A ger is a bentwood lattice, felt, and a stove. Tourist camps replicate the shape with duvets and a shower block. Family stays are the thing: you sit on the left, tea arrives whether you want it, and the toilet is a walk. One or two nights like this does more for the trip than another dune. Pay fairly, sleep in your clothes, and follow the house rules as if they were law — they are closer to that than to 'tips'.

When and how long

June–September while families are on summer pasture. Winter stays are real and much colder. · One night minimum so you see dark and morning. Two if it is going well.

Cost

₹2,100–₹4,300 pp with meals is fair. Paying ₹8,000+ usually means you have been put in a tourist camp.

Area

Orkhon, Gobi herder families near Khongoryn, the Khovsgol shore, anywhere a driver actually knows a household.

Crowd and who

None. You are in someone's house. Anyone willing to be a guest, not a customer.