US - Ulaanbataar
 

Anyone have advice on the best way to get to Ulaanbaatar, from Chicago? I see MIAT flies out of PEK and ICN, both of which have direct flights from Chicago. CA also has a couple of flights to Ulaanbaatar from Beijing. All of these would seem to involve a terrible layover, barring a few combinations through PEK that would give about 2 hrs at most, which from my experience of PEK is pretty dicey unless it's strictly intra-terminal.

Secondary question: how reliable are these flights to Ulaanbaatar? Is it a good idea to try and get there a day or so early, in case there's a cancellation, or severe delays? I have a tour starting on July 12th.

Thinking of taking it slow and going via ICN, dealing with a super long layover with a dayroom if necessary, just to avoid the pain of PEK.

I'll be there mid-June. Have heard about the wind delay issue, will make sure there's a good buffer for delays in and out.

Can definitely see the benefit of having a through-ticket, though that makes using my miles rather difficult. That's a lesser consideration that just getting there in the first place.

I'd do as much KE as I could. Was lucky a few years ago to redeem 21-year-old KE miles for an ICN-ULN-ICN RT during Naadam in mid-July! Totally full planes in both directions but I think the other options at the time were Turkish, Aeroflot, Air China and MIAT.

I was coming from BKK via MNL, so I can't speak to the layovers if going from the U.S. I deliberately padded in a 3-day ICN stop on the way over (first time there) and saw the major sites. On the way back I had a long layover and used one of the public baths in Itaewon as both a shower and hotel (they're open 24 hours and a very Asian kind of experience).

U.B. has really grown by leaps and bounds but the country outside it is still only lightly touristed. I wished I could have gone on one of the trips to Lake Khusvogol or the far west or the Gobi, but all were at least 7 days from the backpacker places. So I made do with Naadam and daytrips.

The PEK connection is terrible. Avoid it if you can. The KE may be the best option. I had friends who came on TK and they said it was not a good flight either. I went via PEK and I would never take that option if I can avoid it.

MIAT also has flights out of NRT as well. I've done PEK - ULN and ULN - NRT before. PEK - ULN was on time no issues. ULN - NRT had a small delay as it was unseasonably cold that day and the aircraft had to be deiced. If coming from Chicago, United also sells connections on MIAT on one ticket so a UA / MIAT combo is also a possibility. I also think OZ is getting into ULN as well but I forget when those flights will start.

KE and TK will have a slightly better product. The MIAT planes have a pretty dated interior and the seats are quite cramped. Other than the service was actually pretty good. Flight attendants speak good English and were quite friendly.

A day early is a good idea. Delays aside, I would recommend taking the day anyways just to rest from the long travel and enjoy having regular facilities. Venturing outside of UB is the best part of Mongolia but tourist and bathroom facilities are seriously lacking once you leave UB. You'll be thankful for the one day in the city with a real toilet.