Before I even began to travel, New Zealand had always intrigued me.  I’ve put off visiting for some time as it always seemed to be unaffordable.  So, when we saw an aggressive sale on flights to Sydney, I thought this was our chance and we wasted no time buying tickets.

It can be tough to keep a low budget when visiting countries with a high cost of living.  While flights always make international trips costly, we often offset that expense with low costs in the countries we visit.  As we began to plan our trip, I knew we would need to limit our stays in traditional lodging.  It was immediately obvious that we would need to do some camping in order to stay on budget.  But, honestly, that option seems to work better for road-trips anyway.  It allows for more flexibility and a more efficient use of our limited time in the country.  Outside of an organized tour, a rental car is almost a requirement.  Landmarks are long distances from each other and there is no other good way to get between them.  Food prices can be difficult too but with some compromise the impact was limited.

In the end, my assumption that New Zealand was unaffordable was unfounded.  The full cost of this trip was in line with our others, totaling $4,142.  By putting some thought into your itinerary and the choices made along the way, you can keep expenses low and visit your dream destination no matter where it may be.

Airfare – $1,985

We didn’t have a particular destination in mind for this trip.  So, our initial step in choosing a destination was to get an idea of airfare cost to various countries.  My favorite way to due this is by using Kayak’s Explore page.  During warmer months, flights to New Zealand’s southern island usually cost at least $1,500 from Atlanta.  When we saw a flight to Sydney for $725 dollars, we purchased tickets that night and requested off work the next day (US regulations allow free cancelations for 24 hours).  Airfare price wars do happen but they rarely last more than a few hours or days, so it’s a good idea to set price alerts or follow travel sites on social media to be made aware of them.  From Sydney, there were plenty of budget options to Christchurch.  Booking these flights separately was much cheaper than booking a single ticket from Atlanta to Christchurch.  Not only did it save us money, it allowed us to choose how much time we wanted to spend in Australia.

Car Rental – $591

This category included a one day rental in Australia ($35), 11 day rental in New Zealand ($211) and gas ($345).

I thought car rental costs were pretty reasonable in New Zealand.  There are a few decisions to be made though.  The biggest is whether to rent a car or camper van.  Camper vans are a very popular way to explore New Zealand and there are even free overnight facilities to use if they are self-contained (must have an onboard toilet).  Obviously, they are much more expensive than a car.  Since we had a tent, we didn’t see much of a benefit to a van.  If you decide to rent a car, you need to consider which type is best for you.  While SUVs are promoted at all the agencies, we didn’t need the extra space or higher clearance.  The roads where in good condition and almost all of them were paved.  The only road where more clearance would have been preferred was to the Rob Roy Glacier trailhead.  This road does require you to ford a few small streams.  Anything that happens on this road wasn’t covered by the insurance regardless of what vehicle he had chosen.  As it hadn’t rained recently before our visit, our Yaris was able to handle it.  Sometimes you just have to put the risk aside and go for it.  Also, I should mention, that New Zealander’s drive on the wrong side of the road so be prepared.

One last thing…  I usually decline rental car insurance as my primary car insurance or the credit card I pay with generally provide that benefit.  However, I’ve seen New Zealand listed as one of the few excluded countries on some programs.  Make sure to do your due diligence to avoid making an expensive mistake.

Accommodations – $465

We stayed in a variety of accommodations over our two weeks.  To keep our cost down, we stayed at campgrounds most often (~$25/night).  We also stayed in an Airbnb for a few nights ($100+/night).  Another night was spent in Mueller’s hut.  Mountain huts can be found throughout the country and are a unique option for hikers.  They vary in cost from $5-$45.  An option I wasn’t familiar with prior to New Zealand is Holiday Parks.  These are often family oriented and offer private, basic rooms with shared bathroom facilities.  They are generally available for around $50 and are a good compromise between a hotel and camping.  For our only night in Australia, we stayed in a traditional hotel ($100).

Food – $433

I found food to be one of the more expensive categories in New Zealand.  Outside of Christchurch and Queenstown, there were few quick, budget options.  As we seemed to always be running behind, a quick meal was a priority.  The best solution we found was meat pies.  While the name may not be appealing, they are offered with a variety of ingredients (some without meat at all) and are delicious.  They’re sold in almost all gas stations which is one of the few stores in many areas.  If you go to an average restaurant, expect to pay $50+ for two.  I would also recommend buying snacks and a few basic meals at a grocery store upon arrival.  In less populated areas, finding a prepared meal may be difficult.

Activities – $380

The quickest way to blow your budget in New Zealand is booking activities.  In particular, Queenstown provides a long list of adventure activities and most of them are costly.  We kept these to a minimum.  We did take a jet boat up the river in Queenstown.  In Milford Sound, the prices were more affordable.  We kayaked in the morning and took a boat in the afternoon.  It would be hard to pick between the two Milford experiences as they each provided a totally different perspective.  For any activity, look online beforehand and you may be able to find some providers offering specials for select bookings.

Transportation – $157

As a whole, transportation cost were responsible for 2/3rds of the cost of the trip.  For this budget, I choose to break them out between airfare, car rental and this catch all category.  This $157 was comprised of Uber rides and public transit in Sydney.

Miscellaneous – $133

Before I even began to travel, New Zealand had always intrigued me.  I’ve put off visiting for some time as it always seemed to be unaffordable.  So, when we saw an aggressive sale on flights to Sydney, I thought this was our chance and we wasted no time buying tickets.

It can be tough to keep a low budget when visiting countries with a high cost of living.  While flights always make international trips costly, we often offset that expense with low costs in the countries we visit.  As we began to plan our trip, I knew we would need to limit our stays in traditional lodging.  It was immediately obvious that we would need to do some camping in order to stay on budget.  But, honestly, that option seems to work better for road-trips anyway.  It allows for more flexibility and a more efficient use of our limited time in the country.  Outside of an organized tour, a rental car is almost a requirement.  Landmarks are long distances from each other and there is no other good way to get between them.  Food prices can be difficult too but with some compromise the impact was limited.

In the end, my assumption that New Zealand was unaffordable was unfounded.  The full cost of this trip was in line with our others, totaling $4,142.  By putting some thought into your itinerary and the choices made along the way, you can keep expenses low and visit your dream destination no matter where it may be.

Airfare – $1,985

We didn’t have a particular destination in mind for this trip.  So, our initial step in choosing a destination was to get an idea of airfare cost to various countries.  My favorite way to due this is by using Kayak’s Explore page.  During warmer months, flights to New Zealand’s southern island usually cost at least $1,500 from Atlanta.  When we saw a flight to Sydney for $725 dollars, we purchased tickets that night and requested off work the next day (US regulations allow free cancelations for 24 hours).  Airfare price wars do happen but they rarely last more than a few hours or days, so it’s a good idea to set price alerts or follow travel sites on social media to be made aware of them.  From Sydney, there were plenty of budget options to Christchurch.  Booking these flights separately was much cheaper than booking a single ticket from Atlanta to Christchurch.  Not only did it save us money, it allowed us to choose how much time we wanted to spend in Australia.

Car Rental – $591

This category included a one day rental in Australia ($35), 11 day rental in New Zealand ($211) and gas ($345).

I thought car rental costs were pretty reasonable in New Zealand.  There are a few decisions to be made though.  The biggest is whether to rent a car or camper van.  Camper vans are a very popular way to explore New Zealand and there are even free overnight facilities to use if they are self-contained (must have an onboard toilet).  Obviously, they are much more expensive than a car.  Since we had a tent, we didn’t see much of a benefit to a van.  If you decide to rent a car, you need to consider which type is best for you.  While SUVs are promoted at all the agencies, we didn’t need the extra space or higher clearance.  The roads where in good condition and almost all of them were paved.  The only road where more clearance would have been preferred was to the Rob Roy Glacier trailhead.  This road does require you to ford a few small streams.  Anything that happens on this road wasn’t covered by the insurance regardless of what vehicle he had chosen.  As it hadn’t rained recently before our visit, our Yaris was able to handle it.  Sometimes you just have to put the risk aside and go for it.  Also, I should mention, that New Zealander’s drive on the wrong side of the road so be prepared.

One last thing…  I usually decline rental car insurance as my primary car insurance or the credit card I pay with generally provide that benefit.  However, I’ve seen New Zealand listed as one of the few excluded countries on some programs.  Make sure to do your due diligence to avoid making an expensive mistake.

Accomodations – $465

We stayed in a variety of accommodations over our two weeks.  To keep our cost down, we stayed at campgrounds most often (~$25/night).  We also stayed in an Airbnb for a few nights ($100+/night).  Another night was spent in Mueller’s hut.  Mountain huts can be found throughout the country and are a unique option for hikers.  They vary in cost from $5-$45.  An option I wasn’t familiar with prior to New Zealand is Holiday Parks.  These are often family oriented and offer private, basic rooms with shared bathroom facilities.  They are generally available for around $50 and are a good compromise between a hotel and camping.  For our only night in Australia, we stayed in a traditional hotel ($100).

Food – $433

I found food to be one of the more expensive categories in New Zealand.  Outside of Christchurch and Queenstown, there were few quick, budget options.  As we seemed to always be running behind, a quick meal was a priority.  The best solution we found was meat pies.  While the name may not be appealing, they are offered with a variety of ingredients (some without meat at all) and are delicious.  They’re sold in almost all gas stations which is one of the few stores in many areas.  If you go to an average restaurant, expect to pay $50+ for two.  I would also recommend buying snacks and a few basic meals at a grocery store upon arrival.  In less populated areas, finding a prepared meal may be difficult.

Activities – $380

The quickest way to blow your budget in New Zealand is booking activities.  In particular, Queenstown provides a long list of adventure activities and most of them are costly.  We kept these to a minimum.  We did take a jet boat up the river in Queenstown.  In Milford Sound, the prices were more affordable.  We kayaked in the morning and took a boat in the afternoon.  It would be hard to pick between the two Milford experiences as they each provided a totally different perspective.  For any activity, look online beforehand and you may be able to find some providers offering specials for select bookings.

Transportation – $157

As a whole, transportation cost were responsible for 2/3rds of the cost of the trip.  For this budget, I choose to break them out between airfare, car rental and this catch all category.  This $157 was comprised of Uber rides and public transit in Sydney.

Miscellaneous – $133