Where you park your motorhome at night is the second-biggest line in a NZ trip budget after the vehicle itself. The three main options — commercial holiday parks, Department of Conservation (DOC) campsites, and council freedom-camping areas — have very different costs and very different rules. The single most important variable is whether your vehicle is certified self-contained under NZ Standard NZS 5465 — non-self-contained motorhomes are legally limited to holiday parks and a handful of paid DOC sites.

Holiday parks — Top 10, Kiwi, BIG4, Tasman, independents

Powered site for a couple: NZ$45-65 in shoulder season, NZ$60-85 in peak. Family powered site (extra adults/children): NZ$65-95. What you get: power hookup, dump station, hot showers, fully-equipped kitchen, laundry (NZ$4-6 per load), free wifi, and usually a playground. Top 10 Holiday Parks and Kiwi Holiday Parks both run membership cards that pay for themselves over 8-10 nights.

DOC campsites — basic, scenic, standard, serviced

NZ Department of Conservation runs about 250 motorhome-friendly campsites. Basic sites: free or NZ$8 per adult per night. Standard sites: NZ$10-15 per adult per night. Serviced sites (the few with hot showers and powered hookups): NZ$18-25 per adult per night. Most DOC sites have a long-drop toilet and stream or tank water — they're scenic but they're not equipped for non-self-contained vehicles to legally stay.

Council freedom-camping — self-contained only

Many councils designate specific freedom-camping zones (often coastal carparks, lake foreshores, town reserves) that are free but legally restricted to vehicles displaying a current self-contained certification sticker (the NZS 5465 standard). Enforcement is real — instant NZ$200-400 infringements are issued routinely in Queenstown, Tekapo, Wanaka and along the Coromandel. Verify the rules on the CamperMate or Rankers app before assuming a layby is OK to sleep in.

Note on prices. NZD ranges above are mid-2026 estimates from current rental fleet quotes and published holiday-park rates. Peak summer (mid-December through January) sits at the top of each range or above; shoulder season (March-May, October-November) sits at the bottom. We'll confirm live numbers for your dates when you send us a trip outline.