Should you visit Asheville or Pittsburgh?
Which city should you visit? Read on to compare the prices of travel for Asheville and Pittsburgh. We’ll break down costs for accommodation, food, transportation and more to help you learn more about these two destinations. Then, you can figure out if either of these two places are accessible based on your travel budget. So, let's dig into it.
Asheville
Asheville is a beautiful mountain town between the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Great Smoky Mountains. It's a popular tourist destination in western North Carolina that attracts hikers, shoppers, and adventurers alike. It's the largest city in the area and is famous for it's liberal mindset and large art community. Local crafts are frequently available for sale in the downtown shops.
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh is a city in western Pennsylvania at the junction of 3 rivers. Set between the Monongahela and Allegheny Rivers, and a mountain ridge called Mt Washington, Pittsburgh has a unique character that is evident from the moment you arrive. Juxtaposed with the rumbling freight trains and the iconic bridges are the Bladerunner-esque self-driving Uber vehicles, scanning the roads with spinning Lidar scanners. Its Gilded Age sites, including the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, the Carnegie Museum of Art, and the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, speak to its history as an early-20th-century industrial capital. In the North Shore neighborhood are the modern Andy Warhol Museum, Heinz Field football stadium, and PNC Park baseball stadium. Experiencing periods of boom and bust since its founding, the city is in a boom now, and it's a fun place to visit, with top-notch museums, great gardens and parks, and amazing food.
Which city is cheaper, Pittsburgh or Asheville?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations.
The average daily cost (per person) in Asheville is $106, while the average daily cost in Pittsburgh is $145. These costs include accommodation (assuming double occupancy, so the traveler is sharing the room), food, transportation, and entertainment. While every person is different, these costs are an average of past travelers in each city. Below is a breakdown of travel costs for Asheville and Pittsburgh in more detail.
Accommodation
Accommodation prices vary by location and style, but travelers pay on average about $142 for a double occupancy room in Asheville.
The prices for places to stay in Pittsburgh can vary by date, location, and type. Generally, the average cost for accommodation per person is $85, while a typical double-occupancy hotel room for two people will cost around $170.
Food
In Asheville travelers spend around $26 a day on food. You can save money by choosing casual restaurants or food stalls, or you can spend plenty more by dining in nicer restaurants at every meal.
Pittsburgh food costs typically run travelers around $43 per day. Eating every meal in a nicer restaurant will drive the cost up, and grabbing fast food or casual meals will help you save money.
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Food
Meals for one day
Asheville $26
Pittsburgh $43
Typical Food prices in Asheville
Below are a few samples from actual travelers for food and meal costs in Asheville:
Local Transportation
The average price of local transportation around Asheville is $11 per person, per day. As this average includes both taxis and public transport, keep in mind that the prices of private drivers and taxis are significantly more expensive than public transportation.
Pittsburgh's transportation costs can vary by the type of transport chosen by visitors. Naturally, taxis and private drivers cost much more than public transportation options. On average, visitors spend $18 per person, per day on transportation in Pittsburgh.
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Pittsburgh
Also for Pittsburgh, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
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Pittsburgh Airport (PIT) to Pittsburgh City - Round-Trip Private Transfer:
$187
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Pittsburgh Airport (PIT) to Pittsburgh hotel/address - Arrival Private Transfer:
$93
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Pittsburgh City to Pittsburgh Airport (PIT) - Departure Private Transfer:
$93
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Pittsburgh Departure Private Transfer to Airport:
$69
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Pittsburgh International Airport One Way Transfer:
$80
Is it cheaper to fly into Asheville or Pittsburgh?
Prices for flights to both Pittsburgh and Asheville change regularly based on dates and travel demand. We suggest you find the best prices for your next trip on Kayak, because you can compare the cost of flights across multiple airlines for your prefered dates.
Entertainment
Asheville's costs for entertainment, tickets, attractions, and tours will often cost around $13 per person, per day. This cost can vary widely by the type of activity, however, as this includes admission tickets, day tours, museums, and other things to do.
Sightseeing, admission tickets, things to do, and other entertainment expenses in Pittsburgh can vary widely by price. On average, visitors spend around $30 per person, per day on entertainment and sightseeing here.
Typical Entertainment prices in Asheville
Here are a few typical costs in Asheville for activities, ticket prices, and tours that come from previous visitors:
Tours and Activities in Asheville
Here are a few actual costs in Asheville for available activities, ticket prices, and tours:
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"Love Stories of Asheville" Guided Walking Tour:
$498
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2-Hour Guided Segway Tour of Asheville:
$68
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4-Mile Guided Paddleboard Tour on The French Broad River in Asheville:
$82
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7 Mile Guided Paddleboard Tour On The French Broad River in Asheville:
$97
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Amazing Asheville Scavenger Hunt Adventure:
$44
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Asheville Insider Guided Walking Tour:
$30
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Asheville Literary Tour:
$30
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Asheville Night-Time Guided Walking Ghost Tour (1 or 1.5-Hour Options Available):
$21
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Asheville Night-Time Walking Ghost Tour:
$21
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Asheville Private Guided Bird Watching Tour:
$41
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Asheville Scavenger Hunt Adventure:
$21
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Asheville Scavenger Hunt: Downtown Asheville Adventure:
$12
Tours and Activities in Pittsburgh
Also, here are some specific examples of entertainment, tickets, and activities for Pittsburgh.
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Entrance Ticket to AT BLAQK House Collections:
$5.60
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Pittsburgh to Logstown: Discover the area's settler history on an audio tour:
$5.99
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Pittsburgh Scavenger Hunt Experience:
$11
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2-Hr Pittsburgh Walking Tour:
$15
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Evening Ghost Tour:
$27
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Architecture and History Tour:
$29
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Black & Ghost Tour:
$30
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Beauty of the Burgh Bike Tour:
$49
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Bike the Burgh Tour:
$49
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Essential Pittsburgh Experience - The One Tour to Take:
$75
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Sip of Pittsburgh Brew Tour:
$90
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Pittsburgh Private Tours:
$94
Alcohol
While the amount that someone spends on alcohol while visiting Asheville may vary from person to person, on average a person spends $13 per day on alcoholic beverages.
Alcoholic beverages can often be a significant portion of a traveler's budget, and the costs can vary greatly from person to person. In Pittsburgh, the average amount that a visitor spends on alcoholic beverages per day is $26.
Sample the Local Flavors in Asheville
Also in Asheville, these are the prices for nightlife and alcohol related activities from various tour providers:
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Downtown Asheville Guided Brewery Walking Tour:
$38
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Private Adventure Brews Cruise Brewery Tours in Asheville (Up To 5 Breweries):
$1,013
Sample the Local Flavors in Pittsburgh
Here are a few nightlife and alcohol tours and activities from local tour providers in Pittsburgh:
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Wacky Pittsburgh Bar Crawl: By Let’s Roam:
$12
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Pittsburgh Bar Hunt: Party Through Pittsburgh Bar Crawl:
$13
When we compare the travel costs of actual travelers between Asheville and Pittsburgh, we can see that Pittsburgh is more expensive. And not only is Asheville much less expensive, but it is actually a significantly cheaper destination. So, traveling to Asheville would let you spend less money overall. Or, you could decide to spend more money in Asheville and be able to afford a more luxurious travel style by staying in nicer hotels, eating at more expensive restaurants, taking tours, and experiencing more activities. The same level of travel in Pittsburgh would naturally cost you much more money, so you would probably want to keep your budget a little tighter in Pittsburgh than you might in Asheville.
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