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Provincial capital of Govi-Altai Province, Mongolia
Photo: SentinelHub, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Altai (Altay) is the capital city of Govĭ-Altai province. Straddling the western edge of the Gobi Desert where the Altai Mountains rise out of the sands, the region seems to symbolize emptiness. To the south of the city is the massive Great Gobi Strictly Protected Area 'A' and 'B'. Area A lies to the east with part of the park in Bayanhongor, and Area B is smaller and to the west. Together they cover some of the driest and more remote parts of the Gobi. Many high snow-capped mountains are closer to the city in the Altai range just to the south and west.
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Pizza and desserts.
This hotel is very Stalinist looking, complete with cyrillic characters on top, but it looks better than the competition (rough). It has a restaurant and you get to look out on the ashen-looking town.
By plane
Altai Airport has a grass runway located just outside the city that has flights to Ulaanbaatar and Bayanhongor.
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Altai · Regional · LTI
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Articles and travel topics about Altai (Mongolia) and Mongolia.
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