Per-kilometre rates, minimum daily running, driver allowance, tolls and interstate tax — what each line means and which ones catch people out.
Most disputes in this trade come from one place: the customer and the operator meant different things by "the price". Here is how a quote is actually built.
The per-kilometre rate
The headline number. It covers the vehicle, the fuel and the driver. On our fleet it runs from about ₹14/km for a sedan to ₹92/km for a Volvo multi-axle coach.
It does not cover tolls, parking, state taxes or the driver's allowance. Those are separate lines, and they should be written down before you pay anything.
Minimum daily running
This is the line that surprises people most, so it is worth being plain about it.
A minimum daily running is a floor on the kilometres charged per day — typically 250 km for cars and tempo travellers, 300 km for coaches.
If you book a vehicle for three days and drive 200 km, you are charged for the minimum, not the 200. That is not a penalty. The vehicle and the driver were committed to you for those three days and could not be earning anywhere else.
Where it matters practically: a booking with a lot of standing time — a wedding, say, where the coach waits at a venue for six hours — is priced on days, not distance. Ask for it to be quoted that way.
Driver allowance
A fixed daily amount, usually ₹400 to ₹1,200 depending on the vehicle, covering the driver's meals and night halt.
You should never be asked to pay a driver directly for food or a room. It is in the quote. If a driver asks you for cash on the road, something has gone wrong and we want to know.
Tolls, parking and state tax
Genuinely variable, genuinely outside our control, and the reason we itemise them rather than folding them into the rate.
Interstate taxes are the big one. A Rajasthan-registered vehicle entering Gujarat pays a tax that depends on the vehicle class and how long it stays. On a Somnath and Dwarka trip this is a real number, and it belongs in your quote before you commit — not as a surprise at the border.
Night charges
If the driver is on duty between about 10pm and 6am, a night charge applies. On overnight journeys we run two drivers, which costs more and is not optional. One driver covering Jodhpur to Delhi through the night is unsafe, and any operator who offers it should worry you.
What a good quote looks like
Before you pay a rupee, you should have in writing:
- Vehicle type and seating
- Rate per km, and the minimum daily running
- Number of days
- Driver allowance per day
- Whether tolls, parking and state tax are included or extra, with an estimate if extra
- Night charges, if the itinerary involves them
- Cancellation terms
- What happens if the itinerary changes en route
If a quote does not have those lines, ask for them. Any operator worth booking will send them without complaint.
Why we don't publish fixed prices
We are sometimes asked why the site does not just list a price for Jodhpur to Jaisalmer.
Because it would be wrong for most people. The same route costs differently in December than in July, differently one-way than as a round trip, and differently for a group that wants the vehicle standing by all day versus one that wants a straight drop.
A published rate would either be so high it puts off people we could have helped, or so low we could not honour it. Send us your dates and you get a real number, usually the same day.
Questions about a specific trip? Message us with your dates and group size.
