Inner Mongolia, located right at the south of Mongolia, is famous for its wide and beautiful grasslands. To find the less spoiled and touristy grassland with relatively full-up grass, and yet accessible for a two days excursion, CCC recommends the grassland Huitengxile (2,100 meters above sea level). It also offers other varieties such as the Yellow Blossom Valley, Great Mosque, and the Frontier Street. Mushroom-like yurts, bright sky, fresh air, rolling grass and the flocks and herds moving like white clouds on the remote grassland will give you a quiet and relaxing impression you will never forget!

The rooms are not as clean as a 3 star hotel and there are strong sewage odors, especially after a rainfall". There are no "traditional” yurts(without indoor plumbing )available for rent from private families. If you want to experience sleeping in a yurt in a non-commercial site, CCC will try its best to arrange such accommodation. However we must advise you in advance of likely adverse conditions. Because higher standard are simply not available. There is also no heating provided in the yurts and we advise you to either bring a blanket or thermal sleepware in case it gets cold.

Hohhot, the capital of Inner Mongolia, is located in the center of the province and, although it has expanded considerably in recent years, the city has kept some of the charm of a small Buddhist settlement.

Best time to visit

July - August. The visit to Inner Mongolia is very short, from end of June to end of August. Rest of the most half of the year will be freezing.

Please note that CCC organizes several tours to different Inner Mongolia grassland areas. All of them are good but offer different features depending on what your objective is and what you expect from the tour. In order for you to choose the tour best meeting your needs, we provide some comments here for your reference.

Suggested Itinerary

Day 1 Arrive into Inner Mongolia / Hohhot / Huitengxile
Beijing travellers:  Fly to Hohhot (capital city of Inner Mongolia) 08:05 - 09:00
Shanghai travellers: fly into Hohht in previous evening from Shanghai Pudong (around 21:00 -23:20) (so far, no appropriate early morning flights to Hohhot available in 2009 ).

We will head to the main attractions in Hohhot, the Inner Mongolia Provincial Museum, Dazhaosi (Tibetan Buddhist Temple, optional) and its nearby Frontier Street, where arts and crafts and local ethnic minority goods are being sold, such as wool, rugs with the pattern of Genghis khan portrait, Mongolian kife.

Then we drive 125 km east from Hohhot to the beautiful grassland Huitengxile (1,800-2,100 meters above sea level). The sky is so blue and the snow white clouds seem being connected with the grassland on the horizon.  You have a lot of fun activities on the grassland:  run or roam around the grassland on the horseback; drive ATV (four rollers), ride a donkey-driven canopy cart; visit local families in the yurts, watch worships and wrestling competition, etc, and enjoy the nomad' s dinner, such as finger mutton, roast whole lamb, and a variety of natural vegetables.

The fire will be built up after dinner and traditional Mongolian performance will be presented, including the sawing charms of the horsehead fiddle (Matou qin), end up with audience participation of disco.  If the music beat is too strong to you, then you leave the group and sit on the grassland to count stars.

We will stay overnight in the yurt (Mongolian tent, very basic equipments such as twin beds & attached bathroom, hot shower and toilet with flush, window with view).  

Day 2 Grassland / Hohhot / Fly Out
The morning wake-up is a surprise as you will see the grassland sunrise. After breakfast, we will drive to the Yellow Blossom Valley for a moderate hike or horse-back ride. The mountain and valley provide various wild flowers and plants and tadpoles in the clear water.

This afternoon, we will go to the see the local family on the grassland, then drive back to the city Hohhot and fly out. 

Hohhot - Beijing Flight time 19:10-20:10
Hohhot - Shanghai Pudong Flight time 21:30-23:50

Accommodation reminder:  this trip offers less material comfort than other CCC trips, the accommodation and food is not up to CCC's usual standard, and may be challenging to those who are used to luxury accommodations. The condition of the accommodation on the grassland is limited by the remoteness of the area. The concrete, "modern" -style yurts, which are relatively cleaner than traditional-style yurts and are equipped with toilets, shower, and standard single beds, can be primitive compared with accommodations in major cities. There are only single beds in the yurts, and hot water may not be available at all times.

The rooms are not as clean as a 3 star hotel and there are strong sewage odors, especially after a rainfall. Because higher standard are simply not available. There are no "traditional” yurts(without indoor plumbing ) available for rent from private families in Huitengxile Grassland. If you want to experience sleeping in a yurt in a non-commercial site, CCC will try its best to arrange such accommodation. However we must advise you in advance of likely adverse conditions