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Events

Festivals & events in Mongolia

Festivals and events in Mongolia in date order: Naadam, the Golden Eagle Festival, Tsagaan Sar and winter festivals, plus concerts, theatre and sport in Ulaanbaatar with tickets.

Festivals & holidays

  • Chinggis Khaan's Birthday (Mongolian Pride Day) (Usually in November; the date follows the lunar calendar, Across Mongolia): A public holiday honouring Chinggis Khaan, with ceremonies at Sükhbaatar Square and events across the country.
  • Tsagaan Sar (Lunar New Year) (Late January to February; the date follows the lunar calendar, Across Mongolia): The Mongolian New Year, celebrated with family visits, mountains of buuz, a whole steamed sheep and new deels.
  • Khuvsgul Ice Festival (Usually early March, Khatgal, on frozen Khuvsgul Lake): Horse-sled races, ice sculpture, skating and tug-of-war on the frozen surface of Khuvsgul Lake.
  • Thousand Camel Festival (Usually early March, Bulgan, Ömnögovi province): Gobi herders gather with their camels for camel races, camel polo and a parade of a thousand camels.
  • Nauryz (Kazakh New Year) (22 March 2027, Ölgii and Kazakh communities in Bayan-Ölgii): The Kazakh spring new year in Bayan-Ölgii, with family visits, horse games, music and the special dish nauryz kozhe.
  • Local naadams in the countryside (Usually in July, around the national Naadam, Provincial and district centres across Mongolia): Village and provincial naadams with the same wrestling, archery and horse racing, on a smaller and friendlier scale.
  • Playtime Festival (Usually in early July, Countryside near Ulaanbaatar): Mongolia's biggest music festival: several days of Mongolian and international bands camping on the steppe near Ulaanbaatar.
  • Naadam Festival (11–15 July 2027, National Sports Stadium, Ulaanbaatar, and towns across Mongolia): Mongolia's biggest festival: wrestling, horse racing and archery, the 'three manly games', with an opening ceremony at the National Stadium.
  • Danshig Naadam & Tsam dance (Usually late July or early August, Khui Doloon Khudag, west of Ulaanbaatar): A Buddhist festival reviving the old Khalkha tradition: masked Tsam dances by monks, plus wrestling, archery and horse racing.
  • Altai Kazakh Eagle Festival (Usually mid-September, Sagsai, Bayan-Ölgii province): A smaller, more local eagle festival held in Sagsai a few weeks before the Golden Eagle Festival.
  • Golden Eagle Festival (Usually the first weekend of October, Near Ölgii, Bayan-Ölgii province): Kazakh eagle hunters from across Bayan-Ölgii compete with their golden eagles, with horse games and traditional dress.

Concerts, shows & sport in Ulaanbaatar