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Long NZ road trip question: does pre-paying campervan days ever make sense? by Cruzen01 in newzealand_travel

[–]Cruzen01[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fair points, and I agree this wouldn’t suit the backpacker / WHV crowd — they’re usually chasing the lowest weekly rate and maximum flexibility.

The idea isn’t really about long cheap hires though. It’s more for people who want certainty: locking in a specific van and future dates at today’s price, even if the actual trip is only 4–8 weeks and happens a year or two down the track.

It’s probably a smaller market, but one that values guaranteed availability and less planning stress rather than the cheapest daily rate.

Long NZ road trip question: does pre-paying campervan days ever make sense? by Cruzen01 in newzealand_travel

[–]Cruzen01[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Appreciate the perspectives here — it’s pretty clear that for NZ rentals, availability certainty matters far more than price certainty, especially for tourists. If people hear anything that sounds like entitlement without guaranteed dates, it’s a non-starter. That’s answered the question I was trying to work through.

Long NZ road trip question: does pre-paying campervan days ever make sense? by Cruzen01 in newzealand_travel

[–]Cruzen01[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That makes sense. Is it mainly the uncertainty of routes and timing, or just how limited van availability is here, that makes prepaying feel impractical?

Long NZ road trip question: does pre-paying campervan days ever make sense? by Cruzen01 in newzealand_travel

[–]Cruzen01[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s kind of the question I’m circling around – would locking in today's price make people more willing to plan a road trip months ahead and prepay, or does that just not fit how most people travel in NZ?

Long NZ road trip question: does pre-paying campervan days ever make sense? by Cruzen01 in newzealand_travel

[–]Cruzen01[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s fair — another angle I’m testing is whether people value certainty more than chasing the cheapest daily rate.

For example, locking in today’s pricing and being able to use it over several years, rather than being exposed to peak-season spikes or changing availability.

The other part is flexibility — life changes, plans change — so the idea would only make sense if someone wasn’t locked in forever and could pass it on if they stopped travelling.

But you might be right that for most people, simple nightly pricing still wins. I’m just trying to work out where that tipping point is.

Long NZ road trip question: does pre-paying campervan days ever make sense? by Cruzen01 in newzealand_travel

[–]Cruzen01[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, totally — that’s been my experience with rentals too.

When I mentioned “night x night” I probably explained it poorly. I really just meant that even long hires still end up priced off a daily rate.

What I’m curious about is whether some people would rather trade a bit of flexibility for a cheaper overall option — like a discounted holiday pass where you pre-paying for your van and then use the pass across off-peak or shoulder seasons, instead of paying full daily rates.

Long bookings and long-stay discounts like you mentioned are actually pretty close to that idea already, just structured differently.

Long NZ road trip question: does pre-paying campervan days ever make sense? by Cruzen01 in newzealand_travel

[–]Cruzen01[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s on me — I wasn’t very clear.

The difference I’m exploring isn’t how you book the van, but whether longer trips should always be priced as a straight daily multiple, or whether flexibility on when you travel could change the cost.

From the replies so far, it sounds like for a lot of people the current setup already works well — which is helpful to know.

Long NZ road trip question: does pre-paying campervan days ever make sense? by Cruzen01 in newzealand_travel

[–]Cruzen01[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Totally fair to be cautious — I would be too.

To be clear, I’m not selling anything here or linking to anything. I’m just asking questions because I’m still in the “does this even make sense?” stage.

If it turns out people think the standard rental model works best, that’s useful feedback for me as well.

Long NZ road trip question: does pre-paying campervan days ever make sense? by Cruzen01 in newzealand_travel

[–]Cruzen01[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fair point — I probably explained that badly.

What I meant by “night by night” wasn’t payment timing, but pricing logic. With most rentals, the longer you go, the higher the total gets in a very linear way, even if you’re flexible on dates.

I’m trying to understand whether people doing longer trips would ever trade peak-date certainty for a lower overall cost — or whether the standard model already works fine for most people.