In a minimization problem, there are some operational costs, such as transportation costs which are not negligible. In this research we discuss a transportation problem and propose a comparison of the generalized unified tabu search and the branch and bound algorithms. One of our concerns is the geographical condition of Indonesia, which is an archipelago country. To minimize these costs, the decision maker needs to determine the best route. In a distribution cycle, the goods from the supplier are picked up by the transporter and then sent to the processing factory. Several issues were highlighted in the actual process of designing contracts such as the use of historical data. In determining the route, an approach based on scenario analysis is used which consists of revising the steps and information. In this case, the generalized unified tabu search algorithm is used to find the best route and its performance is compared using the branch and bound method. As a numerical simulation, this research is applied on ginger distributions in Java, Indonesia.