Snow Leopards of Mongolia

Mongolia’s vast landscapes, dramatic skies, and sweeping silence create the perfect setting for one of the world’s most coveted wildlife experiences: the search for the enigmatic Snow Leopard. This special tour offers a rare combination of wilderness immersion and modern comfort, bringing travelers into the foothills of the Altai Mountains where Ecotours Wildlife Holidays has achieved an exceptional success rate, with Snow Leopard sightings on every VENT partnership tour to date.

We begin outside Ulaanbaatar among forest, river, and steppe habitats, then journey to Terelj National Park, where wooded mountains hold Red-flanked Bluetail, Nutcracker, woodpeckers, and taiga specialists. From there, we travel east to Gun Galuut—a patchwork of steppe, wetlands, and lakes alive with cranes, waterfowl, and shorebirds. Here, White-naped and Demoiselle cranes forage with their young, and the region’s lakes host Baikal Teal, Eared Grebes, marsh terns, and Relict Gulls.

Flying west, we reach Khovd and travel deep into the Altai, where a remote ger camp serves as our base for five days of Snow Leopard exploration. Each day brings patient scans, sweeping views, and abundant wildlife: Bearded and Cinereous vultures, Himalayan Griffon, Argali Sheep, Siberian Ibex, Saiga Antelope, and a wealth of alpine songbirds and passage species.

Returning to the east, we explore Hustai National Park, home to Przewalski’s Horse, Mongolian Gazelle, and raptors gliding over rolling hills. Wetlands and remote valleys offer additional chances for Demoiselle Crane, Amur Falcon, Azure Tit, and an array of steppe birds.

Across mountains, deserts, and grasslands, this tour highlights Mongolia’s unmatched wildness, its rare mammals, and an extraordinary set of Asian birds. With good-to-very-good accommodations, expert guidance, and a spirit of adventure, it is a wildlife journey unlike any other.

Mongolia holds an astonishing sweep of interconnected ecosystems shaped by wind, altitude, and vast horizons. In the west, the Altai Mountains rise in sharp relief, their rocky gorges, scree slopes, and high ridges forming prime habitat for Snow Leopard, Siberian Ibex, and Argali Sheep. Below the peaks, barren semi-deserts open into undulating steppe grasslands dotted with marmot colonies and coursed by Golden Eagles. To the east, river valleys support ribbons of willow and poplar, while expansive wetlands shelter cranes, waterfowl, spoonbills, and marsh terns. Taiga forest, rolling hills, saline lakes, desert-edge dunes, and quiet marshlands complete a diverse landscape thriving with raptors, passerines, and rare steppe mammals.