Should you visit Darwin or Wellington?
If you're trying to decide where to visit between Darwin or Wellington, this travel cost comparison can help. The overall cost of travel is usually a consideration when deciding where to go next, and the cost comparison below can help you decide based on the average prices from other travelers along with your own travel budget.
Darwin
Darwin is a tropical city set against the Timor Sea in north central Australia. It is also the capital city of the Northern Territory. Despite being a relatively small city, Darwin is very diverse with residents from all over the world. The city itself has a very relaxed vibe with plenty to do. Visitors can enjoy everything from traditionally Asian style markets to culturally diverse events such as concerts, festivals or art shows.
Wellington
Wellington is the capital and second largest city in New Zealand. It sits on the southwestern edge of the North Island between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range. It's a beautiful setting that is encircled by mountains giving it a beautiful backdrop. There are also many cultural sights and attractions around town. Wellington really is the perfect mix of New Zealand's natural beauty and a vibrant urban core. The film industry is also prevelant in the city. The city's production centers have helped create Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit trilogies, Avatar, Tin Tin, and District 9.
Which city is cheaper, Wellington or Darwin?
These are the overall average travel costs for the two destinations.
The average daily cost (per person) in Darwin is $100, while the average daily cost in Wellington is $94. These costs include accommodation (assuming double occupancy, so the traveler is sharing the room), food, transportation, and entertainment. While every person is different, these costs are an average of past travelers in each city. Below is a breakdown of travel costs for Darwin and Wellington in more detail.
Accommodation
A hotel room in Darwin is about $112 This assumes double occupancy and modest accommodations.
An average hotel room with basic furnishings costs about $108 in Wellington For the most convenient locations and nicer amenities you can expect to pay a bit more.
Food
Food in Darwin costs travelers about $34 per day on average. Restaurants can vary significantly in price, so choose wisely if you're trying to save money. Fast food and street stalls are typically your cheapest options, which sit down restaurants can be significantly more expensive.
Wellington food costs typically run travelers around $28 per day. Eating every meal in a nicer restaurant will drive the cost up, and grabbing fast food or casual meals will help you save money.
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Food
Meals for one day
Darwin $34
Wellington $28
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Darwin
Also, here are some specific examples of food and dining related activities in Darwin.
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Private Pizza Making Class in Hunter Valley:
$48
-
Pizza Paddle Sunset Kayak Tour in Bateman's Bay:
$66
-
Dinner Cruise at Sydney Harbour with Optional Mast Climb Experience:
$72
-
Cairns Dinner Cruise by Spirit of Cairns:
$73
-
Australian Outback Spectacular Dinner Show Ticket:
$74
-
Charles Darwin Dinner Cruise:
$75
-
Sydney Harbour Sunset Dinner Cruise by Captain Cook:
$77
-
Dumpling Cooking Class in Melbourne:
$80
-
Cairns Aquarium Twilight Tour with 3-Course Dinner:
$88
-
Pinnacles Sunset Dinner and Stargazing Tour:
$109
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Private Cooking School in the Hunter Valley:
$114
-
Mexican Cooking Class in Melbourne:
$122
Typical Food prices in Wellington
For Wellington, here are some examples of average food and meal prices for travelers:
Food Tours and Cooking Classes in Wellington
For Wellington, here are some samples of tours and activities related to meals and dining experiences:
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Queenstown Skyline Gondola and Luge Ride with Optional Buffet Lunch or Dinner:
$47
-
Taste Auckland Group Food Tour:
$98
-
Auckland Harbour Dinner Cruise:
$102
-
Sunset / Night Kayak to Rangitoto Island with BBQ Dinner:
$138
-
Queenstown Wine and Food Tour:
$141
-
Walking Food Tour Of Wellington:
$148
-
Martinborough Wine and Food Tour with Lunch from Wellington:
$204
-
Local Delicacies Half-Day Food Tour:
$215
-
A Taste Of Wellington Food Tour (half Day):
$227
-
Full Day Wellington Food Tour:
$279
-
Full Day Wellington Food Tour:
$295
Local Transportation
The average price of local transportation around Darwin is $11 per person, per day. As this average includes both taxis and public transport, keep in mind that the prices of private drivers and taxis are significantly more expensive than public transportation.
Public transportation tends to be much less expensive in Wellington than paying for a taxi or private car service, as is expected. Typically, people spend $11 on transportation in Wellington on average per day.
Typical Local Transportation prices in Darwin
Below are a few samples from actual travelers for transportation costs in Darwin:
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Shuttle to Train Station
$11
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Darwin
Some specific examples of transportation prices in Darwin:
-
[Promotion: Adult at Kids Price] Hot Air Balloon Experience with Round-trip Transfers & Vineyard Champagne Breakfast in Gold Coast:
$191
-
[Promotion: Adult at Kids Price] Hot Air Balloon Experience in Cairns with Round-trip Transfers:
$176
-
Wildman Fishing Tours - Fishing + Scenic Flight Transfer:
$1,146
-
Wet'n'Wild Return Shared Shuttle Transfer from Gold Coast Hotels:
$18
-
Thredbo Day Trip with Round Trip Transfer from Sydney by Brighton Coach:
$81
-
SkyBus Melbourne Tullamarine Airport (MEL) Express Transfer Ticket:
$11
-
Shared Sydney Airport Transfers (SYD) for Sydney:
$13
-
Shared Sunshine Coast Airport Transfers (MCY) for Sunshine Coast:
$12
-
Shared Shuttle Bus Transfers from Kings Canyon to Alice Springs:
$133
-
Shared Shuttle Bus Transfers between Ayers Rock and Kings Canyon:
$110
-
Shared Shuttle Bus Transfers between Alice Springs and Ayers Rock:
$133
-
Shared Perth Airport (PER) Transfers for Perth and Fremantle:
$22
Hired Cars and Shuttles in Wellington
Also for Wellington, here are a few examples of actual transportation services:
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Shared and Private Nelson Airport (NSN) Transfers for Nelson CBD:
$7.09
-
SkyBus Auckland Airport (AKL) Express Transfer Ticket:
$11
-
Shared and Private Wellington Airport (WLG) Transfers for Wellington CBD:
$11
-
Shared Queenstown Airport (ZQN) Transfers for Queenstown CBD:
$11
-
Shared Transfer Between Airport & City CBD:
$12
-
Departure Transfer: Wellington Central City Centre Hotels to Wellington Airport:
$13
-
Arrival Transfer: Wellington Airport to Central Wellington City Centre Hotels:
$13
-
Shared and Private Christchurch Airport (CHC) Transfers for Christchurch CBD:
$13
-
Shared and Private Dunedin Airport (DUD) Transfers for Dunedin CBD:
$14
-
Shared and Private Rotorua Airport (ROT) Transfers for Rotorua CBD:
$16
-
Shared and Private Auckland Airport (AKL) Transfers to/from Auckland CBD:
$18
-
SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton's Aquarium Entry Ticket and Auckland Airport (AKL) Express Transfer:
$40
Is it cheaper to fly into Darwin or Wellington?
Prices for flights to both Wellington and Darwin change regularly based on dates and travel demand. We suggest you find the best prices for your next trip on Kayak, because you can compare the cost of flights across multiple airlines for your prefered dates.
Entertainment
Darwin's costs for entertainment, tickets, attractions, and tours will often cost around $14 per person, per day. This cost can vary widely by the type of activity, however, as this includes admission tickets, day tours, museums, and other things to do.
Sightseeing expenses in Wellington, including the cost of admission tickets for day tours, museums, and attractions, usually cost an average of $16 per day, per person.
Tours and Activities in Darwin
Some specific costs of activities, tours, and entrance tickets for Darwin are as follows:
-
Abseiling Adventure in Adelaide :
$73
-
Half Day Kayak Tour in Bateman's Bay + FREE Paddle Pack:
$95
-
Hunter Valley Scenic Wine and Cheese Tour from Sydney:
$125
-
Nowra Treetop and Zipline Adventure:
$32
-
Yarra Valley Hot Air Balloon Flight and Winery Tour:
$385
-
'Have a Go' Clay Target Shooting Experience in Brisbane:
$110
-
1-Day Wetlands + Wildlife Adventure:
$114
-
1-Day Wildlife Park + Berry Springs experience:
$81
-
11-day Darwin to Cairns tour:
$1,580
-
12 Apostles, Otways & Great Ocean Road Hiking Adventure from Melbourne:
$132
-
1D1N Kangaroo Island Road to Recovery Tour:
$514
-
2-Day Kakadu and Arnhem Land Tour from Darwin:
$753
Tours and Activities in Wellington
For Wellington, here are a few prices for actual activities, tours, and tickets provided by various companies:
-
One-Way or Return Cable Car Ticket:
$3.60
-
Time Tripper Queenstown Virtual Journey Through Time Experience:
$7.09
-
Te Papa Museum Ticket in Wellington:
$11
-
The Great War Exhibition Entry Ticket:
$11
-
Museum of Te Papa Tongarewa: Gallipoli Early Entry Ticket:
$11
-
Devonport Ferry Tickets in Auckland:
$11
-
Putt and Glow Indoor Mini Golf Experience in Queenstown:
$12
-
Wellington Self-Guided Audio Tour:
$12
-
Wellington Self-Guided Audio Tour:
$14
-
Hamilton Gardens Guided Walking Tour:
$14
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Waikite Valley Thermal Pools Entry Ticket:
$14
-
Museum of Te Papa Tongarewa Twilight Express Tour:
$14
Alcohol
The average person spends about $12 on alcoholic beverages in Darwin per day. The more you spend on alcohol, the more fun you might be having despite your higher budget.
Typically, people visiting Wellington spend on average $12 on alcoholic beverages per person, per day.
Typical Alcohol prices in Darwin
Here are a few samples of the prices for alcohol and nightlife in Darwin from other travelers:
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Evening at a Bar
$18
-
Glass of Wine
$5.15
Sample the Local Flavors in Darwin
Also in Darwin, these are the prices for nightlife and alcohol related activities from various tour providers:
-
Savannah Estate Wine Tasting in Hunter Valley:
$3.69
-
Tempus Two Wine Tasting Experience:
$3.69
-
Hanging Tree Wines Wine Tasting in Hunter Valley:
$3.69
-
Capercaillie Wine Tasting in Hunter Valley:
$3.69
-
Misty Glen Wine Tasting in Hunter Valley:
$3.69
-
Tintilla Estate Wine Tasting in Hunter Valley:
$3.69
-
Hunter’s Dream Estate Wine Tasting in Hunter Valley:
$3.69
-
Pokolbin Estate Wine Tasting Experience:
$3.69
-
Wine Tasting at Horner Wines in Hunter Valley:
$7.39
-
Talits Estate Cellar Door Wine Tasting Experience:
$7.39
-
Wine Tasting at Wine House in Hunter Valley:
$7.39
-
Glandore Estate Wine Tasting in Hunter Valley:
$7.39
Sample the Local Flavors in Wellington
Also in Wellington, these are the prices for nightlife and alcohol related activities from various tour providers:
-
Sip Marlborough Wine Tour:
$69
-
Wine Tours from Queenstown:
$71
-
Gibbston Valley Ride and Wine Tours:
$88
-
Wellington Craft Brewery Half-Day Guided Tour with Tastings:
$91
-
Bubbly Grape Marlborough Wine Tours:
$92
-
Wellington Craft Brewery Half Day Tour:
$95
-
Wellington All-Inclusive Half-Day Brewery Tour:
$97
-
Craft Beer Tours NZ Half Day Brewery Experience:
$102
-
Afternoon Brewery Tour with Lunch in Queenstown:
$117
-
Wine Tasting Sampler Tour from Queenstown:
$119
-
Queenstown’s Original Wine Tour:
$119
-
Craft Beer Tours NZ Full Day Brewery Experience:
$133
When comparing the travel costs between Darwin and Wellington, we can see that Darwin is more expensive. However, the two cities are actually relatively comparable in price, as the difference is somewhat minimal. Generally, this means that you could travel with generally the same travel style and level of luxury in each place. Since both cities are in Pacific, it's no surprise that their costs are relatively close, as many destinations here have somewhat similar travel prices overall.
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