Couple going to NZ for a month how much will it cost?

ivanthehunter

Two of us ( me and the wife) intended to hire a middle of the road camper van for the entire month of December. I was wondering about the total cost of this trip. I suppose we be eating out and visiting all the tourist traps and even staying in the odd hotel and odd time.

I reckon its going to be 4.5k for flights, buses and taxi's. For spending money i could only guess about the cost of living and i hazard a guess on 3k euro for two for a whole month.

What about camper van costs for a full month ?? and dont forget a months supply of fuel. ?? 1500 euro


Has any body ever gone a holiday like this before and do the have a reckoning on their expenditure.


form the figures above it would appear that the cost for two people wishing to travel to NZ and hire a camper van for the duration of their months stay
is in and around 9000k when spending money is considered.

That about 4.5k each.


Is this a realistic guess on costs.

Bearhunter

A basic road camper will cost about NZ$3000 (about 1300 EURO) a month in December, although you can sometimes get specials. Petrol is expensive here now at $1.89 a litre (about 85 cent), so you can work that out yourself.
As for spending money, things are reasonably cheap here, given the strength of the euro. Food is cheap in supermarkets, so cooking yourself is an option. Campgrounds and many public parks have free-to-use barbecues for campers and travellers and steak is quite cheap and top-notch quality-wise.
Beer is cheap in liquor stores, similar to Ireland in bars (around $8 for a pint of Guinness, or EUR 3.60).
I'm not sure you'd need 6K in spending money, but you'd have a hell of a holiday here for that. Motels start at about $100 a night (EUR45) per unit/room and camping grounds often have cabins you can rent for much cheaper.
NZ is one of the few countries where actually being in it is cheaper than getting to it.

One Cold Hand

I was in NZ for 6 weeks travelling around. I bought a car when I got there, and sold it before I left.
Bought it for $900 and sold it for $700. So transport cost me $200 (+petrol!)for 6 weeks. Obviously I bought a banger. But my point is if a camper is going to cost you $3000 to rent, I reckon you could buy something decent for that price. Then anything you sell it for is a bonus.

Of course renting is a safer bet in terms of organisation. There's no guarantee that you'll get exactly what you're looking for if you go to a car market to try and buy one. but if the budget is tight it could save you a few quid.

robinph

I hired myself a hiace sized camper for 21 days and I think that was about e900. Petrol is cheap, food is cheap, beer is cheap, everything is cheap ... As long as you are earning in euros.

I was paying about between 10 and 25NZD a night I think it was for the camper sites with power in very good sites. Top10 are a good chain as are the Kiwi ones which are a touch cheaper. I was eating out in bars, restaurants etc every night and the numbers on the bill for beer and food were the same as you'd see here, but that means that it's really all half price once converted back to euros.

I think I may heve spent nearly 5 grand over the course of my trip, but if there is two of you then a lot of costs will be reduced from the likes of what I was spending. I was also taking up every expensive crazy activity that I came across on my travels though.

I was getting a bit fed up with steaks for every meal by the end of it though.

juvenal

I did six weeks in NZ eighteen months ago, 3.5 weeks on the south island and 2.5 on the north. We hired a campervan from Maui, brand new four berth, complete with kitchen (fridge, cooker/oven, sink), bathroom (shower, toilet, wash handbasin), electric heater, fully stock with linens, blankets etc.

We had weighed up the options between a new camper van, a "vintage" Wicked van (Hiace with mattress + bunsen burner ), and hiring a car/taking the bus and then getting hostel/hotel accomodation. We eventually went for the top end van, and it's exactly what I would do if I had the choice again. The extra cost for the luxury of your own transport and a fully stocked kitchen and eating area, and double bed, is comfortably offset by saving on eating out/travelling. We prob cooked in five days a week, and went out for a big meal perhaps two evenings. We drank our fair share (about six nights a week!), and it's great being able to have dinner and a few drinks before heading out and hitting the town.

In total our van cost about NZ$3,000 for three weeks around the south island, in a ring from Christchurch anti-clockwise (that was a 4-berth complete with fully comp insurance for peace-of-mind), and fuel was extra. On top of that I was spending no more than $200 a week on food & drink myself, so it felt like nothing, as the van was on the credit card!;) We did every possible activity we could; the skydive/glacier climb/bungee jump etc. for extra, but no regrets.

The freedom of your own transport and the fact you can eat whatever and wherever you wish made the van a winner for us. It was so flexible that we could change out plans as we wished. There's nothing like getting up out of the bed, going out the door and having your breakfast on the edge of the beach!