Lash with giant tree ferns – Pukekura Park – New Plymouth
My Low Costs to Travel Around New Zealand – Month 3
In early 2014 I traveled around New Zealand’s North Island for three months on a budget, doing several HelpX assignments at locals’ homes in exchange for room and board. In between those gigs I went off on my own to explore a few NZ destinations, staying at hostels, cooking my own meals, and having a blast with my personal freedom.
Throughout the entire three months I managed to keep my expenses quite low, as low as traveling in SE Asian countries, in fact. You can read my Strategy for Visiting New Zealand on a Budget as well as my monthly expenses for the first month here and second month here.
My first month’s expenses were ultra-low since I did back-to-back HelpX assignments, staying at people’s homes the entire month, thus cutting out all accommodation costs and most food expenses.
discovering an amazingly decorated tree in Rotorua
In the second month I began spending time on my own and also splurged a bit on family birthday gifts and personal souvenirs of NZ, so my expenses actually doubled, but still remained low.
During month 3, mid-May to mid-June, my total expenses were slightly higher than the second month, much to my surprise. But I spent roughly half the month on my own staying at hostels and half the time with HelpX hosts, so food and accommodation costs naturally increased.
And apparently I didn’t manage to cut back on my personal spending habits, either. In addition, for the first time in NZ I paid for my internet use, which added another $25 to expenses. Still quite reasonable.
I did get an unexpected weekend of low expenses at the tail end of the month by staying with my cousin, who I’d discovered lives in Auckland! It was a great reunion for both of us and she helped me out heaps by driving me around the city and taking me to the airport when I departed for Fiji.
In the end, my total expenses for month 3 were: $574 NZ / $512 US
My total expenses included:
* 4 ½ days exploring Wellington
* 3 days exploring New Plymouth city
* 4 bus trips, 2 of them full day trips
* 1 week HelpX in Lower Hutt, a suburb of Wellington, doing misc tasks
* 1 week HelpX on a farm in Raglan, feeding animals and planting fields
* weekend with my cousin, whom I haven’t seen for over 20 years
* All accommodation
* All meals
* All transportation
* All personal needs
* All internet usage
* All activities and entry fees
goofing around with a troll outside Weta Studios
In Wellington I kept myself busy with:
* visit / guided tour of WETA Studios, film makers of Hobbit and Lord of the Rings movies
* Te Papa Museum
* Wellington City & Sea Museum
* Cable Car Museum
* visit to amazing Old St Paul’s Cathedral – the world’s finest example of Gothic timber architecture
* guided tour of NZ Parliament
* Wellington Botanic Gardens
* walking along Wellington Harbor
* hiking up Mt Victoria
* riding famous Wellington Cable Car
Lash feeding baby goats
In New Plymouth I enjoyed:
* walking their great coastal walkway
* exploring Pukekura Park & landscaped gardens
* getting glimpses of snow-covered Mt. Taranaki from the garden
During my 2 HelpX assignments, I got to:
* exploring Raglan’s arty boutiques
* hiking the beach from Raglan out to the coast
* walk a lovely Golden Retreiver
* feed milk to baby goats
* learn about growing & cultivating mushrooms
* plant a field full of garlic
Here’s the break down of expenses:
* accommodation: $132 NZ / $118 US
* food and drink: $220 NZ / $196.50 US
* coffee: $10 NZ / $9 US
* transportation: $77 NZ / $67 US
* internet: $25 NZ / $22 US
* phone: $10 NZ / $9 US
* personal supplies: $18 NZ / $16 US
* misc expenses: $18.70NZ / $16 US
* cocktails: $30 NZ / $26 US
* entry fees: $20 NZ / $17.50
TOTAL = $574 NZ / $512 US
Wellington Harbor sunset
FINAL TOTALS:
As I mentioned in the reports on my 1st and 2nd month’s expenses, I habitually include other extraneous expenses involved in traveling through a country: visas, flights to/from, guidebook, supplies bought specifically for that country and so on. My monthly average for those extra expenses for my New Zealand trip was $200 US per month.
So my grand total cost for my 3rd month in New Zealand was:
$512 + $200 US = $712 US
My average monthly expenses over the three months was:
$435 + $640 + $712 / 3 months = $595 US per month
My usual monthly budget for traveling around SE Asia is $600 US, so that’s pretty spot on. In reality, I never quite spend that much in SE Asia. My monthly average in 2013 was $545 US per month. So my expenses in New Zealand were slightly higher, but not by much.
My monthly average just for expenses in New Zealand, discounting the extraneous costs was:
$282.50 NZ + $528.25 NZ + $574 NZ / 3 months = $461.50 NZ per month
in $US that’s = $235 US + $440 US + $512 / 3 months = $395.65 US per month
enjoying sunshine at Mission Bay Beach – Auckland
Summary:
Although New Zealand is quite an expensive country, it’s still clearly possible to travel there on a fairly tight budget, particularly by doing Help Exchange programs such as HelpX and WWOOF.
By doing back-to-back assignments, you can almost completely eliminate both accommodation and food expenses, like I did during my first month there. Doing that I was able to travel one entire month on just over $200 US. That’s pretty remarkable, I think.
Mixing up your travels between help exchange gigs and independent travel will quickly double travel costs for New Zealand. Even so, it’s still possible to spend as little as $400 per month if you’re careful, more if you’re freer with your spending.
I plan to return to New Zealand for their summer season, Dec – Feb. Once there, I will continue doing HelpX assignments while tossing in chunks of time on my own between each gig. Although HelpX is fun and interesting, I found it a bit too intense without any solo time between visits. I’m so accustomed to having my own free time!
Lash in Krabi, Thailand
So check back later this year to find out about New Zealand’s famously gorgeous South Island and how I manage my expenses. In the meantime, I’ll soon be writing several posts about doing HelpX gigs: pros & cons, what I gained from my assignments in NZ, tips for securing good HelpX gigs, and so on.
Happy trails!
Cheers, Lash
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You might also find the following posts useful:
10 Free Things to do in Wellington
My Budget Strategy for New Zealand
First Month Expenses in New Zealand
Second Month Expenses in New Zealand
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Hi! I'm Lash, an American nomadic world traveler who's been traveling solo since 1998. I’m passionate about traveling the world nomadically and then sharing it all with you. I hope to inspire you to travel the world, to entertain you with tales from the road, and to help you reach your travel dreams. Welcome! 
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