How much does a trip to Mumbai cost?

What Mumbai costs

Mumbai is India's most expensive city for accommodation, running 30–50% above comparable property in Delhi, Bengaluru or Kolkata. Almost everything else — food, transport, sightseeing — costs the same as anywhere in India. The budget distortion is entirely the bed.

🎟️ Sightseeing

• Gateway of India — free
• Marine Drive, the Bandra Bandstand, Haji Ali at low tide — free
• Hanging Gardens and Kamala Nehru Park — free
• Elephanta Caves — ₹40 Indian / ₹600 foreign for the caves, plus the ferry ₹200–280 return, plus a ₹10 toy train from the jetty to the base of the steps. A complete foreign trip is about ₹850–1,000. Closed Mondays and in monsoon.
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (the Prince of Wales Museum) — roughly ₹75 Indian / ₹500 foreign
• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Rajabai Tower, the university and the High Court — free to look at, and the Gothic quarter is the best free walk in the city
• Dhobi Ghat at Mahalaxmi — free to view from the bridge
• Sanjay Gandhi National Park and the Kanheri Caves — modest entry, a half-day escape from the city

🛏️ Where you sleep — the expensive part

• Hostel dorm, Colaba or Bandra — ₹600–1,500. The only cheap option, and limited.
• Budget hotel, Colaba — ₹2,000–4,500. Expensive for what it is; this is the Mumbai premium.
• Mid-range, Colaba or Bandra — ₹4,500–9,000
• Business and heritage (Taj Mahal Palace opposite the Gateway, Trident, Oberoi) — ₹15,000–50,000+

Where you stay determines your whole trip. Mumbai's traffic is so bad that staying in Bandra and visiting Colaba costs you two hours a day. Stay in South Mumbai (Colaba, Fort, Marine Drive) if your sights are there, even at a premium, and accept Bandra only if you are there for work or nightlife.

November to February is peak and prices are highest. June to September monsoon drops them 30–50% — genuine value if you accept the rain.

🍛 Food — the cheap part

• Vada pav — ₹15–30. The city's food, from a stall, everywhere.
• Pav bhaji — ₹80–200. Chowpatty and Sardar Pav Bhaji in Tardeo are the references.
• Bombay sandwiches and cheese toasties — ₹50–150
• Kheema pav and Irani chai at an Irani cafe — ₹30–250. Kyani & Co, Merwan and Yazdani are institutions and are disappearing; go while they are there.
• Seafood — koli-style at Versova or Worli, or a Malvani thali — ₹400–1,200
• Parsi and Iranian restaurants — ₹300–800. A Mumbai speciality found nowhere else.
• Street-food meals generally — ₹50–200. A full day of Mumbai street food costs less than one coffee in most world cities.
• Mid-range restaurant dinner for two — ₹1,500–3,500
• Fine dining and rooftop bars — ₹5,000–20,000 for two, with a cover charge and couples-only rules at many Bandra and Lower Parel nightspots. Check before you go.

🚕 Transport

• Local train, first class — ₹65–150. The best money spent in the city.
• Local train, second class — ₹5–20
• Metro — ₹10–80 by line and distance
• BEST bus — ₹6–60
• Kaali-peeli taxi — ₹28 plus about ₹20 per km, metered
• Auto — ₹23 plus about ₹16 per km, suburbs only
• Uber/Ola — ₹80–600+
• Elephanta ferry return — ₹200–280
• Mandwa ferry one way — ₹200–280

💰 Three daily budgets

Shoestring — ₹1,500–2,500. Hostel dorm ₹600–1,000, street food all day ₹150–400, local trains and one taxi ₹200–400, free sights.

Mid-range — ₹6,000–12,000. Budget-mid Colaba hotel ₹3,000–5,000, two restaurant meals ₹1,000–2,500, taxis ₹600–1,200, Elephanta ₹900.

Comfort — ₹25,000+. Taj Mahal Palace or Trident, fine dining, a private car and driver ₹3,500–6,000 a day, rooftop bars.

💳 Money

UPI is universal, including at vada pav stalls and in taxis. Foreign cards work in hotels, malls and restaurants but not at street stalls or on trains. ATMs are everywhere in Colaba, Fort and Bandra.

Carry ₹1,000–1,500 in small notes. Train tickets are bought at counters or from vending machines that take exact change; street food is small-note territory.

Do not tip in taxis or autos — the meter is the fare. In restaurants, 10% if no service charge appears; most mid-range and up already add one.

For getting between all of these, see the Mumbai transport guide.

Next on the circuit: Goa.