Overview
Mörön is the capital of Hövsgöl in Northern Mongolia, and a usual stopover en route due to its central location in the province.
Understand
Mörön, whose name means "river" in Mongolian, was established as the administrative center of Khövsgöl Aimag (Province) on the site of a monastery in 1933. The Murungiin Khuree Khiid Monastery was built in 1809 and had a population of 2,500 monks at its peak. It was destroyed during religious purges in 1937. A new monastery was built in the 1990s, with maybe 40 monks. Today there are several museums and a large collection of deer stones 20 km outside of town, though most people simply pass through Mörön on their way to Lake Khövsgöl.
Get in
Bus, or Micro-bus from Ulaanbaatar (around 2 days) or Terkhiin Tsagaan Nuur 'White Lake' (6-8 hours on the rough track via Shine-Ider) or Khövsgöl Nuur (around 3-4 hours on the almost finished but unsealed road) Hitchhike or ride a bike, possibly paying a truck driver to take you Rent a jeep and driver from e.g. Ulaanbaatar.
Fly daily from Ulaanbaatar for about USD150 (you can fly on to Khövsgöl Nuur on the same plane if this is your destination). Located 5 km from the city center, this is one of the busiest airports in Mongolia outside UB with 3 flights a day during the summer.
AeroMongolia. It is generally cheaper, but uses older planes. Flights everyday of the week during summer, only on Tu F Su during winter.
Hunnu Air. Changed its name from Mongolian Airlines. Flights to Ulaanbaatar everyday of the week during summer, and Tu Th Sa during winter.
Agents speak moderate to advanced English.
Get around
The town is small enough to walk around. From the town there is the biggest fresh water lake Lake Khövsgöl located 100km to the north that is main attraction in the province.
See
Bronze Age Complex Site with Deer Stones at Uushigiin Ovor (UO). Deerstones are large 2- to 3-m-tall stones with deer and other images carved on the surface. They're from the Bronze Age (1500 BC). In 2023 this site, together with three others near Tsetserleg were listed as a .
Monastery - Danzandarjaa Khiid - on the western edge of town, from 1890, rebuilt in 1990, well worth a 20-minute visit. Arrive in the morning around 10:00 for morning prayer. A small donation would help renovation work.
Do
At the south east of the town there is nice Delgermurun River flows and you can fish, swim there and have a boat tour there.
Buy
There is a cluster of supermarkets around the 50° 100° Hotel; the largest and the best is directly across the road from the hotel's car park in a newer building. It's worth trying all the supermarkets as some stock things the others haven't.
Eat
50° 100° Hotel - Popular and until midnight. Some unfortunately tiny but unique (for northern Mongolia) salads. Guests at the hotel do not need a reservation. Free decent WiFi. No real coffee for now, just instant coffee mix. Cross your fingers they buy an espresso machine to complete the cosiness. Cinnamon roll: stock up for those long horse treks north. Jargalan Restaurant - further west from the 50° 100° Hotel on the same side of the road is the Jargalan Restaurant (look for the Cyrillic sign) which, although looking shabby from the outside, is pristine inside with bilingual menus (Mongolian and English) including pictures. Offering Mongolian fusion cuisine including Kimchi Hurshuur and a variety of soups. Shalom Burger - apparently no burgers, but definitely sweet snacks. Upstairs over the supermarket on the NE corner of the 50° 100° Hotel intersection. If you look carefully in the glass cabinets that masquerade as refrigerators at the supermarkets early enough in the afternoon before the staff have managed to eat them all, there are small pizza-like objects (around 12 cm in diameter) in plastic wrapping. Amazingly, they taste like pizza! Aynii joloo coffee shop is very nice coffee shop and bakery in town really good place to have a coffee. Facebook video
Drink
Don't forget Wednesdays are alcohol free. So stock up on Tuesday and drink at home, if you are so inclined.
Sleep
50° 100° Hotel. Reputedly the best hotel in town. Deluxe double rooms with TV and immaculate bathroom featuring a hot shower for 50,000 ₮, although possibility of broken window panes. Situated on the central 'roundabout'. Wi-Fi in the restaurant on 2nd floor. If you're lucky the pizza on the menu will be available. Otherwise the best cinnamon rolls outside of Sweden. They also have a ger camp at Lake Hovsgol.
Eco Darhad guest house. It has apartments and gers in the centre of the city at USD5-10 per person per night. They also can help you with transportation, pickup service, translation, horse trips, guides and information and organize trips in Khovsgol region.
Hotel Merci. Hotel, cafe and pub and in-house Karaoke.
Make Mörön your own.
Before committing, pick one main reason for this visit and two nearby experiences that support it. Check the guide’s transport sections against current operator information. A convenient base can save more time than adding another attraction.
- Choose your arrival point and one base. Write down the real transfer time, not just the map distance.
- Build a first-day plan with room to settle in. Cluster the places you want to see rather than crossing the city repeatedly.
- Use actual accommodation and transport quotes in your budget. Add fees to the quote before comparing it.
- Keep one uncommitted block. Weather, energy and a good local recommendation can all change your plan.
Source transparency
This guide adapts licensed text by Wikivoyage contributors. It is not a claim that Lakhou has visited or independently verified every listing. We converted the source to plain text, selected practical sections and removed price sentences and private contact information. The planning framework and any related-business booking recommendations above are Lakhou editorial additions.
Original revision 5354067 · Contributor history · CC BY-SA 4.0. Reused text and adaptations on this page are available under that license. Source revision date: 2026-09-12. This is not a date of field verification.
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