Budget-Friendly Guide to New Zealand

Although New Zealand can be a very expensive place to travel to and many things in New Zealand are expensive once there, there are a ton of ways to save money when traveling through New Zealand and make it more budget-friendly. 

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Step 1: Plane Ticket

Go during the offseason! If you do not mind a bit of cold and some rain, New Zealand during the offseason is fantastic. We went in June/July which is the middle of New Zealand’s winter. Due to the season, I was able to score $775 tickets on Air New Zealand directly to Auckland from Los Angeles which is uncommon! Most tickets go for well over $1000. We love the cold and packed accordingly, so it was a wonderful experience. In total, we spent $886/person on airfare, which is way more budget-friendly than $1000.

Step 2: Accommodations

When booking accommodations in New Zealand, you can book a variety of things. If you really want to save money, book a camper van so you do not have to pay for hotels every night. I am not big on camping and did not want to drive a large vehicle, so I opted to skip this option. Another option is to stay in backpackers lodges or hostels, but I feel I have outgrown those experiences (I like having my own room and private bathroom). The next cheapest option is utilizing motels and Airbnbs. In New Zealand, motels are hotel rooms with a kitchen. Many of the motel options are 3.5 to 4-star level rooms and pretty inexpensive. New Zealand also has some brilliant Airbnbs! We even found some hotels that were more budget-friendly as well. We did not pay over $82/night (total for two people) for any of our lodging options. For two and a half weeks in New Zealand, we spent $557/person on accommodations. Also, going on the offseason helps with finding cheaper accommodations! 

Step 3: Transportation

We opted to rent a car to get around New Zealand. I found this option was more budget-friendly for two people than using buses or other public transportation to get around. I recommend using AutoSlash to compare prices of the various companies. Jucy also offers some super inexpensive options. If you are planning on doing a one-way rental and only need a car for a short time, check out Transfercar. These cars need to be brought back to a certain New Zealand location, so sometimes you can rent a car for free and just pay for gas! We spent $200/person on transportation (rental car, Uber, and public transportation) throughout the trip.

Step 4: Food and Beverages

Eating out all the time, in general, can add up. In New Zealand, I felt the food was around the same prices as eating out in the United States in many of the locations. However, we were able to save some money by buying groceries and cooking some of our meals. We only ate a few breakfasts out, so that saved us at least $25/day! When we went on our self-drive to Milford Sound, we packed sandwiches we made from the grocery store. 

Going out for drinks can also add up. Again, many of the prices were similar to the United States or cheaper, but sometimes we still elected to try and save. We opted to buy some bottles of wine from the grocery store in order to try out some New Zealand wines. Rather than buying a $12 glass per person with dinner, we opted to buy one bottle for $15-$20!

Allow for at least $30/person per day for food if you opt for some more budget-friendly food options.

Step 5: Activities

Although some of the major activities, like the heli-hike we went on or the adrenaline-pumping activities in Queenstown, were quite pricey, we still found ways to save. I recommend utilizing BookMe New Zealand. We saved hundreds of dollars on the activities we wanted to do on the trip by booking them through BookMe. Think of this website as a New Zealand version of Groupon and is very budget-friendly.

Free Activities

New Zealand actually has quite a few activities and sites that are absolutely free! I was surprised at the amount of budget-friendly and free activities there were in New Zealand. 

Botanical Gardens

New Zealand had so many botanical gardens. Even though we were there in the wintertime, many of the botanical gardens still how plants and flowers in bloom and they were enjoyable to walk through. 

Christchurch Botanical Gardens: This 52-acre area was founded in 1863. This area contains various sites to see such as the Peacock Fountain, the Cunningham House Conservatory, and the Central Rose Garden.

Domain Wintergarden in Auckland: These free winter gardens spread across two glasshouses near the Auckland War Memorial and Museum. One is heated and contains more tropical plants while the other non-heated one contains more temperate plants. 

Queenstown Gardens: Spend the afternoon wandering through the Queenstown Gardens. These Botanical Gardens, filled with local and exotic plants, are located on the shore of the lake. There are many walking trails as well as facilities for various sports such as lawn bowling and disc golf.

Wellington Botanical Gardens: The Botanic Gardens feature 25 hectares worth of gardens. There is a rose garden, a children’s area, a visitor’s center, and many other areas. Sometimes, visitors can even see glow worms in the area.

Go on a Hikes

New Zealand is known for some amazing and scenic hikes. Every single place we went to had at least one option for a hike. Since it was wintertime, we were not able to go on many hikes, but the ones we did were worth it! Make sure to bring water and snacks with you as many of the hikes are several hours long. 

Bob’s Cove Track in Queenstown is one of the most popular hikes in the area. It is along the shores of Lake Wakatipu and takes about 1.5-2 hours each way.

Fox Glacier and Franz Josef Glacier both have tracks that take you within eyesight of the glacier. This is a good way to see the glaciers if you cannot afford to do a heli-hike. The hikes take at least an hour each way.

Rob Roy Glacier Track lies about an hour from Wanaka. This track goes through an area full of glaciers, mountains, and lakes. This hike goes for 10 kilometers and may take 4-5 hours.

Lookouts

Many of the cities have amazing lookouts that visitors can hike up to. There is usually an option to take a bus or tram up as well, but hiking up is free!

Mt. Victoria in Wellington: The Mount Victoria Lookout offers panoramic views of Wellington. Visitors can choose to hike up the mountain or take the bus close to the lookout point. There are multiple walking paths along the mountain. Several scenes from Lord of the Rings were filmed throughout these walking trails.

Mt. Eden in Auckland: Mt. Eden is the highest volcano in Auckland. Do not worry… the last eruption was 15,000 years ago! Visitors can choose to take a hike to the top or there is a bus line that will drop you off near the lookout. Once at the top, visitors will be granted spectacular views of Auckland and the surrounding area. Make sure to check out the huge grassy area that is the crater of the volcano. 

Museums

There are so many museums spread all over New Zealand. Many of them are free, which I was not expecting and is perfect for a budget-friendly vacation. You can easily spend an hour at some of these museums. 

Cable Car Museum, Wellington: The Cable Car Museum is located in the original winding house for the Cable Car. The museum contains several old cable cars as well as historical information on the Wellington Cable Car.

Canterbury Museum, Christchurch: The Canterbury Museum is located in central Christchurch and is free to get inside. There are a variety of collections such as bird hall and Asian art as well as exhibits of the Arctic and earthquakes.

Te Papa Museum, Wellington: Te Papa is New Zealand’s national museum. It opened in 1998 and contains exhibits on the history, animals, and the art of New Zealand. A few times daily there is also a cultural Mauri performance. This museum is free to get into. 

National Parks

New Zealand has 14 major National Parks and they are all free. National Parks are a fabulous place to hike, take in gorgeous views, and are very budget-friendly. The following list is a few of the more popular parks. 

Fiordland National Park: Fiordland National Park contains several fjords that have been carved out by glaciers. The most visited are Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound. A self-drive to Milford Sound saves a bundle of money and provides gorgeous views. 

Mt. Aspiring National Park: Mt. Aspiring National Park is on the Southern Island near Queenstown. This park offers a ton of hikes through this mountainous region and gorgeous scenery. 

Mt. Cook National Park: Mt. Cook National Park contains a range of mountains and rocky trails. It has the highest mountains in New Zealand and a lot of long glaciers that cover over 40% of the park. 

Other Free Sites

There are also lots of random free sites across New Zealand. The following are some awesome ones we stopped at during our trip. 

Brockworth Street Art Gallery in Christchurch: This alley contains a series of murals along the railroad tracks. It is not a huge gallery, but it is worth taking a quick walkthrough.

Kawarau Gorge Suspension Bridge near Queenstown: It is free to watch people bungee jump off the bridge. This bridge is the site of the first commercial bungee. 

Stroll through Arrowtown on the South Island: Arrowtown is located about 20 minutes outside of Queenstown. In 1862, gold was found in the river and Arrowtown was sprung up. Now, Arrowtown is full of boutique shops and delicious restaurants.

Rivendell on the North Island: Did you know you can visit the site of Rivendell from Lord of the Rings? Although the houses of the elves are not there, you can still visit the site where they filmed all of the scenes. It is a short hike through tranquil nature and they even have some signs. 

That Wanaka Tree: That Wanaka Tree is a unique willow tree that lies in the water of Lake Wanaka. It stands alone away from the other trees. It has become Insta-famous over the years due to its picturesque location.

Tour Parliament in Wellington: The parliament of the New Zealand government meets at the Parliament building in Wellington. Free tours are offered almost every hour. 

Wine Tasting in Central Otago: There are many wineries in the Central Otago region that offer FREE wine tastings. Others may charge an inexpensive fee.

Budget-Friendly Activities

Although the following activities cost some money, they are more budget-friendly than many other activities. 

Spend time relaxing in the Hot Pools: There are many hot pools across New Zealand. The admission to get into most of them is pretty cheap. Check BookMe New Zealand for the best prices. Make sure to bring your own town to save some money. We opted to visit the Franz Josef Hot Pools and the Waikite Valley Thermal Pools.

Wine Tasting in Hawke’s Bay: Wine tasting in Hawke’s Bay is not free like in Central Otago, but it is still inexpensive. Tastings cost around $10/person and they do not mind if you share them. 

Eat at the world’s coolest McDonald’s in Taupo: Not only do you get an inexpensive meal, but you also get to eat at the world’s coolest McDonald’s! Visitors can eat their meal inside an actual place that is one of the main dining rooms of this McDonald’s. 

Hopefully, this guide helps you figure out how to make your trip to New Zealand “budget-friendly.” Drop any more tips you may have in the comments!

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