Mumbai feels completely insane when you first arrive, and that feeling may never go away. From a traveler standpoint it’s definitely a city of contrasts. With over 20 million people in the area it’s surprising that the tourist infrastructure still isn’t well built out yet.
Mumbai is generally the most expensive city in India, although still fairly cheap by most international standards.
| Population | 13,800,000 |
| Area | 22,000,000 |
| Timezone | UTC+5:30 |
| Currency | Indian rupee |
| Airports | Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (BOM) |
If you are coming to India then you should definitely spend a day or two or three in Mumbai, but probably not any more than that. With the exception of Delhi, which suffers from a similar situation, you can find hotels starting well under US$10 that are nice, and rooms in houses as low as US$1. Plus the real magic of India can not be found in its crowded mega-cities.
Good news about Mumbai is, except for hotels, most things here are quite cheap. Meals on the street can be found for practically pennies, and good local restaurants start just a bit more than that. Many of the most interesting things to see in the city are free as well so really once you find a hotel you can afford then everything else is very affordable.
Hotels in Mumbai are shockingly expensive to most people at first, and they don’t change prices much throughout the year. The absolute peak season in Mumbai is during the Christmas holiday period, which also happens to have the nicest weather of the year. Generally the high season for Mumbai hotels is from December through March – the nice part of the dry season.
If you come sometime from May through October then you might get a slightly better deal, but you might also be clobbered by the annual monsoon. This city is a big destination for business travelers who have unflexible schedules so the leisure market doesn’t really impact supply and demand and prices as much as you’d expect. It’s best to only stay a few days in Mumbai at the most and then go somewhere else that’s not quite as insane.
| Rating | Price(USD) |
|---|---|
 | 17.00 - 54.00 |
| 23.00 - 78.00 |
| 35.00 - 125.00 |
| 58.00 - 166.00 |
| 78.00 - 245.00 |
| Type | Price(USD) |
|---|---|
| Hostel Bed | 12.00 - 26.00 |
| Location | Description | Type | Price(USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya | Formerly known as the Prince of Wales Museum, this is the premier art and history museum of India, in a lovely building | foreign adults | 5.92 |
| Elephanta Island | The caves and the 1-hour cruise to get there are popular with locals and tourists alike. | adults | 2.96 |
| Mani Bhavan Gandhi Museum | Gandhi's old headquarters is now a museum, which Barack Obama visited in 2010. | everyone | 0.00 |
Food prices in Mumbai will vary greatly based on where you prefer to eat. The places that cater primarily to locals will usually be much cheaper than the places with air conditioning and tourist menus.
| Food Type | Description | Price(USD) |
|---|---|---|
| Budget breakfast | Many hotels come included with a simple breakfast. If not, street stalls offer good local dishes for cheap. | 1.66 - 2.60 |
| Budget lunch | Depending on where you are it may be hard to find budget options, but street stalls and casual restaurants are available in most tourist areas. | 2.37 - 3.79 |
| Budget dinner | Many expensive restaurants can be found, but cheaper places and many food stalls on Chowpatty Beach offer great budget options. | 3.79 - 7.10 |
| Beer (pint) | Unlike most of India, there are trendy bars in Mumbai, and prices vary greatly. Your hotel can fetch you some cheap beers as well. | 1.66 - 2.96 |
| Type | Price(USD) |
|---|---|
| Prepaid taxi from airport to city center | 5.32 - 7.69 |
| 3km taxi ride in Mumbai | 0.67 - 1.06 |
| 3km auto-rickshaw ride in Mumbai | 0.22 - 0.30 |
| Return ferry to Elephanta Island | 1.77 |
| Metro ride in Mumbai | 0.12 - 0.47 |
| Month | High F | Low F | Precip (inches) |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 87 | 62 | 0.0 |
| February | 88 | 63 | 0.1 |
| March | 91 | 69 | 0.0 |
| April | 92 | 75 | 0.0 |
| May | 92 | 79 | 0.5 |
| June | 89 | 78 | 22.3 |
| July | 86 | 77 | 25.6 |
| August | 85 | 76 | 19.2 |
| September | 86 | 75 | 14.0 |
| October | 91 | 74 | 3.5 |
| November | 92 | 69 | 0.2 |
| December | 90 | 65 | 0.0 |
For a city in the tropics, Mumbai has a fairly unusual climate. Some months can be very pleasant and others can be nightmarish for travelers. The rainy season lasts from mid June through mid September, and especially July and August can be ridiculous, with heavy downfall that literally goes on for days, or weeks, on end. The city routinely gets at least partially flooded during this period, and transportation grinds to a halt, so it’s best to stay away.
Conversely, winters can be warm, dry, and pleasant. December and January in particular are marked by warm days with low humidity, and cooler and nice evenings. April and May are the hottest months of the year, and even though there is no rainfall during those months the humidity during the day can be stifling. November through March is definitely the season to go if you can pull it off, and forget about July or August.
| 21 Mar | 6:42am | 6:50pm |
| 21 Jun | 6:02am | 7:18pm |
| 21 Sep | 6:27am | 6:36pm |
| 21 Dec | 7:07am | 6:06pm |