As you drive around New Zealand exploring the many natural wonders and picturesque landscapes, you may find yourself trying to save a few bucks in order to spend a little more on that adventure tour or sightseeing beyond your itinerary. My husband and I ended up splurging too much and if you'd like to avoid that situation, here are a few tips we've curated from our vacation to the North and South islands of New Zealand, that might help you budget your travel efficiently.
1) Just Airbnb your stay and make the most of the local company with your host! We spent a great deal of time researching options for accommodation in Auckland. There weren’t any hotels in our budget near the Bay / Parnell locality, alternatively Airbnb offered a great variety of accommodation types within our budget and the ones to fall in love with. Parking is fairly expensive in the daytime around the city center & the Terminal areas, so we definitely wanted to stay within walking distance and found the perfect home on the plush Cleaveland Road with our Superhost Sheldon. So unlike a hotel where the setting is very formal and breakfast wraps up at 10:30 AM, we found a comfortable, cozy and well equipped room in his bungalow; and a sumptuous breakfast meal even if we got up late. That was our first time opting for an Airbnb stay, and I am really glad we did it. The biggest difference you will find is the overall richness in experience and quality tea time conversations with a local.
2) If you’re in Auckland, Queenstown, Christchurch or driving on the national highways, ensure that you stock up on groceries & supplies only from Countdown. This one of the largest super market chains and the only one that stocks 1 litre mineral water bottles for NZ $ 1 (along with excellent discounts). Countdown has over 180 stores across both islands so you’re likely to hit one in the bigger towns or cities every couple of hours.
3) In smaller cities like Franz Josef, Lake Wanaka, The Anau etc. you should only head to Four Square; comparatively smaller but rather well stocked hyper market. And if you’re looking to buy bakery stuff, head there first thing in the morning otherwise you will end up with empty shelves by 4 pm.
4) Auckland Duty Free airport shopping is Only good for discounts on alcohol. For example we picked up two bottles of CloudyBay Sauvingnon Blanc for NZ $ 68 (a single bottle otherwise costing NZ $ 40).
5) But if you are looking for deals on chocolates and sweets, just buy that from Countdown and stuff it in your check-in bags. Countdown runs good deals on branded stuff, for instance we picked up several bars or Whittakers Lime, Raspberry flavors for NZ $ 3.5 per bar which was sold at the Auckland Airport duty free for NZ $ 6.5. We totally regretted not splurging at Countdown.
6) There is only one good place for shopping and that is Dressmart Mall (only available at Auckland and Christchurch). You will find several international and local brands like Adidas, Esprit, Casio, Cotton On etc. running daily discounts on fashion & accessories.
7) Fill up the fuel tank from the bigger cities only. We noticed the petrol prices being ~14% cheaper in base cities like Te Anau and Christchurch when compared to Franz Joseph or Milford Sound.
8) If you’re looking to buy gold, jade or coral jewelry, I found the prices to be cheaper by ~30% in towns like Ross - the gold city of New Zealand, Rotorua, Lake Wanaka etc. where local souvenir shops house a decent selection on toiletries & accessories. The same jewelry is overpriced at the airport, oh and don't bother hunting for unique designs because the same stuff is sold across north and south islands.
9) And lastly, my closing thoughts for newbie drivers who will be self-driving and will face the ultimate dilemma at the airport car rental counters, “Should I buy the additional Bumper to Bumper Car Insurance worth NZ $ 30 /day?!” Here is where I leave you with two contradicting views from our own experience driving across New Zealand.
- First off the background on this dilemma; my husband and I are not expert drivers and honestly, this was our first time driving in a foreign country, hence we felt the need to buy the insurance for NZ $30 per day. We were informed by folks who had traveled previously that driving is extremely easy especially for Indians who are accustomed to left hand side driving. This thought was very comforting and I relied completely on my husband to take the lead on driving us around. There was a sense of assurance and security that came with buying the additional insurance mainly because it offered free Road-Side assistance, which in country like New Zealand could be a great value add given the limited Gas stations in South Island let alone garages. At the end of our trip we observed that all the cars we rented were provided in excellent condition, and the driving rules are extremely simple to follow. More importantly we dint have a single scratch on our cars. This made me wonder if it was worth shelling out NZ $ 300 on additional cover for insurance, the money which could have otherwise gone in doing more adventure sports...
- But we also discovered a disturbing fact - more common to South island. On some of the major highways we stumbled upon most disturbing events of collisions between cars or bikes; and mind you all these accidents were severe where the cops and ambulances were required to control the situation. Because these were highways the general public weren’t permitted to stop by or help, leaving a large room for imagination on who or what survived of those unfortunate accidents. We felt lucky touring for 2 weeks without a scratch on the car or ourselves, nonetheless the bumper to bumper played some role in keeping the stress out of our heads. So I guess the decision to buy the additional insurance would vary from individual to individual.
I am hoping you find this article useful; and New Zealand, as charming as we did. It's got to be one of the top tourist destinations in the world with all its beauty, legacy, ease of traveling, update-to-date infrastructure and friendly locals. And on a closing note, sharing some of my favourite pics from our tour in 2016.
Happy Travels!
