Frequently Asked Questions
What is this and how does it work?
It's like a wiki for travel costs. As travelers enter their expenses, average travel costs are calculated for cities and countries around the world. For more information about how it works, please read our About and How It Works pages.
Why are the total daily averages not a direct sum of the category averages? How are the averages calculated?
There are three reasons the daily averages are not a direct sum of the category averages.
1) Averages are determined from the budgets submitted by our users. Only those costs that fall within a reasonable range (two standard deviations) of the median are included.
2) Some category averages are calculated by item, some by day. The difference is indicated in the Notes section. The total daily average is always calculated by day.
3) Not all categories are included in the total daily average. Categories that are included in the total daily averages are:
- Accommodation
- Intercity Transportation (for countries only)
- Local Transportation
- Food
- Water
- Entertainment
- Communication
- Scams, Robberies, and Mishaps
- Tips and Handouts
- All Inclusive Tours
Categories excluded from the total daily average are:
- Souvenirs
- Living Expenses
- Visas
- Alcohol
- International Transportation
- Charitable Donations
Is my data private?
You have the option to make your trip private when you create it. This means that nobody else can view your specific trip. You must be logged in to see the expenses, details, charts, and itinerary. Your data will still be used to estimate averages. All average travel costs for cities and countries is calculated in an anonymous way, whether your trip is public or private. A public trip may be viewed by anyone, even if they are not logged in.
How do I delete my account or my trips?
Please contact us and we can delete them for you. It is currently not possible to delete them yourself from within the website.
Why should I create a trip?
Creating a trip allows you to monitor your costs and see a breakdown of your expenses by category, location, or day. Your data will also help other travelers plan their trips. Our database is completely dependent on the contributions of travelers. By providing us with current information you help other travelers see up-to-date costs for the locations they plan to visit. We're travelers like you and want this to remain a free service. Your contributions will help us grow. In turn, you will get a comprehensive breakdown of your budget with charts, graphs, and tables.
Why are locations missing when I estimate costs?
We have travel expense data for over 3,600 cities around the world. However, that's still not the entire world. Information is only available for cities and countries that other travelers have visited. If you've been to a country that isn't available yet, help us out and create a trip!
My location does not appear when I try to enter an activity. What should I do?
Currently our database only has approximatley 160,000 destinations, so if you are looking for a small and remote place, it might not be in there yet. Send us the name of the city and country and we will add it to the database for you. Or, find the nearest major town to your location. (Use the contact form to get in touch with us.)
Why can't I see the charts?
Viewing the charts requires a browser capable of running Javascript.
How do I set a current trip?
Choose the trip from your list of trips. Once on the trip's profile page, select "edit trip." Choose "yes" under the "Set as Current Trip?" dropdown.
Budget Your Trip is all about finding out how much everything costs so that you can travel cheaper and longer. Created by avid travelers Laurie and Bryan, our goal is to help you plan your next trip on the right budget. With average daily travel costs that are calculated from the budgets of real travelers, plus an analysis of hotel and tour prices, you can find out how much money you need to plan your next adventure. We also have plenty of travel advice, accommodation reviews, and activity suggestions.