Things to Do in Mongolia in June
June weather, activities, events & insider tips
June Weather in Mongolia
Temperature, rainfall and humidity at a glance
Is June Right for You?
Weigh the advantages and considerations before booking
- + June serves up the mildest temperatures of the year, steppe flowers splash the hills in purple and gold while the Gobi rests at a comfortable 27°C (81°F), turning camel treks into pure pleasure instead of a furnace exercise.
- + Naadam Festival prep month, Ulaanbaatar's main stadium fills with rehearsals as throat-singers and contortionists practice under open sky, handing you behind-the-scenes access minus the July crush.
- + Horse treks across Khustain Nuruu slice through knee-high grass that smells of sweet hay, the only stretch when wild horses allow you within 50 meters (160 ft) because the foals are still wobbly and curious.
- + Lake Khövsgöl's ice has vanished yet the water stays mirror-flat, reindeer herders from the north haul fresh antler velvet to sell at Khatgal market, a sight you won't catch any other month.
- − The humidity, what Mongolians call 'air you can chew', hovers around 70% and leaves felt gers smelling like wet sheep for the first three days of every homestay.
- − Black-tailed gnat swarms ride in with the heat, they're harmless but trail you in clouds through Terelj National Park, turning that evening hike into anything but meditative.
- − Evening storms crash in fast, one moment you're photographing wild horses, the next you're sprinting for a ger while hailstones the size of apricot pits ricochet off your shoulders.
Best Activities in June
Top things to do during your visit
June heat waves haven't peaked yet, so multi-day camel treks from Dalanzadgad feel pleasant. The saxaul trees are still flowering, letting your guides point out desert plants brewed for throat medicine while you ride 15 km (9.3 miles) between flaming red cliffs. Evening temperatures slide to 18°C (64°F), good for sleeping under real stars instead of roasting on a hotel mattress.
The Tsaatan families have descended from the taiga for summer trading, pitching camp 2-3 hours by horseback from Khatgal. June is the lone month they'll let you milk reindeer, the animals are docile after calving and the flies haven't turned savage yet. The lake water climbs to 14°C (57°F), cold enough to numb toes yet tolerable for a quick plunge.
Wildflower meadows between granite outcrops look as if someone upended paint across the steppe. Local herders sell day trips that cover 25 km (15.5 miles) of terrain unreachable by car, including a secret ovoo (shamanic cairn) where you knot blue prayer scarves for safe passage. The horses are lively after winter but haven't grown the summer attitude yet.
All June long, wrestlers and archers drill at the National Sports Stadium each morning. You can watch 12-year-old boys mastering ankle-bone shooting while their grandfathers chain-smoke and bark pointers. The throat-singing rehearsals bounce off the concrete stands in a way the July crowds never allow, raw, unamplified, and utterly hypnotic.
June is dairy month, every ger bubbles with fresh airag (fermented mare's milk) in leather bags, and families lounge between spring births and summer moves. You'll master clotted cream over dung fires while kids chase baby goats through ankle-high grass. Milking starts at dawn when the mercury reads 15°C (59°F), before afternoon storms brew.
Przewalski horses cast off their winter coats in June, flashing the orange-brown summer shade that makes them look like living flames against the green steppe. They're busiest at dawn when the air hits 12°C (54°F), you'll hear them before spotting them, a snort that drifts across the valley for 2 km (1.2 miles). Wildflowers peak now, handing you foreground color for shots that'll leave other photographers green.
June Events & Festivals
What's happening during your visit
All June, the city's main stadium morphs into an open-air practice ground where nine-year-olds notch arrows while their mothers knit horse-head fiddles in the stands. The throat-singing carries differently in morning air, more haunting, less polished than the July shows.
Packing Checklist
Bookmark this page — your progress is saved between visits
Essential Tips
Insider knowledge and common pitfalls to avoid
Book Experiences in Mongolia
Top-rated things to do in Mongolia this June
Didn't see anything interesting yet?
Browse Viator's full catalog of tours, day trips, food experiences, and private guides in Mongolia.
See All Mongolia Tours on Viator