There is a petrol tax in New Zealand! It's just included in the price of the petrol itself whereas the diesel vehicles have the road user charges separate:)

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Ahh okay cool thanks for adding good info.

@lewtscott3346

4 жыл бұрын

The reason that diesel road user tax is separate is because a large percentage of diesel fuel is used in off road situations like construction, agriculture, marine etc.

@katewang6048

4 жыл бұрын

Wow, it's good to know 🤣 I believe some petrol drivers like me just think the diesel car costed much cheaper as only see the prices at petrol stations

@lloydmsw8586

3 жыл бұрын

Another reason is larger vehicles use diesel and they pay more road user tax because larger vehicles damage the road quicker

@RANDOM_hhhh

Жыл бұрын

@@lifeisforadv see u there soon

I’m a kiwi about to embark on van life! This video is super helpful and so nice to hear all the nice comments about our beautiful country x

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Hannah you beautiful soul. Thanks for the positive feedback and anytime you want to hear awesome things about your country I’m ready to talk for days about it. I worked, lived and traveled NZ in a total of 1.5 years and I can’t tell you how fortunate it is to call yourself a Kiwi. Good people, good lands, and a solidarity in community that is top notch. Yes it has it’s problems and I’ve seen it first hand but all very minor when looked at in a global perspective.

@Neurod_vibes

3 жыл бұрын

100%! We are a blessed nation for sure! I’m hoping there’s a lovely van community out there for me to meet ♥️

So glad I stumbled upon your channel! I am planning on moving to New Zealand on a working holiday next year and am really wanting to buy a van when I'm out there. Most of the videos I've seen so far have a kind of showmanship quality to it and I much prefer this quality of video where you're just a genuine guy say down telling us your experience! Thanks for the vid - lots to think about! 😊

@lifeisforadv

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback. I appreciate that very much 🙂

Thx a lot man. By far this is the best video out there which includes lots of important inforamtion.

Awesome video man, wow the information you covered off was beyond what most do. 👍👍👍👍👍👍 I’m in Mexico right now but moving back home to NZ in a month with plans of van life. Seeing your video has helped me figure out costs associated with it all - cheers man!!

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Dude, I just figure it was good info and anything that helps people realize how easy and rewarding it can be I'm all about. Mexico huh. Another favotire place to explore even though I seldomly do because my family is from there so I've lived there part time growing up. Will never get over the great attitude of the people in Mexico. Cheers mate!

As a resident of New Zealand I benefited heaps from your informative video. Thanks for sharing. As an older chap and even though I have lived in NZ for 18 years I've seen very little of NZ. I have setup my van and am intending heading out on the road in about a month. I wanted to experience winter in a van but who knows I may carry on living in a van indefinitely. Fortunately I own my home so I don't have to worry about my really latter years, I can always return home if I get tired or my health starts to fail me. Just thought I'd share. thanks again.

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Oh man. That is very common. It wasn’t until recently I went back to my state and started exploring it more. Funny how our backyard seems to just get put on the back burner. That’s awesome, glad to hear that I got some good info out there.

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Having a base to take little breaks from the van I think will help in the long term. Vanlife is great for being able to see every sunrise and sunset in a new location but a little den is great too. Cheers. All the best wishes on your adventure. There is so much to see, it woll blow you away how it’s just been right freakin there the whole time 😂

Thanks for this very informative video! It really helped me. Looking forward to my adventure in NZ :)

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Heck yah my dude! my time in New Zealand was one of the best moments of my life! Excited for you to experience that too! Cheers man!

Amazing video! Very informative and fun) Thank you VERY much for the tips!)))

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Hi Anna! Cheers! Thanks for reaching out and I'm very glad to hear!

Hello Garret, being a New Zealander myself, let me tell you this, your video and your information was spot on mate, Thankyou for taking the time out explaining everything concerning van life in New Zealand, well done Garret, Thankyou again.

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Hey David! Thanks for the ups. I appreciate the feedback. I’ve spent a year and a half in New Zealand so I hope I nailed it and if not, i always appreciate corrections as we’re all just trying to help everyone out. Chur

@tihouweepu

2 жыл бұрын

@@lifeisforadv I'm a New Zealander as well mate and found this super helpful. More than the local content. Chur brother

Listening to you is like listening to one of my mates,telling me about his week,same demeanor,same laid back attitude,noooooice!

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Hey brother! Thanks for the feedback bud. Yeah man just trying to spread the good word that this stuff is easier than we all think and the rewards are great. I;ll never regret my time traveling NZ. It's a great place with great people and access to discove'r raw lands by van. Can't get any better than that.

@Andy_M986

4 жыл бұрын

@@lifeisforadv All good bro,stay safe.

Awesum info and you’re a crack up, need more tourists like you! Thanks for vid 👍🏿

@lifeisforadv

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks so much!

Really nice. Thank you. Its been 25y since my trip to nz so i needed an update for eventual future trip.

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Man, It's still there and still beautiful, I tell yah. Easier than ever with the new vanlife movement and really easy to pick up something you can get on with a great adventure. I'm itching to go back as soon as they let me.

@cometomicke

4 жыл бұрын

@@lifeisforadv yeah, i guess we'llhave to wait some time. For us i think 5 years or so. Good to hear its still laid back

Amazing mate! Thank you so much. I'm a filmmaker/editor and this had helped me out tons as my girlfriend and I arrive beginning of February 2020!

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

This is sooo good to hear. Thanks and I hope you have an epic trip. I got insane shots while I was there. Oh and do not pass up staying a night in Mueller hut in the Mt cook national park area. Also my next video is on the Pouakai track on Mt. Taranaki. Also one of my favorite hikes/ shooting areas while I was there.

@GlobalLensStudios

4 жыл бұрын

Fantastic, I’ll put it on the list! Just subscribed and followed on insta! Amazing work, thank you once again & safe travels!

Really informative, great help, thank you....

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Hey Warren! Thanks, I’m glad to hear that.

Helpful video, thanks!

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks. Glad it helps

Great to get that cost breakdown. I suspect the per person cost would go up a bit if you were travelling solo and not able to share some costs.

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

In the end, all my prices are per person. But in a sense yes, like the modem router could not be split if it was just you. Or I suppost the initial investment to the van or the solar set up. But don't let that detour you. Vanlife in NZ can be done with any budget and you'd be surprised how many people who travel there solo who would be willing to go in on an adventure like this. Just depends on your ability to adapt, effort and openness to opportunity. I've been to NZ multiple times before the girlfriend and figure out solutions. Even got invited multiple times to join in vans. I had my motorcycle at the time with it set up for the long journey solo but if I hadn't I would have jumped on the opportunity to join others

This is great stuff! Thank you very much! I just made a video of how to fold down all seats properly in my Honda Odyssey 2006. Also I made a video of salvaging plywood with the overall goal of working towards being self contained but also to be able to put it back to being a normal car again. Also in a way that will not cost too much money and use minimal resources. This is great reference! Its inspiring me to do it better than I had originally planned. Good luck with your travels :)

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Good luck with yours and thanks!

Love this 👍💯

@lifeisforadv

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks 💯

that first clip is my home! great to see it

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

No way, Akaroa?

Great video and very informative. I am a New Zealander with a campervan, so here's a quick 2024 update: There is a new self containment requirement. Unfortunately for vanlifers, there were the gross campers who toileted in public places and left a mess. WTF. Anyhoo,this meant that if you want to freedom camp in NZ you must have a properly self contained vehicle.There are strict rules on water supply and discharge, as well as the style of toilet you have. It must be plumbed in. Yep. Google the topic for further info. Lets just say, that thanks to the dirty few I can no longer freedom camp in my own country with just a portapottie. Also, the current cost of the diesel tax is 1000km = $80 NZD. Oh yes, with regard to the Warrant of Fitness (WOF) unlike many countries even a small amount of rust can fail the inspection, depending on its location. So just be mindful when buying a campervan. The Automobile Association have a pre purchase check scheme, which costs a bit, but means you know what your're getting. Cheers.

Hi from New Zealand! To go freedom camping you need your van to be self contained and get a self containment certificate. From memory you need to be self containable for 3 days for the number of people living in the van ie 3 L water per person per day and 1 L of toilet capacity per person per day. There needs to be a sink that drains to a waste tank which must have a S trap waste pipe and be vented to outside of the van. The toilet must have enough room to use it where it is situated and be separate from the bed. There is a cost to get a self containment certificate but this allows enourmous freedom and avoids fines and aggravation from locals. They got fed up with tourists defecating anywhere it suited them. Hope to see you all on the road when Covid pandemic is over. Jeff

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks Jeff for adding some amazing Info. I appreciate amazing people like yourself that add so much value when you chime in thanks mate

Awesome video 🌷thank you

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the nice comment 🤙

Quick up date to this video. Petrol is about $272.9 per letre and diesel is $2.62.9 per letre. Better off with a petrol as its around $75 every 1,000kms for rucs. Govt doesn't want diesels being used. They are hard pushing for electrics

@TheIvabigun

Жыл бұрын

However diesels generally get better kms to the litre so it's not just dollars per liter to think about

The petrol price (or diesel once you have paid the mileage tax) includes personal injury insurance via a scheme called Accident Compensation. So if you are hurt (or hurt someone else) in an accident, most of the medical, ambulance, hospital costs are covered. You can buy extra insurance to cover property damage as well if you wish, but the 3rd party injury insurance common in most other countries isn't required, its simply built in to the vehicles running costs. Thanks for a good article.

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for contributing!

I don't plan on going 2 NZ, but this was very informative. 👌

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Cool thanks Leila. I try to be as helpful as possible. Glad you enjoyed

If you don’t want to insure your van at full cost you can just get a cover called “third party” cover. This covers you if you cause an accident and damage someone else’s vehicle. No cover for yours but it covers the cost of repair or replacement of the other vehicle. Cheaper than buying someone a $40k if you wreck it.

@lifeisforadv

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for adding some value for those searching!

Great video! Burgerfuel is absolute heaven! I have watched this video several times because me and my partner are doing 2 months in the south island. We too are digital nomads. I just have a few questions? Just wondering what were the specs on your solar panels? Do you think you could have used smaller ones? Also was coverage good around Wanaka and Queenstown? Would reallly help our trip a lot if you could answer those. Thanks heaps anyways for the video!

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Hey Fox, thanks 🙏 Dude love burgerfuel. We had a goal zero 400 lithium battery with 200 watt briefcase solar panel. Unfortunately, a smaller solar panel would have not powered both of our laptops and wifi router. What i didn’t realize is that 200 watts solar doesn’t mean you get actual 200 watts an hour, maybe in a lab, but in real life you only charge around 100-120 per hour. To give you an idea, a macbook pro charges at a rate of 80-90 watts an hour soooo yeah you can see you are already working on small margins. In the end, the 200 was a good match to get the work done we had to while investing the least in equipment. I mean if I had unlimited money I would of bought a 1000 lithium with two 200 watt solars but the 400 lithium with 200 solar panel ,with a sunny day, was good enough to give us the exact power we needed to charge/run two laptops and the internet router. The one downside that sucked was on rainy days were the days we wanted to work the most and because we had no sun, we had to do it out of libraries or holiday parks lol so yeah, you will have to work on sunny days and balance doing fun stuff on those days as well. We had great wireless coverage in queenstown and wanaka. Actually we had great fast coverage almost everywhere. Wireless nation supplies super accurate maps too so you know ahead of time if you will have coverage when heading into more remote areas. Also, hands down you have to make it to Mt. Cook national park and stay at muller hut. I’m not religious but I’ve never felt closer to the essence of what people call god. It was next level elation being up there walking in that alpine landscape.

@MrSilverfish12

4 жыл бұрын

@@lifeisforadv Thanks a lot man! This is great and valuable information. I guess you can't have everything in the van life, I heard part of the fun is trying to make it work 😀. Will definitely think about that solar panel and be more strategic about it. Oh and will do on that trip to Mt Cook National Park! Sounds epic! Thank you very much! 😀😁😁

I definitely love the op shops here in nz. You can get some mean scores!

@lifeisforadv

5 ай бұрын

I miss the op shops in NZ soooo much.

Yesterday I got scammed via marketplace,lost $600, was planning to buy a Ford transit.

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

No way, I’m sorry to hear that ☹️ what happened?

Super informational video, appreciated for it! And may I know which insurance you were using?

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

AA motorhome insurance. I called them up and they got me sorted. Works for campervans too.

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

And insures all the contents inside

@katewang6048

4 жыл бұрын

@@lifeisforadv That's really good to know and it's a so good price! Not sure why, but it's just half price of my normal car full insurance. Do I need to show some certificate to AA to proof my van is a campervan, or also can just purchase it online? Thanks

The fitness warrenty is like the Uk MOT

Dude sick video! I’m getting a high roof hiace just like you did but Jesus could I do with that roof rack! Any idea what it was called PLEASEEE!!! Thanks for the info ❤️

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

You’ll love it. And yes the roof rack helped a ton to keep the space inside free. Mine came with it but I saw a few on facebook market place / trademe and if not there, you can go to thrift shops and if not, you can buy new at a store like torpedo 7.

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Call Torpedo 7 first tho obviously to see if they have it in stock first. Good luck!

@rudisfilms3485

4 жыл бұрын

Garrett Galvan absolute legend thanks for the reply, will see what I can find!

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

Yeah man, that’s why I’m here. 🤙

I was able to get a ford transit van for 2k but then again it was from a friend of my boss,

Hey! Does it matter which city you buy your camper van? Are camper vans more expensive if you buy one in Auckland?

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Yes and No. It all depends on supply and demand. You’ll have better luck buying and selling at the start and end points of peoples trips in cities with major airports such as Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. The cheapest I saw were in Auckland because there were a ton more on the market there.

thanks for sharing, but for freedom camping im not sure its that free eg you cannot park anywhere there are getting stricter so be well planned where u can go and not go

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

True. Designated freedom camping areas

nice one

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

🙏 thanks

What insurance company are you with only $15? I've got a VW LT35 MWB 2006 I'm going to convert by myself. I've heard that I need LVV cert first to be able to pass WOF

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

I went with ooo yeesh. I kind of remember working with ANZ bank and they could cover me but ultimately I went with New Zealand Automobile Association.

Man,i moved to Perth ,West Australia from my home in Auckland,we have it so good with insurance back home in NZ,to register my car here for 6 months,is over $430,it's nearly $900 for a year,i will never complain about car rego back home again.

@lifeisforadv

4 жыл бұрын

It's funny how you realize home isn't that bad once you've experienced some other situations. However, the pay is better in Aus but with that in mind, the more you get paid the more things cost and that's pretty much world wide so...

@Andy_M986

4 жыл бұрын

@@lifeisforadv True,I tend to spend more because I get paid more.

Really good video but whangamata is said fongamataa it Maori it just sounded weird when u said it lol

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Hahaha hey thanks brother. I appreciate the correction. Respect 🤙

U can pay diesel kms online , the purpose of the diesel tax is to tax road users and not farmers for using there farm machinery

@lifeisforadv

9 ай бұрын

Thanks for adding some info for people!

WOF is the same as an MOT in the uk right?

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

I imagine so. Sorry from the US. Anyone got answers?

@mad1739

2 жыл бұрын

It seems to be from my perspective as. UKer with a car haha

Kia Ora! Like & Sub✌🏼

I'm a kiwi I found this video and then I got all excited that this super onto it dude had vlogged his whole trip. Ahh bummer lol

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Hah yeah sorry that was the plan but a last minute gig flew me to Patagonia to shoot motorcycles sooooooo kinda had to change some plans a bit.

Diesel tax is justified by concluding that diesel vehicles are heavier vehicles and cause more road stress and damage.

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for that extra bit of info on why there is a tax

In recent years New Zealand has declared war on freedom campers, its been outlawed in a lot of places but there are some places you can freedom camp legally

@native_wun

3 жыл бұрын

Alot of the freedom camping infringements and fines local councils try to throw at campers, are UNLAWFUL. Council bylaws actually conflict against the Freedom Camping act 2011 and NZ Bill Of Rights (which is like the final law of all laws). So yeah, pays to study up on that because local councils relies on the uninformed to gather revenue. If one was clued up and challenged the fine, it gets thrown out at the Council office. They don't bother taking it to court 'cause they know, by LAW, they're in the wrong. It's all in their bylaw wording that fucked them up 🤪🙌🏼🙌🏼

@native_wun

3 жыл бұрын

....so by my explanation earlier - no place is actually lawfully outlawed (barring DOC, tribal and private lands), so you could park anywhere really, and be covered by the law to be allowed there. Just sucks because most campers are uninformed, and they get the shits when "officials" approach and tell them to move on, which further enforces the story in your comment "Big war against freedom camping..." etc 😊

@floydkingi4364

3 жыл бұрын

@@native_wun Follow this advice and all your gonna do is accumulate a shit load of fines!

@native_wun

3 жыл бұрын

@@floydkingi4364 Shitloads of UNENFORCEABLE and ILLEGAL fines that one is LEGALLY not REQUIRED to pay. ...But hey - if one wants to pay $200+ bucks because of ignorance, they can go right on ahead and bow down to a baseless piece of paper.

Diesel tax is now 76cents/km.

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the added info. Did it go up?

Be careful where you park because the locals will come down and ask you to move in some places

@lifeisforadv

9 ай бұрын

Thanks for the tips to help tourists travel for considerately!

Daym i live in auckland and cheaper for me to fly around the world then to travel around nz 😂 nah its a alright place

@lifeisforadv

3 жыл бұрын

😂

I belong to a group that promotes freedom camping in nz. It's our back door. Who wouldn't want to bask in it?! . The town over from mine a camper parked outside a shop over night. In the morning they got out and emptied their bowels in don't of the shop. Caught on camera. That's the people that start the anti tourists. No one wants human shit on their shop front. The saying is take photos and memories and leave only foot prints. P. S. South island Nz best place ever

new zeeland seems expensive until you figure out 1 euro is 1.6 nzd

You should never give advice if all you have is heard about it. Good to warn people but don't go around not recommending things based on hearsay.