What a Montera expedition costs

The five expeditions, and what each costs

Three figures per trip, all in rupees and all for the whole expedition. A seat is per person in one of our vehicles, four guests to a car. Your own car is the charge for your vehicle and its driver if you would rather drive it yourself. Each extra person is every other head in that car.

The prices on the Expeditions page are the live ones and the switch at the top of every page shows them in dollars instead. If the two ever disagree, the site is right and this page is out of date — tell us.

What the price covers

The same on all five, whether you take a seat or bring your own car.

• Three vehicles on the convoy — a lead car, a tail car and a media car — with walkie-talkies in each and a briefing every morning.
• A mechanic team travelling with you, and a check on every vehicle every single day.
• A medical team, with oxygen and a trauma kit, and a health check daily.
• A spare driver, who takes your wheel when you have had enough.
• Every night's stay, booked and checked before the season, and breakfast and dinner every day.
• Every permit, on the house, and the checkpost list with your car number already on it.
• A hoodie, a t-shirt, an ID card, a certificate and stickers, and every photograph in a Google Drive folder on the last day.
• Drinking water, refreshments and 24x7 assistance for the whole trip.

What it does not cover

• Travel to and from the meeting point — Shimla for the winter circuit, Manali for the other four.
• Lunch on the road.
• Personal warm clothing and footwear. The packing list says what you need.
• Travel and medical insurance. Required, not optional, and we will ask to see it — check yours covers altitude, because Umling La is 5,798 metres.
• Fuel for your own vehicle, if you bring one.

Getting to the start, and what to budget for it

The winter Spiti circuit meets in Shimla; the other four meet in Manali. Both are an overnight bus or a taxi from Delhi and Chandigarh, and Manali is also a short drive from Bhuntar airport. Prices swing with the season and how far ahead you book, so we do not quote a figure — but it is the one travel cost worth pricing before you fix your dates. Give yourself a night at the meeting point before the morning briefing, and a spare day at the end in case weather holds the convoy.

Bringing your own vehicle

The middle column is for the car and its driver; each other person in it is the third column. Four people in one car always works out lower per head than four seats. One person driving alone pays less than a seat too — but carries their own fuel, and does all the driving. What it does not change is anything else: the crew, the permits, the beds, the food, the medic, the mechanic and the photographer are the same. It is set out in driving it in your own car.

What it costs to do it yourself

Honestly: a self-organised trip can be cheaper, especially in summer and especially with two or more in one car. What you trade is not comfort so much as certainty. The lines you would be paying yourself, including the ones that are easy to forget:

• A vehicle, your own or hired, plus fuel — and mountain kilometres are thirstier than highway ones. The Ladakh trips are well over 2,000 km.
• Stays. Cheap and plentiful in summer. In winter most guesthouses in Spiti shut and the ones that stay open are a short list, which is the real reason winter costs what it does, for us as well as for you.
• Food, inexpensive everywhere on these routes.
• Permits, cheap in themselves if you are in the right office on a working day with the right papers.
• The things that only cost money when they go wrong: an unplanned night because the road shut, a tow, a tyre in Nako, a descent for somebody whose oxygen reading dropped at Hanle. Every one of those is somebody else's problem on a convoy.

Paying, and when

Nothing is charged when you ask. Send a request with your dates and the number of guests, a guide reads it and confirms the seat — usually within two business days — and the price on your request is the price that is saved. Ask in rupees or in dollars; the switch at the top of every page changes every price on the site.

Questions we are asked

How much does a Spiti Valley trip cost?

A seat on the winter Spiti circuit is ₹39,000 per person for seven days from Shimla, and the eight-day summer loop from Manali is ₹44,000. That covers the vehicle and fuel, a local driver-guide, all permits, every night’s stay, breakfast and dinner daily, a medical team, a mechanic team and a photographer.

How much does a Ladakh trip cost?

Eleven days from Manali to Leh, Nubra, Pangong, Hanle and Umling La is ₹74,000 per person. The fourteen-day circuit that adds Zanskar is ₹84,000. Zanskar on its own, six days, is ₹39,000.

What is not included in the price?

Travel to and from the meeting point, lunch on the road, personal warm clothing and footwear, travel and medical insurance, and fuel for your own vehicle if you bring one.

Is it cheaper to bring my own car?

Per head, yes, once there are two or more of you in it. Four people in one car costs less than four seats on every expedition. You carry your own fuel and do your own driving; everything else is the same.

Do I pay a deposit to enquire?

No. Nothing is charged when you send a request. A guide reads it and confirms your seat, usually within two business days.