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‘ ₹5.93 lakh for two’: Indian couple’s detailed breakdown of 13-day New Zealand honeymoon trip
The couple shared that their initial estimate was ₹8 lakh, but with meticulous planning, they reduced their spending to less than ₹6 lakh.
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An Indian couple shared a detailed breakdown of their 13-day New Zealand honeymoon on Reddit after managing to execute the trip for ₹5.93 lakh. Despite seeing initial estimates exceeding ₹8 lakh, the newlyweds stayed well under their ₹7 lakh cap without cutting out major experiences. Covering all the tourist places with private Airbnbs and rental cars, they attributed their savings to careful planning and cooking some meals.
“We did a 2-week New Zealand honeymoon for ₹5.93 lakh as an Indian couple — here's the full breakdown,” the couple wrote on Reddit, adding, “We spent ₹5.93 lakh for two people on a 13-day New Zealand honeymoon from India — covering both the North and South Islands, private Airbnbs, self-drive, Milford Sound, Waitomo Glowworm Caves, skydiving, Rotorua and other bucket-list experiences.”
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The Reddit post explained that they could keep their spending within ₹5.93 lakh with “a lot of planning and some deliberate trade-offs”.
The couple shared a detailed breakdown of their expenses:
Our ₹5.93 lakh budget breakdown:
International flights - ₹2.11 lakh.
Domestic flights - ₹13,000.
Visa for two - ₹30,000.
Accommodation - ₹87,000.
Car rental and fuel - ₹94,000
Local activities - ₹1.19 lakh
Food - ₹32,000
Miscellaneous - ₹7,400
They added, “We didn't try to make the trip ‘budget-friendly’ by skipping experiences. For us, staying under ₹6 lakh was more about the cumulative effect of a lot of planning decisions than finding one magical deal.”
Places that they visited:
The couple shared that in their 13 days in New Zealand, they visited several places, including Auckland, Waitomo, Cathedral Cove, Lake Tekapo, Queenstown, and other areas.
Though they had meticulously planned their trip, there were still some instances that left the couple confused. “New Zealand visitor visa: did we need to book flights first? We weren't sure whether to book flights before applying. We followed Immigration New Zealand's guidance and didn't purchase non-refundable tickets before the visa was approved. Instead, we submitted a detailed one-page itinerary with our application, along with a cover letter. We received the visa in five working days.”
The Reddit post continued, “New Zealand biosecurity: can you bring food from India? We carried Maggi, snacks and ready-to-eat food from India. The important part: we declared them honestly on the New Zealand Traveller Declaration (NZTD). One thing we found confusing while researching this was the distinction between declaring an item and the item being prohibited. Declaring an item doesn't necessarily mean you can't bring it into New Zealand. It means you're being upfront about what you're carrying and allowing a biosecurity officer to assess it. We were cleared in about five minutes and avoided the potential NZ$400 infringement fee associated with undeclared risk goods.”
What did social media say?
An individual praised, “Very reasonable trip. Kudos.” Another expressed, “This looks nice. Thanks!”
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A third commented, “Thank you for sharing such an informative travel guide on New Zealand. The details you included were really useful, and I appreciate you taking the time to put this together.” A fourth wrote, “Nice breakdown. Well planned, I'd say.”
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. Hindustantimes.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)
