Budgy Campers Review

Editors Review

Last Updated: 10/25/19

Budgy Campers is one of three brands under one parent company that operates Budgy, Euro Campers, and Heron Campers. It focuses on older yet affordable 2-berth campervans in New Zealand, with depots in Auckland and Christchurch. All of their vehicles carry the official self-contained certification sticker, giving you access to many extra free campsites in the country.

About Budgy Campers

Unlike the other motorhome brands offered by their parent company, Budgy Campers offers reliable vehicles at a cheap cost. Their old but very economical campervans are ideal for those who wish to travel on a shoe-string budget. Thus, you can utilize your money on more significant attractions and activities. Aside from their affordable rates, a very enticing package, or what they call as the ‘Goodies Package’ keeps them on top of other budget campervans on the road. Such package features unique additions like a phone with local SIM Card, GPS, Wi-Fi, Internet modem, fuel discount card, and camping table & chairs, which are all very rare for budget-range campervan hire in New Zealand. And if you think that's all they could offer, well think again because their insurance already covers the tyre and windscreen replacement, underbody and roof damage and an extra driver!

And as you hit the road and explore the picturesque roads, it's best that you know the freedom camping rules beforehand so that you will have more fun and convenient holiday. 

Fleet

Budgy Campers supplies older but reliable campervans at a low price. They only have 3 campers on offer and a motorhome borrowed from their other brand, Euro Campers. The Budgy Sleeper and the Budgy Traveller are the core campervans available for rent. The campervans are technically 2-berth, but the Budgy Traveller can accommodate up to three, if you are travelling with a child. Their fleet is pretty old, ranging from 1994- 1999 with some newer 2005 campers creeping in from late 2017, so you may want to lower your expectations because these are totally different from mid-range to top-end campervans on the road. Well, the name itself, Budgy Campers, gives you a hint of what the company offers—budget campervans. Despite the older campervan versions, they always make sure to put an effort in servicing and maintaining their vehicles.

All Budgy campervans have one thing in common—they are all self-contained. These vehicles give you freedom and flexibility during your vacation on the road. You can access certain camping locations in New Zealand without paying additional campground fees, making your road trip more exciting and money-saver. Each campervan also provides outdoor and vehicle maintenance equipment for added convenience. 

Vehicles

Budgy Sleepervan

Since Budgy Campers only have two campervans (really), let’s start off with their Budgy Sleeper, which is run by a 1994/ 1997 Toyota Lucida. This campervan features an automatic transmission, making it very easy to drive for people that are used to driving on the right-hand side of the road (drive on the LEFT in NZ). Aside from the fully-equipped cooking and sleeping essentials, you will also be happy with the spacious storage underneath the bed, which can fit at least two backpacks. Being a “sleepervan” there are few bells and whistles and like most in this class, it is simply a modified people-mover van so be careful as there is no 2^nd ‘house battery’ added to this sleepervan meaning if you run too many DC items out of the cigarette lighter overnight, you won’t be able to start the car in the morning. 

Budgy Traveller

The Budgy Traveller, on the other hand, is operated by a 1999 Toyota Hiace with the Plus model being newer, but not, new. This particular campervan is ideal for couples travelling with a kid as it features a child seat that can be fitted in the driver's cabin. This roomy campervan is a hi-top camper so no need to crouch over when inside - fully upright standing is the go – which is a nice element often overlooked by budget model camper brands. Unlike the sleepervan mentioned earlier, this vehicle is a fully equipped campervan with 2^nd house battery, build in fridge, sink, cupboards and the like. It was purpose-built to be a campervan, not a re-imagining of a mini-van.

Budgy Familia 

Obviously the owners thought that having only 2 berth campervans available was stifling business a little, so why not just drop a motorhome from one of the other brands into the Budgy brand. Makes good business sense to me and hence we now have the Familia 6 Berth Motohorhome available through Budgy Campers. It is a fairly standard 6 berth motorhome based on the Mercedes Benz brand circa 2010. It's fairly standard across the board for kitchen, toilet, shower and sleeping facilities but I must admit I do like the seating arrangement, which is not really that standard. To read more about it and the whole Eurocampers fleet click here.

Insurance

With Budgy Campers' standard insurance or also called as "Risk Taker, you are liable for an excess amounting to $3, 000 to $5, 000. You have two options to reduce such by paying an additional daily amount. At $15 to $25 per day, the excess/ bond is limited to $1, 500 to $2, 000. And at $29 to $44 per day, you reduce the excess/ bond to $0. All insurance options are capped at a max of 50 days.

Reputation

Over the years, Budgy Campers has maintained a 9- 10 rating, making it one of the top choices for budget-ranged campers in New Zealand. Yes, Budgy Campers features older campervans, but these vehicles are still very brilliant and reliable on the road. There may be minor issues because of the aged models on fleet like run-down exteriors, curtains falling down, faulty fuel gauge and the like but the company assures an exciting road trip even with those drawbacks as they provide unique additions to the normal campervan hire. And take note that all their campers are self-contained, which gives you the flexibility to camp for free at designated camping locations in New Zealand and is definitely a bonus. 

Summary

Budgy Campers focuses on providing affordable campervan hire through their limited yet self-contained campervans. The old-fashioned vehicles may be an issue for sophisticated travellers, but all these campervans are serviced regularly by their maintenance team. The 'Goodie Package' is also a plus factor, which features a technology bundle such as GPS, Wi-Fi, Internet modem. And of course, the carefree insurance is seriously a great deal because only a few companies in New Zealand include tyre and windshield replacement and even an extra driver in the insurance coverage. Thus, Budgy Campers is on top of other budget campervan hires in the country.