New Zealand is well set up for all visitors, but budget travellers are especially well catered for, with an extensive network of backpackers' hostels and discounts on travel and the all-too-tempting array of adventure activities that can easily wreak havoc with your spending money.

The minimum expenditure if you are camping, hitching or cycling, preparing most of your own food and keeping a tight rein on tours and activities would be in the region of $30 a day, rising to $40-60 if you stay in hostels, use public transport and indulge in the odd meal out. Couples staying in hostel rooms or homestays, eating at unpretentious restaurants and not skimping on attractions and activities are looking at around $70-90 each per day; and if you rent a car for at least some of your stay, sleep in comfortable B&B s and eat well, you should reckon on at least $100 a day. All these figures can be ramped up dramatically once you start bungy jumping and jetboat riding, though this can be offset by abstemious tramping days. With the prevalence of good hostels, single travellers can live almost as cheaply as couples, though you'll pay around thirty percent more if you insist on having a room to yourself.

Accommodation costs from as little as a couple of dollars for a basic campsite, but an $8 per-person pitch or a $14-18 dorm bed in a hostel is more common. Simple double rooms start from as little as $35, though you'll pay $70-90 for a motel unit, $70-120 for homestays and B&Bs, $150-300 for flash international-standard hotels, and anything up to $1000 a person for exclusive retreats. Food is good quality and great value; supermarkets are reasonably priced and you can usually find a filling plateful at a pub or café for under $10. A reasonable three-course meal will cost upwards of $30, though you can save on drinks by patronizing BYO (Bring Your Own) restaurants, where you can drink wine you've brought with you. Though still common in smaller places, these are harder to find in the cities. Drinking in pubs and restaurants is substantially more expensive than buying from a bottle shop or from a supermarket.

Given New Zealand's compact size, transport costs shouldn't be prohibitive, but if you find yourself moving on every couple of days it can soon add up. Though you are unlikely to return from New Zealand laden with souvenirs, you can completely blow your budget on adventure trips - such as a bungy jump (around $130) or tandem parachuting ($170 and up). If you've got the money, by all means spend it; if not, think carefully about how best to get the maximum enjoyment from your visit.

Student discounts are few and far between, but you can make substantial savings on accommodation and travel if you buy either the YHA or VIP cards ; kids and seniors enjoy reductions of around fifty percent on most trains, buses and entry to many sights.