What a Manali trip costs on the ground — the honest price sheet

How to read this page

Two rules. Every number here is a typical band with the date we checked it, never a booking — operators in Manali quote on the day, and the rate moves with the season and the crowd. And where we do not have a number we trust, we say so rather than inventing one. Taxi rates, room rates and the permit fee are set by other people and change, so this page tells you where they are set and how to ask.

The prices are in the Manali facts sheet and they are re-checked twice a year before the summer and the winter. If a counter quotes something wildly outside a band here, that is worth knowing before you pay.

What is free

Most of it. The Hadimba temple and its grove. Old Manali and the Manu temple. The hot baths at Vashisht, which are public and separate for men and women. The walks to Jogini Falls and Anjani Mahadev, which need no guide and no ticket. The Mall in the evening. The gorge at Kothi, the spring at Nehru Kund, the meadow at Gulaba. And the Atal Tunnel itself, which has no toll and no permit. A first three days in Manali can cost nothing beyond the taxi and the food.

Small tickets, a few tens of rupees each, at the museum, Naggar Castle, the sanctuary gate and Van Vihar. Paid at the door; cash.

What you pay on the day — the bands

These are the things bought at a counter, on the spot, from whoever is running it that morning. All checked September 2026 against the local market.

• Paragliding at Solang — typically ₹3,000–5,000 for a tandem flight from the ridge; longer flights cost more. Quoted at the counters above the car park. The paragliding guide.
• The Solang ropeway — typically ₹500–800 for a return ticket, on clear days in season.
• Rafting on the Beas below Kullu — typically ₹500–1,500 per person by stretch, the short one at the low end; the raft, guide, jacket, helmet and the jeep back are included. Quoted at the riverside counters at Pirdi. The rafting guide.
• Skiing at Solang — skis and boots typically ₹300–600 per hour, or ₹800–1,500 per hour with an instructor, in January and February when the snow holds. The skiing guide.
• A tented camp — typically ₹1,000–2,500 per person per night with meals at Solang, Sethan and the riverside camps at Raison; more for a private tent with a bathroom block. The camping guide.
• A guided day walk — typically ₹800–2,000 per person for Jogini, Lamadugh or Patalsu with an outfit; a group of four brings the per-head rate down. The walks guide.
• Scooter hire — typically ₹600–1,200 per day; a motorcycle ₹1,200–2,500 per day, a 350 cc at the top of the band; a bicycle ₹500–1,200 per day, geared mountain bikes at the top. Helmet and a deposit; fuel extra.
• Snowsuits, boots and gloves for a day in the snow — hired at the roadside above Kothi and at Solang, priced by the day and by the crowd; ask before you take them.

What moves with the season

Rooms and taxis. Manali fills in May and June and on long weekends from Delhi and Chandigarh, and the rate for a room in Old Manali or a taxi for the day is at its highest then. In March, April, October and through the monsoon the same room and the same car cost a small-town price, and weekly rates for rooms are normal and negotiable. We do not print room rates here because they change by the week; our stays page shows what the places we list cost this season, and the where to stay article compares the areas.

Taxi rates are set by the union at the stand beside the bus stand and posted by the day: a half day to Solang, a full day to the pass, a half day to Naggar, and so on. Ask the evening before and the driver will quote the posted rate; a car booked through a hotel costs more for the same drive. Shared taxis and buses cover Solang, Naggar, Kullu and, in the morning, Sissu, for a fraction of a hired car.

The permit

Rohtang Pass needs one permit per vehicle, issued online by the Kullu district administration, with a daily cap that sells out in season and a fee paid on the portal. Taxi operators usually hold permits for their own cars — ask when you book the car rather than assuming — and a self-drive car needs yours in hand before the checkpost at Gulaba. The tunnel to Sissu needs no permit at all, which is one more reason it is the better first day.

Where cash matters

Card machines and payment apps work in the town and in most of Old Manali, and they drop with the power everywhere above it. The temple lanes, the counters at Solang, the snowsuit stalls above Kothi, the dhabas at Marhi and Sissu, the riverside counters at Pirdi and the village dhabas at Jana: cash. Carry cash for the day trips and ask for a receipt at the counters — the receipt is the thing that says which operator flew you, which matters if anything goes wrong.

What it adds up to

Take a three-night first visit for two people: Old Manali outside the peak weeks, the bus in, a half-day taxi to Solang and a full day through the tunnel, one tandem flight each, meals in the lane. The biggest single line is the two flights, the second is the taxi for the tunnel day, and everything else — the temples, the springs, the walks, the grove — is free. Add the pass in season and the permit and a full-day car; add a trek and the outfit's per-day rate. The solo budget plan shows the cheap version of four days; the friends plan the expensive one.

Plans that include this

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