Golden eagle festival tour

Altai Eagle Festival in the Sagsai region

The Sagsai soum of the Bayan-Ulgii province is considered to have the majority of Eagle hunters.

Ninety percent of the population of Bayan-Ulgii province is Kazakh people. They have lived in this area for more than 160 years. Mongolian Kazakhs have preserved their native language and culture in the modern world. The tradition of eagle hunting is believed to have been developed in central Asia more than 1800 years ago. Kazakhs trap the eagles when they are eaglets and train them to be hunters by building an emotional bond between the hunter and the eagles. Nowadays in Mongolia there are about 200 Eagle hunters in total. Sagsai, a small town in Bayan-Ulgii province, is considered to have the majority of these Eagle hunters. Eagles usually hunt the wild animals of Mongolia, including the native red fox.

As an initiative of the local population, the Sagsai region began to celebrate the Eagle hunting culture with a festival a decade ago. During the Eagle Festival, hunters and their eagles compete with each other in various hunting skill competitions, but they are also judged on their traditional attire, the equipment of the eagles, and the horses they use to hunt. The festival also includes horse and camel races, in which mostly young boys compete.

In addition to this, during the festival local residents sell handmade crafts to the tourists who attend the event. This holiday is very important for supporting the economy of families in this region, especially the local nomadic herding families who have the opportunity to increase their income. The Altai Eagle Festival is organized every year on the second weekend of September.

Prices

3 – 4 $2213 per person
5 – 8 $1974 per person
9 – 12 $1687 per person