If you want to travel New Zealand on a budget, here are 9 tips to avoid expensive travel costs, a complete guide for budget travelers. New Zealand is an expensive country to live and travel in. But with some insider knowledge, you can experience everything New Zealand has to offer, even on the strictest budget.
Story time: when the pandemic closed New Zealand’s borders, our business suffered. A lot. We clicked into survival mode and hence ensued a dark period that challenged me in every direction.
Life was heavy. And I quickly realized we couldn’t go much longer without a road trip. Although we always traveled New Zealand on a budget, this time would be stricter than ever before.
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The thing is, traveling New Zealand on a budget is absolutely possible. And it doesn’t take away from experiencing the best this country has to offer. In fact, we experienced more. Saw some unique spots. Had epic landscapes all to ourselves. Opened our senses to simplicity and peace.
This blog post includes all my best tips to avoid expensive travel costs in New Zealand for my beloved budget travelers. But it’s also a post that fosters slow travel, mindful living, and reconnecting with self and nature in its deepest form.
In my opinion, this is the most fulfilling way to experience New Zealand.
Here is everything I know about traveling New Zealand on a budget. Below please find a comprehensive guide on how to avoid expensive travel costs in New Zealand for budget travelers.
Nine tips to avoid expensive travel costs in New Zealand for budget travelers
1. Travel during off-peak seasons: spring or autumn
The best time to travel New Zealand is during the off-peak seasons, spring or autumn. These are March-May or Sep-Dec. Not only to avoid inflated prices, but with fewer tourists on the road, you get to have gorgeous spaces all to yourself. Hostel and AirBnB prices tend to be lower, as well as flights and adventure activities.
Also New Zealand during spring and autumn is stunning. In spring, the wildflowers bloom and the famous lupins erupt in dizzying colors across the South Island. In autumn, the weather remains semi-warm but you’re graced with orange and yellow trees everywhere you go.
Experiencing all this beauty without tourists crowding every space is lush. It’s perfect to replenish the soul, which is the point of travel anyway.
2. Rent/buy a self-contained vehicle: camping with style
Although this may not be a cheap cost up front, acquiring a self-contained vehicle will save you money down the line. Not only does it curb accommodation costs, but you get front-line access to epic landscapes.
A self-contained vehicle is usually a certified campervan that comes with a bed, functioning kitchen, and toilet. It’s designed to meet your sanitary requirements so you leave less of a mess everywhere you go… hence giving you camping perks.
That’s the great thing about a self-contained vehicle… you get special treatment to park up at most camping sites at a free or reduced cost.
With a self-contained vehicle, you gain access to the entire country. There’s hundreds of camping sites across New Zealand. Some are managed by the Department of Conservation, others by local councils. The best way to find campsites is by using CamperMate. This app saved our arses many times on spontaneous road trips where we needed somewhere to stay the night.
If you’re looking for nicer facilities (including a blessed shower), holiday parks are a good option. They tend to be pricier than campsites, but still at budget costs. We’ve stayed at a few Top 10 Holiday Parks in the past. And Holiday Parks NZ is a great resource to search for holiday parks by region. These also tend to have cabins and motel rooms if you’re tired of sleeping in the car. And yes, all these are also listed on CamperMate!
3. Freedom camping: an option for the strictest budgets
If you’re looking to travel for absolutely zero dollars, freedom camping is the solution. Most of these don’t require a self-contained vehicle so you can roll a mattress out the back of your car and that’s all the accommodation you need.
But be warned. Freedom camping sites have weak facilities. Often as little as a public toilet. But they’re dotted through some incredible places, giving you 24/7 access to beaches, bush, or mountains.
Although the lack of shower is a drawback, this is our favorite way to travel. We’ve slept in front of pristine beaches around Matapouri. Cast a tent among the bluffs of Arthur’s Pass. And really, who needs a shower when you’ve got lakes and oceans? Just make sure you come prepared with plenty of food and water.
Freedom camping is the best way to experience New Zealand travel. It’s better than AirBnB. Better than luxury lodges. You wake with the sun to experience natural wonders at a time when no one else is around. You stargaze a brilliant milky way with snacks and beers among other campers. It’s an entire culture in New Zealand.
If you choose to freedom camp, please follow the rules. Don’t camp where you’re not meant to. Use resources like CamperMate. Don’t leave a mess and always take your rubbish with you. And follow my guide below that tells you everything you need to know about freedom camping in New Zealand.
4. Pet Sitting
A recent find that blew my mind is pet-sitting across New Zealand. For a small fee to join, you can find a myriad of households across New Zealand looking for someone to stay and watch their pets.
With a bit of spontaneity and flexibility, you can book in dates to watch someone’s cat while exploring a new region. Or have a true farmstay experience tending goats, sheep, or llamas.
Rifle through these on Kiwi House Sitters or PetSitters NZ. This is a gateway to a slow travel experience where you get to live as the locals live and understand life in New Zealand a bit better.
Hands down one of the coolest finds to avoid expensive travel costs in New Zealand, and a great option for budget travelers seeking a cultural homestay experience.
5. Snacks and portable kitchens
Whether you have a self-contained van or portable kitchen utensils, fending for yourself is a great way to save money on food. Dining is expensive, which makes sense when restaurants source local ingredients for seasonal eats.
Someday, I’ll write a post for easy on-the-road recipes to stay nourished on your budget travels. But know that storing snacks and cooking your own meals goes a long way to save your dollars.
It’s also really fun. What’s more wholesome than cooking a nice stew among mountains? Brewing your coffee on the beach?
Staying healthy is essential on your New Zealand travels to maintain energy. There’s a lot to do and a lot to see so this is a good option to keep the body nourished while honoring your strict budget.
If you need camping/kitchen utensils, Kathmandu has a fancy (though not cheap) range of items. Otherwise you can buy used on TradeMe or Facebook Marketplace… more on that below.
6. Eat at local cafes and bakeries
If you’re tired of cooking your own meals, I recommend forgetting restaurants and finding cafes and bakeries instead. These local hubs usually have windows stocked with a myriad of affordable foods.
Don’t bother with the menu… the meals are always more expensive than what they have on display. Peruse the shelves behind glass, where fresh sandwiches, pies and other delectables sit. These are usually prepped every morning with seasonal produce, and much gentler on your pocket.
Cafes/bakeries also have better coffee and freshly-baked bread. You also get a taste of the local vibe. Nothing feels more cultural than hanging at local cafes. And I always find a $7 frittata feels better than the $22 eggs benedict on the menu.
7. Free activities… everywhere
The awesome thing about New Zealand is that the best activities are free. This includes tramping, beach combing, stargazing, and freedom camping. Being one with nature, and letting that be enough. That’s the New Zealand way.
I talk about this constantly. New Zealand is a country that fosters slow living with reverence for nature. This entire blog is dedicated to slow travel and ditching a packed itinerary. You don’t need fancy activities to absorb the New Zealand wonder… it’s accessible to you absolutely free.
In that sense, New Zealand is the perfect country for budget travelers looking to avoid expensive travel costs. The DOC website meets all your needs to plan hikes and book huts. Or you can take a spontaneous road trip, end up anywhere, and have access to unearthly beauty.
Sure, paid activities are fun. Who doesn’t want to bungee jump or take a sailboat out to sea?
But understand that the magic is accessible to you without these luxuries. New Zealand is incredible enough to simply exist in. And that’s a lesson our consumption-hungry world needs now more than ever.
8. Opshops, TradeMe or Facebook Marketplace
In New Zealand, there’s a consensus that costs are high and things are generally expensive. So secondhand shopping (virtual and otherwise) is thriving.
If you happen to need any item on your travels, websites like TradeMe and Facebook Marketplace are bustling with secondhand goods.
Seems like an obvious solution but after living in the USA for so long, it took me a minute to adjust without Amazon. It doesn’t operate in New Zealand unless you’re willing to pay big shipping costs from Amazon Australia.
There are lots of treasures on TradeMe and Facebook Marketplace. You’ll develop a fondness for vintage, pre-loved items. And it’s healthier for the planet.
On the road, every town has op shops and secondhand stores. These are fun to unearth some quirky treasures you didn’t know you needed. In fact, they’re so common, I consider it a New Zealand cultural experience.
They’re also life-savers when the weather isn’t behaving the way you thought. I’ve dabbled a few times myself when I needed an emergency jumper or a pair of sandals. And most importantly, at minimal costs.
9. Resources for flight and package deals
My final tip is to arm you with resources to find the best deals for your New Zealand adventures. New Zealand is a small country so sometimes it’s more convenient to catch an hour flight to another region. JetStar Airways is the airline of choice for cheap flights across country. I’ve found flights for as little as $40.
If you aren’t a fan of camping or road trips, New Zealand is teeming with hostels and backpackers for all your budget needs. A simple Google search will yield a wide range of options, or you can search availability on booking.com or HostelWorld. My favorite hostel to stay at is YHA Backpackers, with many locations around New Zealand, often with clean facilities packed with awesome people.
Locally-owned backpackers and farmstays are another option to have an authentic New Zealand experience, often at a low price. Tourism is rampant across New Zealand so you’ll find many families have constructed unique accommodation options on their property (my partner is one of them). I usually enter “backpacker” or “camping site” into GoogleMaps and pick the quirkiest option.
And of course websites like House of Travel or BookMe are always advertising activities and things to do at special prices.
The point of this post is to dispel the idea that New Zealand is an expensive country to travel in. If you’re looking for a luxury experience then yes, it will cost you. But if you’re willing to let go of the frilly stuff and tap into true New Zealand charm, there are many ways to avoid expensive travel costs… the infrastructure exists for budget travelers. And now you have all the insider knowledge needed to experience everything New Zealand has to offer on your budget travels.
