The cost of living in New Zealand

Hitchhiking and buying a vehicle

The cheapest form of transport is hitchhiking (because it’s free). In fact, it’s quite easy to do in New Zealand. For more information, check our guide Hitchhiking in New Zealand.

If you’re looking to buy a vehicle, we recommend you take a look at our guide on buying a car or a van in New Zealand. Note that the prices of cars and vans specially designed for backpackers / working holiday makers rise around October and November and fall considerably in June, July and August. This is because many backpackers arrive, or at least buy their vehicles, when summer starts to arrive. They often sell it in May or June.

If you buy a vehicle, you should also take into account the additional costs you may have to pay for its maintenance. Even if you’ve been sold a vehicle that’s supposed to be in very good condition, you’re at least going to have to spend some money on roadworthiness tests (the WOF – around $75, to be carried out every 6 months or 1 year). You should also bear in mind that you may have to repair or replace one or more parts on your vehicle: wherever possible, it’s a good idea to allow an extra $1,000 for possible repairs.

Fuel

There are two types of fuel in New Zealand: petrol and diesel. Petrol is taxed directly at the pump and there is a clear difference in price between the two fuels at petrol stations. You might therefore think it more economical to buy a diesel vehicle. However, diesel vehicles are subject to taxes that have to be paid for every 1,000 kilometres driven. In the end, whether the taxes are paid directly at the pump or via this kilometre tax, the prices remain more or less the same, at around $2.90 per litre of petrol.

To find out the national average, visit the AA Motoring website in the section “Petrolwatch“, that lists petrol and diesel prices month by month. You can also visit Pricewatch and Gaspy to find out the current prices, region by region. Note that petrol prices are higher on the South Island than on the North Island. Note also that with older vehicles that have already travelled quite a bit (a van, for example), fuel consumption is much higher than with a recent car.

Ferries

If you want to go from the North Island to the South Island, you have to take the ferry. The two ferry companies are Buebridge and Interislander, and both offer more or less flexible packages. BlueBridge is cheaper than Interislander and the services are relatively similar. It’s possible to get discounts through car and bus hire agencies, or even through memberships at campsites. Find out more, you can save money.

Here are a few examples:

• One person (one-way), non flexible dates: from $58 to 70.
• A car (or a van) + one person (one-way), non flexible dates: from $185 to 250.
• A van over 5.5 metres + one person (one-way), non flexible dates: from $250 to 320.
• Any additional passenger in a car pays the price of a single ticket.

Buses

Bus fares vary from company to company and, of course, from destination to destination. To give you an idea, an Auckland-Wellington journey costs around $59. Intercity offers journeys from $1 (plus booking fees of around $5) for those who book in advance. This company also offers passes with a certain number of bus hours that you can use whenever you want. There are obviously some limits (you can’t make the same journey twice on certain packages, for example). Here are the approximate costs of these passes:

• 10h – $139
• 25h – $239
• 60h – $518