mongolia may compete.
Children aged 5–13 serve as jockeys, trained months in advance. Before the races begin, both riders and spectators sing traditional songs to bless the horses and honor their heritage.
The top finishers earn prestigious titles, and even the last-place two-year-old horse receives a blessing—symbolizing hope for victory next year. This unique blend of tradition and horsemanship makes it one of the most unforgettable Naadam experiences.
Mongolia Naadam Festival – Archery
Archery is a core element of the Mongolia Naadam Festival, and both men and women compete. Each archer shoots forty arrows from distances of 75 meters for men and 65 meters for women. Competitors wear traditional deels and leather arm guards for protection and authenticity.
Mongolian archery is unique for its use of surs—small woven or wooden cylinders stacked into a wall. Knocking a sur from the wall earns points, with higher points awarded for hitting the center.
When an archer strikes the target, judges shout “Uukhai!” in celebration. The highest-ranking competitors earn the respected titles of National Marksman and National Markswoman.
All rights perpetually reserved GERtoGER.org