Not enough Naadam tickets available for tourists

Board members of the Mongolian Tourism Association and some representatives of tourism companies held a press conference last week to complain about insufficient Naadam tickets for tourists.

“The number of tourists coming to Mongolia increased by an average of 15 to 20 percent this year. The government is aiming to raise this number to a million by 2020. Unfortunately, the capacity, availability, diversity and quality of services will not be changed according to the action plan. Mongolia is an expensive vacation destination. In that sense, it’s not easy to attract tourists. The number of tourists peaks every July. One of Mongolia's competitive products is Naadam festival, inscribed on the List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of UNESCO,” President of the association D.Gantumur stated.

“Approximately 10,000 tourists order tickets to view the opening of Naadam festival. This year, around 12,000 tourists approached 110 companies for tickets. Yet, there’s no available seats anymore. (Tourism companies) are given 1,500 seats. Each seat costs 37,500 MNT (for locals). Portable seats are also placed for tourists. The fact that only 2,500 seats have been distributed to tourism companies means that two out of 10 tourists can watch the opening of the festival. The remaining eight tourists will have to stay outside the Central Stadium,” he said.

Reportedly, it’s estimated that on average a tourist generates revenue of 2,000 USD to Mongolia. Tourism companies fear that the limited availability of Naadam tickets will drive away potential tourists in the future. According to the Mongolian Tourism Association, 1,500 seats in the third, fourth and 15th sections of the Central Stadium were distributed to tourists in recent years.

During the press conference, tourism representatives requested the government and the Naadam organizing committee to lower the price of tickets for tourists to 25 USD, or 61,600 MNT, and increase the number of seats for tourists by 1,000.

Chairman of the Board Council of the Mongolian National Chamber of Commerce and Industry Sh.Nergui complained that the number of seats assigned for tourists should be increased to encourage more foreigners to travel to Mongolia during the tourism season.

“We met with the commission in charge of Naadam festival. They said they can’t increase seats. We only want 1,000 of the 15,000 seats available at the Central Stadium. If the government can’t give us 1,000 more seats, then we ask the public to donate their seats to us,” Sh.Nergui said.