Three Camel Lodge

Lodging is spread across more than thirty handcrafted gers, each built on a latticed wood frame and covered in layers of felt and canvas in the same tradition Mongolian nomads have used for centuries. Every ger has a wood stove for heating, hand-painted king or double beds, custom Mongolian furnishings, and a private bathroom with shower. Each ger faces south, in keeping with Mongolian tradition, and the central oculus, used historically as a sundial, doubles as a stargazing window from the privacy of the bed. Two family gers offer two bedrooms linked by a bathroom, suited to families with older children. The lodge has no telephones and no internet access, by design.

The pace of a stay is set by the desert. Days unfold across camel treks on Bactrian camels through the Moltsog and Khongor sand dunes, fossil expeditions to the Flaming Cliffs where the world’s first dinosaur eggs were discovered in 1923, guided hikes through the ice-filled canyons of Yol Valley National Park, and visits with nomadic herding families who keep the open-door tradition of Mongolian hospitality. Bulagtai Restaurant, set within an oversized ger inside Dino Hall, serves Mongolian classics such as buuz dumplings and tsuivan noodles alongside Western dishes built around vegetables grown at the nearby Bulgan organic farms. Evenings end at the Thirsty Camel Bar or the Spa Ger for a Mongolian-inspired massage practiced by a local bariach. The night sky, undimmed by any light pollution for hundreds of miles, is the quiet headline of every stay.

Photography courtesy of Three Camel Lodge.