Trip cost to the USA
The USA

How much does it cost to travel to the USA

How much does it cost to travel to the USA? This questions we heard from many people, that’s why we decided to write an article about it. So hope that our experience will help you to calculate a budget of your trip to the USA and plan it in a better way. We say that the cost is indicative and can be lower or higher in depends on wishes of each person.

How much does it cost to travel to the USA by your own

We calculate the cost of a trip for 2 people for 2 weeks to California and neaby states (Nevada, Arizona) taking into account the flight from Europe. California (aka Cali) is the most expensive state in the USA. So the cost of a trip to another states can be the same or even cheaper.

How much does it cost to apply for an American visa

 USD 160 per person 

So we start the first expenses from visa cost. Official website of US ambessy is www.ustraveldocs.com. If you have got an American visa, then the most difficult part is passed.

An example of an American visa
An example of an American visa

Flights to the USA

 USD 450 per person 

This is an average tickets cost, because you can buy tickets during winter season even cheaper. If you are still looking for tickets, then a larger amount should be put in the budget.

Rental car cost in the USA

 USD 300 per person 

In Los Angeles we could found a car for 11 days for USD 260 only. It was a MidSize car. We booked it through Autoeurope. You should know that in New York and other cities rent cost can be higher. Also we spent about USD 250 for petrol. By the way we couldn’t paid for petrol with our credit cards. If you travel with friends, then you can save big amount of money.

How to rent a car in the USA
Our hired car for our trip to the USA

Also in Los Angeles we were without a car for the first 4 days. Before the New Year rental cost was too high. That’s why we used public transport:

  • In Los Angeles cost of ticket for public transport is USD 7 per day. Cost of one-way trip is USD 1.75.
  • Cost of shuttle bus to the airport from metro (Hollywood district) is USD 8.

Check car rent cost in the USA:

Accommodation cost in the USA

 USD 700 per person 

 

Hotels is the one of the most expensive part of a trip to the USA. Average cost of a room in Los Angeles and San Francisco starts from USD 100 per night.

If you rented a car, then you can find small hotels/motels with an average cost USD 50 per night for 2 people. In some hotels a breakfast can be included at this cost.

It’s easy to find a hotel through the aggregator, as an example, Hotels.com. Popular websites not always can give you the cheapest offer.

Price for food in the USA

 USD 700 per person 

In fact we spent less. Breakfast cost in cafe is about USD 30 for 2 persons. Lunch and dinner is about USD 40-50 for 2 persons. Specified cost does not include alcohol cost. Sometimes we ate in famous In-N-Out. We spent about USD 20 for 2 persons.

In-N-Out food
In-N-Out food

We spent less, because we cooked by ourselves in rented apartments. Quality of food in the USA was not good enough for us. Sometimes for lunch we bought fruits at the supermarkets. Average check is about USD 30.

The best applications to find restaurants and cafes are Yelp and Tripadvisor.

Price for entertaments and excursions in the USA

 minimum USD 300 per person 

In Cali and neaby states you can find many places to see. Cost is different from place to place, but we remembered entertaments for USD 5 and for USD 100. So you can spend less, but it’s better to have a few hundres USD more for maximum enjoy.

Universal Studio
Universal Studio, Los Angeles
The biggest part of our costs was Universal Studio in Hollywood and show Du Soleil in Las Vegas
  • Universal Studio ticket is USD 100 per person
  • Castle Hearst ticket is USD 25 per person
  • Show Beatles Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas is USD 90 per person
  • Cinema tickets in Las Vegas is USD 36 + really big popcorn and cola
  • Musee mechanique is USD 5
  • Entrance into national park Grand Canyon is USD 30 per car
  • Entrance into national park Grand Canyon is USD 25 per car
  • Watch on sea elephant on sea coast is for free and priceless
  • Watch custom cars on bulevards of Hollywood is free

Shopping in the USA

 minimum USD 100 per person 

You can spend more. During our trip we didn’t have an aim to visit outlets, but anyway we visited one in the boarder with Mexico.

Total cost of a trip to the USA

  1. Visa is USD 160
  2. Tickets is USD 450
  3. Car rent is USD 300
  4. Hotels are USD 700
  5. Food is USD 700
  6. Entertaments are USD 300
  7. Shopping is USD 100
Total trip cost to the USA: average cost is USD 2710 per person.

For us cost of a trip to Cali was significantly cheaper. Where we saved money:

  • In San Francisco we were living in our friend’s flat for 3 days. This is about USD 300 per 2 persons.
  • We cooked by ourselves everywhere where we had a kitchen.
Our friends in Los Angeles

How much is a trip cost to the USA? For each person total cost will be individual. We gave you only orientated prices.

Can be interesting:

  1. Rent a car in the USA – our experience in California

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