Trip costs
How we estimate a trip’s cost
Every itinerary shows what the trip should cost your whole group. Here is what goes into that number, what stays out of it, and how far to trust it.
Who the total is for
The total is for your whole group, built from your answers to the planner's questions:
- Travelers: everyone in the group. Children are priced as adults.
- Hotel rooms: one room for a solo traveler or a couple, one for a family with up to two children and two for a family with three or more, and one room for every two friends.
- Cars: on a road trip, one car for every five travelers.
How each part is priced
| Part of the trip | How we price it | Counted |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | A typical economy fare for the distance between the two airports, adjusted for the region, the destination and the month you travel. A one-way flight counts half a round trip. | Per traveler |
| Trains, buses and ferries | A typical fare per kilometer for the region, over the distance between the two cities plus 30% for the real route, with a minimum fare for short hops. | Per traveler |
| Airport transfers | A taxi between the city and its nearest airport, one for every four travelers. When that airport is more than 150 km away, a bus instead. | Per taxi, or per traveler on a bus |
| Road trips | Fuel for the distance driven. A rental car costs the region’s typical daily rate for every day of the trip, plus a one-way fee when you return it in another city. | Per car |
| Hotels | A Comfortable (mid-range) room each night, at the city’s typical rate for that month. Simple and Upscale rates are shown beside it for comparison. The last day has no night. | Per room |
| Activities | The entry fee of each place on the plan: the price we hold for that place, or the plan’s own estimate when we hold none. Free places count as zero. | Per traveler |
| Food | A typical mid-range day of eating out in that country. | Per traveler, per day |
| Local transport | A typical mid-range day of buses, metro and taxis in that country. Island countries use island transfer rates. A road trip with a rental car has none. | Per traveler, per day |
Currency and rounding
Every price starts in US dollars and is converted to your currency at the exchange rate on the day the trip was planned; the page names that rate and its date. Each line is rounded once, to two significant figures (INR 33,202 shows as INR 33,000, and 676 as 680): these are estimates, so they read like estimates. Every total is the sum of the lines shown, so the numbers always add up.
What the total leaves out
- Visas, travel insurance, SIM cards, tips and shopping.
- Flights from home on our sample itineraries, which do not know where you live. Plan the trip from your own city to include them.
- Anything we could not price, such as a place you added that has no known entry fee. The cost section lists these under “Not estimated” rather than guessing.
How far to trust it
These are estimates from typical prices, not live quotes. Real prices move with dates, demand and how you book, so check them before you pay. If a number looks wrong, email hello@monkeyeatingmango.com and we will look into it.