... 2017 in Winter Season. Can you please let me know if you will be open on this date and how much the room will cost as well as transportation from UB? Thanks in advanced! Zahid
We (dad and two preteens) spent a few nights with Tuul Riverside Lodge, both at the lodge and at a private glamping experience organized by them in a more remote area. Having stayed at high end glamping properties in other parts of the world (South Africa, Kenya, etc), we are accustomed to a very high level of service and Tuul was right there with the best of them. Our interactions with Suzan by email were consistently excellent, and she was very good at adapting our schedule to our late arrival due to bad weather and flight cancellations.
Tuul Riverside Lodge is in a stunning location that is fairly close to Ulaanbatar and yet feels quite remote due to the lack of other habitation within viewing distance. It is adjacent to a river, which is great for boat rides (which we took) and swimming / bathing. The Lodge is surrounded by rolling hills and the view is spectacular in all directions. Tuul also arranged a private glamping trip for us in Khustai Nuruu national park, which was even more amazing, surrounded as it was by water on all sides.
The service standards are wonderful throughout the Lodge and in their private camping sites. The staff seem genuinely interested in guests having a good experience and, in some ways, it feels like staying with family rather than with a commercial hospitality organization. Of course, the family type service cuts both ways and we sometimes had to remind a few people for things that they forgot. We would particularly like to appreciate the service of the chef at the Lodge, who did a brilliant job accommodating our vegetarian diets, and Egi at the private camp, who is perhaps the nicest camp host we have come across in our extensive travels.
The hard product - the tents and gers - are very interesting. The gers at the Lodge are an authentic but upgraded version of the ones we saw nomads using. Ours had proper floors, an attached full bathroom, etc. One of the reasons we chose Tuul was because they seem to be the only ones offering a ger with an en suite bathroom in the Ulaanbatar area, and we were glad we had that convenience. One downside of the ger is that it is not very suitable for people with allergies as the entire thing is felt and fabric, but then we wanted an authentic Mongolian experience. The private camp was altogether spectacular with a beautiful lotus-shaped tent, a separate dining tent just for us, and a fully functional bathroom tent that even had a rainshower!
In terms of activities, the lodge kept the kids super-busy with archery, hiking, ox cart riding, nomad visits and playing with the nomad kids, horse riding, going in the air boat, seeing wildlife in the national park, etc. Our only disappointment was that we wanted to go on more horse-back rides but we did not give the lodge sufficient notice and they were not able to arrange the ride the second time. Next time, we will plan our itinerary better as we understand the lodge does not always have the nomad / horse herder available.
Overall, Mongolia is a stunningly beautiful country with friendly people, and Tuul does a great job of providing sincere, family-style service in a well-located ger camp that has en suite bathrooms. Their private camping experience is even better and highly recommended.
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Date of stay: June 2019Trip type: Traveled with family
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
My 7 year old and I had a mother and daughter trip to Mongolia (me for work and her for experience). I decided to take her to stay in a Mongolian ger to experience life outside of a hotel room and city. Tuul Riverside Lodge is the perfect balance between modern (hot water, amazing meals) and rugged outdoors (beautiful scenery, quiet solitude of the outdoors and of course the obligatory bugs (which totally freaked out the city kid)). From the camp manager (Enkh) to the horseman (Bataa) to the wonderful people who worked behind the scenes to make the stay a comfortable one - it was an amazing and wonderful experience. TRL is only a short drive away (the drive itself is amazing with offroad experience that my kid loved!) from the hustle and pollution of UB but once you're there...you can imagine life as a Mongolian nomad. We also visited the horseman's family and they absolutely made you feel welcome. Highly recommended but bring the bug spray!
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Date of stay: July 2013Trip type: Traveled with family
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Responded Aug 20, 2014
Dear Joan, Thank you so much for your critique on tripadvisor! It is a delight to know that your daughter’s and your experience in Mongolia is a memorable one, thank you also for uploading pictures of your visit! Critiques like yours are encouraging and helpful; we now have a supply of bug spray at the lodge. We trust that the two of you are well, and hope that we might welcome you again in Mongolia some time.
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We stayed overnite at Tuul Riverside Lodge in July. This is a beautifully kept sustainable Ger camp about an hour from Ulanbaatar , located in a steppe facing mountains, stunning location. getting there is not for the faint hearted as the roads out of Ulanbaatar are very poor, but the heavy vans they use did the trick.
Our Ger was lovely, cozy and comfortable en suite. The meals were exceptionally good and the Ghengis Khan beer! It's a peaceful beautiful place where you can do as much or as little as you want....we chose little and just enjoyed being there. Regards to Suzan and Treeman who do a wonderful job.
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Date of stay: July 2016Trip type: Traveled as a couple
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Responded Aug 11, 2016
Thank you very much for your positive review and most importantly: thanks for having enjoyed the site's beautiful views, the meals, the ger and simply the entire stay. We wish you all the very best!
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My family of four (two boys, ages 4 and 7) stayed at Tuul for two nights in late May, and were completely amazed at the quality of the lodge and the level of service they provide. Our goal was to stay in a yurt/ger and experience wild Mongolia, and Tuul provided a perfect way to do it comfortably and in style. As a result, we were able to focus on the once-in-a-lifetime encounter with the countryside.
From start to finish, Dugi, Telmuun, Suzan and the rest of the Nomads crew we met took spectacular care of us. Our flight was delayed, arriving late at 2 AM, but Dugi greeted us with a warm smile and the drivers navigated carefully as we ambled through the rocky terrain and two river crossings in the impressive Nomads army trucks. None of the six kids in our group got carsick.
The yurts at Tuul are gorgeous and well-appointed, with wood-burning stoves as well as power and plumbing, with full bathrooms en suite. I was very impressed. The food was frankly unbelievable. I did not expect to have fine cuisine in remote Mongolia, but each meal provided many options for those herbivores and omnivores among us. We were most impressed by the fresh vegetables and soups, but the lamb dumplings and soup dumplings were also delicious.
Our group spent about 36 hours on the ground--too little-- but our time was jam-packed with fun activities. Someone brought out soccer goals when they noticed we had a ball, Telmuun brought out fishing poles and taught us all how to use a bow and arrow, Dugi and Bataa took us horseback riding, and then Telmuun made a bonfire and provided skewers and and marshmallows for roasting.
As a special treat, the lodge arranged a traditional music and dance performance in their at their gazebo. The music included hammer dulcimer and throat singing. We had never heard throat singing in person, and we were blown away.
I can't decide what my favorite part of the visit was, but I am certain that I want to go back as soon as possible!
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Date of stay: May 2016Trip type: Traveled with family
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Responded Aug 24, 2017
Dear Karen, dear Bryon
Heartfelt greetings from Mongolia!
Thank you so very much for your warm, kind and very detailed review - it was truly wonderful to have hosted your city escape! Every-one at Tuul Riverside Lodge enjoyed having hosted you in our different capacities: guide(s), driver(s), our chef and her assistants, our house/ger keeper and many more behind the scene. After a long and calm winter it is always a special pleasure to open the season with guests who are in such high spirits - and let me take this opportunity to thank you also for your repeated visit the following year with even more friends!!! We trust that you all are doing well as you seem to quickly conquer the hearts of those around you and to fully enjoy what this (beautiful) world can offer. Thanks for having visited Mongolia with us twice! Suzan
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Avoid. The place is oversold as a premium destination. The yurt was tatty - peeling felt, dirty floors, non functional showers, stale bedding. The web site claims: "En-suite facilities in all gers with shower unit and hot and cold running water." This is inaccurate; we got a trickle of cold water for 2 hours in the morning and an hour in the evening. The manager refused to start the pump even after our 6 year-old fell and we needed water to clean the cut. The shower was broken, as were most fixtures in the bathroom. When it rained at night, water came down in great rivulets from the holes in the felt and made the inside of the yurt wet. I thought I would mention this to the German owner; when I got hold of her after 2 days of trying, she was was enraged at my temerity to complain and basically threatened to put me on the next transport back to ULN. Very disappointed with both standards and attitudes, USD 50/night yurt places in the rest of the wonderful country of Mongolia are better than this.
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Date of stay: July 2013Trip type: Traveled with family
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Greetings from Mongolia!
We would be delighted to welcome you on the requested date for an overnight - the winter rate for a single standard ger is 50$, including breakfast. A pick-up for one traveler can be arranged from any spot within UB to the lodge at 40$. Usually, our clients love to extend their stay with adding a lunch (20$) or a dinner (25$). Please feel free to text or call be at +97699099365 for more information.
Again, thank you very much for your interest in visiting Mongolia with us!
With kind regards,
Suzan
Greetings from Mongolia!
Many thanks for your inquiry - we would be delighted to welcome you at our lodge as our first winter season clients this year!
You should be aware that we drain our pipes in the winter, which means there is no running water at the lodge at the moment. We have an outhouse (earth closet/long-drop) or we could put a chemical toilet in the small bathroom attached to the ger. Full-body-showers will not be available, but we would provide you with warm water for quick washes, which we would also bring to your private bathroom.
We realize this is a bit of an inconvenience, and so we would offer you a very cozy, lovely twin ger (2 beds) or our semi deluxe double ger (queen-sized bed) for half of the price it is in the summer season!
The price for the twin standard ger, including breakfast, transportation is 68.00USD per person, per night.
The semi deluxe double ger is 82.50USD,per person and night.
Hope to see you soon!
Best regard,
Suzan Samandari
