Overland Travel Across Borders: A Tale of Two Frontiers
Steppe Taiga Altanbulag Kyakhta Ulaanbaatar Ulan-Ude
The 3,485-kilometer border between Mongolia and Russia marks a dramatic ecological transition, where the vast, open grasslands of the Mongolian steppe give way to the dense, forested wilderness of Siberian taiga. This is a journey between two countries with a long and deeply intertwined history.
Sükhbaatar Naushki Trans-Mongolian Tea Fur History
The primary crossing for you is at Altanbulag (Mongolia) and Kyakhta (Russia), located on the main highway between the capitals of Ulaanbaatar and Ulan-Ude. This is the busiest and most straightforward road crossing. For train travelers, the border is crossed at Sükhbaatar (Mongolia) and Naushki (Russia), a key stop on the Trans-Mongolian Railway.