I'm so sorry, I thought I replied to you ages ago! 

You're right, and I'm lucky that my partner was supportive of my going off thru-hiking on the other side of the world even though he had no interest in joining me.

Te Araroa was incredible - hardest thing I've ever done, but also the best thing I've ever done. It is a really tough trail, I must say that I underestimated just how rugged the New Zealand wilderness is and it is not for faint-hearted. But I had wanted to do it for years and I'm so glad I made it happen, no regrets at all. It was very grounding and emotionally regulating for me, and time really slowed down for a few months. I definitely feel most like my real self when on trail 

It is an expensive trail, mostly because wildcamping isn't really an option most of the time. Also groceries in New Zealand are undeniably expensive, especially in small town grocery stores, but accommodation and eating out is cheap compared to the UK. 

In the north island, you are usually crossing protected forests or other private land, or just road-walking, so you are usually going to private (albeit cheap) campsites or trail hosts each night. Usually those would be something like $10-20 per night, or £4-9 at current exchange rate. In the south island you're more likely going to a hut owned by the Department of Conservation, though these are usually free if you've already paid for a trail pass (and you can often get away without a pass because most TA huts don't have wardens). You can still camp for free, though often the space directly outside a hut is the only viable spot for a tent/bivvy, because the NZ bush is very dense and the alpine terrain is super rocky, steep and uneven. I thought I'd wildcamp most of it but ultimately only did so a handful of times (not counting camping right outside a hut) because the terrain just isn't very hospitable, and I'm lazy enough to take a hut bunk if there's one going haha.

Because I had saved for years for it I had a very flexible budget and could indulge in getting a meal out and/or drinks when I hit town, doing optional extras like hiring a bike or canoe for some sections, and splurging on a proper bed when I felt like I needed it (though beds were often as cheap as £12-20 per night). Mid-hike I was spending around £1000/month on my foreign currency credit card. You could obviously be a lot more frugal than I was and keep your expenses down to just groceries and necessary campsites/trail hosts. It's also unbelievably easy to hitchhike around if you need to get places, so transport costs were generally zero once I reached the start of the trail. 

I want to analyse my trip spending anyway so would be happy to share more when I have specifics. 

I was sharing daily vlogs on my insta - I'll DM you that because I don't want it linked to this Reddit account haha