2 Weeks in India Cost: Real Budget Breakdown for Travelers

When you plan a 2 weeks in India, a flexible, culturally rich travel experience across diverse regions. Also known as an Indian adventure trip, it’s one of the most affordable long-haul journeys you can take—if you know where to spend and where to save.

Most people assume India is cheap everywhere, but the real travel budget, the total money needed for accommodation, food, transport, and activities over a set period depends on where you go, how you move, and what you eat. A backpacker in Kerala might spend $30 a day, while someone staying in boutique Jaipur hotels and hiring private drivers could easily hit $100. The difference isn’t just luxury—it’s rhythm. In South India, you can hop on a local train for $2 and eat a full meal for under $1. In Delhi or Goa, a single ride in a taxi might cost more than three days of street food in Rajasthan.

Accommodation, where you sleep during your trip, ranging from hostels to heritage hotels makes up the biggest chunk of your spend. A clean private room in a guesthouse costs $10–$20 in most towns. Upgrade to a heritage hotel in Udaipur or a backwater houseboat in Alleppey, and you’re looking at $50–$80. Local transport, buses, trains, auto-rickshaws, and ride-hailing apps used within cities and between towns is dirt cheap. A 3-hour train ride across Tamil Nadu? Under $5. A private driver for a full day in Rajasthan? Around $25 with fuel included. And don’t forget food—street snacks like pani puri or dosa cost less than a dollar. A sit-down meal at a decent restaurant? $5–$8. That’s not a guess. That’s what people actually pay, every day.

There are no hidden taxes on meals, no resort fees, no mandatory tips. But there are traps. Tourist traps. Overpriced guided tours. Fake "authentic" experiences sold to foreigners. The key is knowing what’s worth paying for. A sunrise visit to Hampi’s ruins with a local guide? Worth it. A $50 "cultural dinner" in a hotel with pre-packaged music? Skip it. Your India trip expenses, all the money spent during a journey across the country, including unexpected costs add up fast if you’re not careful—but they’re easy to control if you know the rhythm.

What you’ll find below are real stories from travelers who’ve done it: how much they spent in Kerala’s backwaters, why Goa’s beach shacks cost more than they look, how one couple ate like kings for $15 a day in Rajasthan, and why skipping flights between cities saved them hundreds. No fluff. No theory. Just what people actually paid—and what they wish they’d known before they left.