Expert: Tom Carter ~ Travel China Expert - 5/8/2008

Question
thanks for taking my question,
I am teaching English in China at the moment but will have a few weeks off in a couple of months.
Can you tell me where I can get the best prices on a 2 week trekking tour of inner mongolia.
Thanks for any help
cheers
Jeff

Answer
Hi Jeff,
This is one of the questions with infinite answers. It also really depends on how you define trekking, on foot or horse? Since Inner Mongolia is famous for its herdsmen and bannermen, I'll assume this is what you mean.

Nonetheless, as I am not sponsored by any tourism agency, I cannot refer you to one. Instead, I say just hop on a train to Hohhot, then pop into any of the travel agencies peppered around the city, or the agency located inside the local Youth Hostel. They all have endless trekking tours for you to choose from, including a visit into the Grasslands and/or the Gobi Desert.

I'll tell you exactly how I did it when I went to Inner Mongolia: I went in late July just in time for the famous Nadam Festival (highly recommended!!!). I took a bus from Hohhot to the Gegentala Grass Lands, then spent several days surrounded by horses and the colorful "3 Manly Games" festivities. I stayed in a yurt tent and mixed with dusty Mongolian locals; it was beautiful. There you can find a "real" cowboy to give you an authentic horse trek into the heart and soul of Inner Mongolia. After trekking through the Grasslands, you can trade your white mare for a camel and head into the Gobi Sand Dunes and sleep under the stars.

As I tell everyone, you will probably have a more exciting and authentic time if you seek out your experience without a travel agency or tour group leading you around with a megaphone and flag, not to mention paying only a fraction of what those companies charge for an inferior experience. Just hop on a bus, chat with the locals, and you'll ultimately find what you are looking for. That's how I did it while traveling across China for 2 years. Good luck!

Tom Carter
http://www.tomcarter.org

Thank you in advance for your support of my upcoming book of photography CHINA: Portrait of a People, which includes an especially excellent chapter on the people of Inner Mongolia.