Budget for a trip to Ladakh
Ever so I often I receive emails in which people are asking about the kind of budget that is required for a trip to Ladakh. And almost every time, my answer is the same, it depends.
Travel expenditure depends on various aspects and varies widely depending upon your taste and preferences. For instance, one can have a stupendous breakfast for Rs. 15-20 or can spend hundreds of rupees on it; it all depends on the thickness of your wallet and your taste.
When I usually calculate budget for my trips, I base it on the assumption, that on average, I’ll be spending between Rs. 300-350 (US$ 7-8) a day on food, accommodation, phone calls (in case my mobile isn’t working) and internet access. I have found that I am able to stay within this budget, even while traveling solo (accommodation cost increases significantly).
For a budget of Rs. 350 a day, I can usually get a clean double bed room with attached toilet and 3 meals a day. And even if I have to spend a night at hotel which costs Rs. 500 a night or have to shell out Rs. 200-300 for internet access, I can still remain well within my budget, thanks to days when the total expenditure is less than the budgeted amount.
This is especially true while traveling to a place like Ladakh, where you can get a bed to sleep on, in areas like Sarchu and Pang for a mere Rs. 30 a night and get stupendous meal for Rs. 20-30. In fact, in remote places like Suru and Zanskar Valley, you can get a double bed room with attached toilet at J&K tourism bungalows for Rs. 100 a night!
Most significant portion of my travel budget is allocated towards fuel bills, which usually come out to be Rs. 1.3-1.4 a kilometer, thanks to the decent mileage (~40kmpl) I get from my motorcycle. Usually you will get almost the same average that you get in plains, if your vehicle is in good condition and you don’t rip her too much.
In case you are traveling using buses and taxis, it can be even less or can increase significantly if you are planning to hire an entire taxi on your own.
So if you are planning a trip to Ladakh, then first decide the kind of money you are willing to spend on it. Then try and figure out, how much money would be required for transportation (fuel bill, cost of public transport) and then, try and allocate a daily budget that would be enough to cover for the kind of accommodation and food you want. This will help you arrive at a ball park figure and you can then decide to increase the budget or lower the destinations/days to suit your pocket.
While traveling, keep a log of daily expenditure, as it would help you keep track of how much money you have got left and based on it, you can choose to splurge or cut back.
However what ever you do, do keep in mind that you are on a holiday and sometime it is best to live like a king/queen for a few days, then to spend weeks as a peasant.
Happy Traveling…
[...] hotel after a tiring journey. 4. Budget has huge variables, check out my blog post regarding it, Budget for a trip to Ladakh | Yogesh Sarkar’s Blog __________________ BCMTouring Youtube Channel | BCMTouring Flickr Channel | Yogesh Sarkar’s [...]
[...] Anuj budget is a very personal thing, here is a blog post I wrote regarding it, Budget for a trip to Ladakh | Yogesh Sarkar’s Blog [...]
Hi Yogesh,
I am planning to purchase side bags for my enfield. Something like a Cramster bag (Stallion). However thats too expensive. Is there some place in Delhi where I can get that made on order.
Thanks,
Sanyam
Hello Sanyam, well you can try getting them made from a shop which makes bags. Though I must warn you that you will have to do a lot of work with them to get it just right.
Alternatively you can check out saddle bags at Chopra Helmets and Khajanchi seat wallah at Karol Bagh. They had some other saddle bags, which were cheaper, though of lower quality. Make sure you check that they are not touching the exhaust, before buying one.
dude!
immense help!
thanks! been looking for something like this everywhere..
specially coz im on a student budget!
[...] For an estimate….. how expensive is Food on the Route….. Depends, check out my blog post, Budget for a trip to Ladakh | Yogesh Sarkar's Blog and also our Ladakh Travel Guide __________________ My [...]
[...] ride). As far as cost goes, it all depends on you; here is a blog post I wrote regarding this, Budget for a trip to Ladakh | Yogesh Sarkar's Blog __________________ BCMTouring: FAQ | T-Shirts | Stickers (back in stock) My: Blog | [...]
Hi,
I am planning a bike trip to Leh/Ladakh in the month of may. We would be a group of 3-5 people.
Any thoughts on travel permits required if any?
Help really appreciated;
Amar
Amar you need permit for Pangong Tso, Nubra Valley, Tso Moriri and Drok Pa region (if you are visiting them). Permit are issued by the DC office in Leh.
[...] Re: Ladakh In that case you cannot do Tso Moriri – Chushul – Pangong Tso, without a serious danger of getting stuck en route. In any case this route would likely take longer than the usual route and that too takes around 12-14 hours and in a swift would probably take lot longer. As for your itinerary, my suggestion would be to do like this: 5th June 2010: Delhi – Jammu 6th June 2010: Jammu – Srinagar 7th June 2010: Srinagar – Kargil/Mulbek (Mulbek has limited accommodation on offer) 8th June 2010: Kargil/Mulbek – Leh 9th June 2010: Leh, rest and get permit 10th June 2010: Leh – Khardung La – Nubra Valley 11th June 2010: Nubra Valley sightseeing 12th June 2010: Nubra Valley – Khardung La – Leh 13th June 2010: Leh – Chang La – Pangong Tso 14th June 2010: Pangong Tso – Chang La – Karu – Upshi/Chumathang (fill up at Karu petrol pump) 15th June 2010: Upshi/Chumathang – Tso Moriri 16th June 2010: Tso Moriri – Tso Kar – Sarchu 17th June 2010: Sarchu – Manali 18th June 2010: Manali – Delhi Keep in mind that in order to do Karu – Tso Moriri – Tandi, you will need enough petrol for around 500+ km, unless you are ok with the idea of putting petrol available in black i.e. bad quality and high price in to your car. Also you will be doing around 100km worth of off road driving between Leh – Tso Moriri – Tso Kar, so keep your cool, make sure to drive safely and be ready for rattled car and body . Also instead of spending one extra day in Nubra Valley, you can use it in Leh or keep it as buffer day. As for budget, well it depends on various things and you are the only one who can calculate that properly, here is a blog post which I wrote regarding that Budget for a trip to Ladakh | Yogesh Sarkar's Blog [...]
[...] it should be able to take you to Ladakh. As far as budget goes, check out this blogpost of mine Budget for a trip to Ladakh | Yogesh Sarkar's Blog Camera would entirely depend on your budget, so please let us know what it is and we will suggest [...]
[...] in Ladakh and along the routes to Ladakh 4. depends on a lot of factors, read more here Budget for a trip to Ladakh | Yogesh Sarkar's Blog 5. You can always ship till Mandi if you are using a courier company, while coming back you can [...]
[...] Posted by sekhu1977 is there anybody…….who tell me…..what should be budget…? Budget for a trip to Ladakh | Yogesh Sarkar for me , i m expecting around 40k for my this 20 days ladakh trip (without shopping, lol). lets [...]
cld u pls update the budget for the current yr as of now……will be helpful to convince some frnds to join
[...] cost of mum-leh-mum bike trip Depends on a lot of factors, Budget for a trip to Ladakh | Yogesh Sarkar __________________ BCMTouring: FAQ | [...]