What is Naadam?
Naadam (Наадам) is Mongolia's national festival, built around what are known as the "three manly games" (wrestling, horse racing, and archery), contests practiced on the open steppe since the era of Genghis Khan. It is less a spectacle staged for visitors than a country watching its own oldest traditions, and every July it takes over Ulaanbaatar and the provinces at once.
The timing is deliberate. The festival's first day, July 11, doubles as Mongolia's National Day, commemorating the 1921 revolution, and the 2025 edition opened by marking the 2,234th anniversary of Mongolian statehood. The games and the nation's founding story are wound together, so the wrestling bouts and the presidential address share the same stage.
In 2010, UNESCO inscribed Naadam on its Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage, describing it as "inseparably connected to the nomadic civilization of the Mongols." That phrase is the key to understanding the week: the archery, the child jockeys riding bareback across open ground, the fermented mare's milk passed around the stands: none of it is reenactment. It is a living inheritance that happens to draw a crowd.
Inseparably connected to the nomadic civilization of the Mongols.
The opening ceremony at the stadium, with horses and riders parading before the crowd
Photo by John Pannell / flickr · CC BY 2.0
What to expect
Jul 10
The races warm up
Naadam spills past its official dates. In the 2026 program, horse racing events at the steppe racecourse began on July 10, and the festival's unofficial "fourth game," shagai (ankle-bone shooting, itself UNESCO-listed), is played alongside the archery. In shagai, teams flick small tablets at a target of sheep knucklebones. These venues are quieter, free, and a fine warm-up.
Jul 11
Opening day and National Day
The day starts before the stadium: the Nine White Banners procession leaves the area of Sukhbaatar Square for the National Stadium, followed by the opening ceremony at about 11am and the presidential address. Then the wrestling tournament begins: typically 512 wrestlers in a single elimination bracket, each performing the devekh eagle dance before and after his bout. Archery and shagai run the same day at the National Archery Field beside the stadium.
Jul 12–13
Races on the steppe
The horse races run at Khui Doloon Khudag (Хуй долоон худаг), a steppe racecourse west of the city, where child jockeys aged roughly 5–13 ride bareback in age-category races of roughly 16 to 27km. Back in town, wrestling reaches its later rounds and the champion (in 2026 the final rounds ran on July 12), followed by the closing ceremony.
Planning your trip
Getting there
Mongolia's capital is the hub for the festival; the city end of it is compact. The National Sports Stadium sits about 3km south of Sukhbaatar Square (some sources say less), a long walk or short taxi ride, so if you base yourself in downtown Ulaanbaatar the ceremonies are close and you sidestep the worst of festival-week traffic. The horse races are the exception: Khui Doloon Khudag is a genuine trip out of town (sources put it 35 to 50km west), with early departures advised to beat the traffic, and getting there is far easier on an organized tour than on your own.
Where to stay
Naadam is Mongolia's peak travel week, so book early. One local operator advises booking three to four months ahead and reports hotel prices jumping 50 to 100 percent. Downtown puts you within reach of the square and the stadium.
If the crowded stadium event doesn't appeal, consider the alternative that many seasoned visitors prefer: the provincial and soum (village) naadams held in the surrounding weeks. They are smaller and far more intimate, and you can stand meters from the wrestlers and racers with almost no crowd, though their dates are published late, via mongoliatourism.gov.mn.
What it costs
The opening ceremony is the hard ticket. Sources quote standard seats anywhere from about $25 to about $45 (₮100,000–150,000) depending on zone, with VIP seats and tour-package seats costing far more. The stadium holds roughly 12,500, and tour operators receive allocations, which is why visitors from abroad usually end up with seats bundled into a package or bought at a markup. Sale dates vary and are announced at short notice. Closing-day and wrestling seats are cheaper, and some are sold at the stadium on the day. Archery, shagai, and the horse races are free to attend.
Go like you know
- Stay downtown, within reach of Sukhbaatar Square, so the procession and stadium are close and you skip the traffic.
- Treat the horse races as their own excursion: the racecourse is a long way out of town, and an organized tour handles the transport headache.
- Eat khuushuur (хуушуур), deep-fried mutton pastries hot from the stadium-side stalls, but let one cool a moment before biting, or the fat will scald you. Wash it down with airag (айраг), fermented mare's milk.
- Pack for both extremes: July days are warm, the stadium sun is fierce, and nights turn chilly. Bring sun protection and a warm layer.
- Buy any ceremony ticket you can before you arrive. Availability during the week is thin and priced accordingly.
- Want more summer festivals built on contests and community? The Yi Torch Festival in Yunnan falls in July or August, and Papua's Baliem Valley Festival follows in August.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need tickets for Naadam?
For the opening ceremony, yes; closing-day and some wrestling seats are cheaper, and sources differ on whether they sell at the stadium. Standard opening seats run about $25 to $45, with tour-package seats costing more. Archery, ankle-bone shooting, and the horse races on the steppe are all free, so you can see most of Naadam without a ticket.
Where are the horse races held?
Not in the city. The races run at Khui Doloon Khudag, west of Ulaanbaatar (sources say 35 to 50km), where child jockeys ride bareback across open steppe in age-category races of roughly 16 to 27km. Access is easiest on an organized tour; getting there independently on festival days is a real logistical challenge.
When should I book for Naadam week?
As early as you can. Naadam is Mongolia's busiest travel week, and Ulaanbaatar hotels, flights, and tour packages surge in price and fill up. A local operator advises booking three to four months ahead for hotels. For ceremony tickets, tour operators hold allocations, so ask about them early rather than waiting for the official online sale.
