Western Mongolia - Mongolia - page 552

aimag capital and a sum capital. The local post office should have a list of departure times
and fares.
HIRING A MINIVAN OR JEEP
The best way to see the countryside of Mongolia independently is to hire your own
minivan or jeep, which will come with a driver and, for a little extra, a guide. If you share
the costs with others it doesn't work out to be too expensive. For details on hiring your
own vehicle, see the Organised Tours chapter on Click here , and for planning your trip
see our Road Trip chapter on Click here .
Taxi
Mongolia claims to have about 49,250km of highway - of which only around 5000km is
actually paved. Taxis are only useful along these paved roads, eg from Ulaanbaatar north
to Darkhan, Erdenet and Bulgan; west to Kharkhorin, Tsetserleg and Bayankhongor;
south to Mandalgov, Sainshand and Zamyn-Üüd; and east to Chinggis Khot
(Öndörkhaan). However, most sights worth seeing lie a considerable distance from the
main roads, so even short trips require some off-roading. It should raise a red flag in your
mind if a freelance guide tells you it's OK to tour the countryside in his brother's Toyota
Prius taxi.
Train
Lines The 1810km of railway line is primarily made up of the Trans-Mongolian Railway,
connecting China with Russia. In addition, there are two spur lines: to the copper-mining
centre of Erdenet (from Darkhan) and the coal-mining city of Baganuur (from Ulaan-
baatar). Another train runs weekly from Choibalsan, the capital of Dornod aimag, to the
Russian border.
Services From Ulaanbaatar, daily express trains travel north to Darkhan, and on to Sükh-
baatar or Erdenet. To the south, there are daily direct trains from Ulaanbaatar to Zamyn-
Üüd, via Choir and Sainshand. You can't use the Trans-Mongolian Railway for domestic
transport.
Food The food available on the local trains is usually of poor quality so it's best to bring
snacks, fruit and instant noodles.
Booking If you're travelling from Ulaanbaatar, it is important to book a soft seat in ad-
vance - this can be done 60 days before departure. There is a small booking fee of
T1000. In general, booking ahead is a good idea for any class, though there will almost al-
ways be hard-seat tickets available. In summer, just getting a ticket on your own is difficult
and will require standing in long lines. Your guesthouse or hotel can usually purchase the
ticket for you, saving lots of headaches. For inquiries call the train station on 21-24137
(Mongolian only).