LET'S TALK ABOUT COST
You don't need the full amount to book. Spread it out, start fundraising or apply for help - that's what plenty of people do. Let's make it happen!
Outward Bound is a once-in-a-lifetime investment in you. It changes how you show up in the world, and the confidence and skills you leave Anakiwa with don't have a use-by date. Cost is a logistics problem and it's one we've already solved for thousands of people before you.
The person you become as a result of Outward Bound is priceless, so don't let cost get in the way. This is how most of our students make it happen.
Because we're a non-profit, every dollar of your fee goes back into running the course and furthering our mission. See where your course fee actually goes →
Spread it out - most people don't pay all at once
Pay a non-refundable deposit of $395 to lock in your place, then choose how you clear the rest, whether that's weekly payments, lump sums or an automatic monthly payment plan. Just have it settled 8 weeks before your course starts. There are two ways you can split up your payments!
Automatic Payment Plan
Set up an automatic payment plan in MyOB and monthly payments will be taken automatically. You can simply set and forget.
Manually Pay Your Way
Weekly, fortnightly, or whenever suits — you make each payment yourself in MyOB. Top up any time.
Calculate your payments
Enter your course start date — we'll work out how many weeks you have until the 8-week cutoff. Want smaller ongoing payments? Put down more than $395 upfront and the monthly amount drops. You can also add extra payments at anytime, directly through the MyOB Portal.
Payment window: — wks (until 8 weeks before your course)
Balance to spread
$3,803
Weekly (manual)
— / wk
Monthly (automatic)
— / mo
Estimate only — final figures confirmed when you set up your plan. If your course start date is less than 8 weeks away, the balance is due in full at booking.
Rally your people and fundraise
Fundraising is one of the most common ways people get here. Sell a skill you've got, throw a sausage sizzle or bake sale, or tap into local community groups who've backed hundreds of Outward Bound students before you. Sometimes, it's even as simple as asking your workplace, family, and friends to help you get here — you'd be amazed who says yes.
As a non-profit, this is how we make it happen too, and it's often more rewarding than people expect. Many alumni say the fundraising itself was the first step of the challenge, well before they ever reached Anakiwa. See our fundraising page for tips, ideas, and how to get started fundraising for your course.
Apply for a scholarship
We believe in our courses and want as many people as possible to get here, regardless of what they can afford. If the cost of a course puts it out of your reach, you may be eligible for a scholarship.
Scholarships typically cover 20–50% of your course fee, based on your situation and application. You'll need to be a NZ citizen or resident aged 16–26, able to cover the rest of the fee yourself, and able to manage your own medical and travel costs.
They're open to more people than you might think, so if cost is a real factor, check if you're eligible and apply for a scholarship.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, many people use more than one option. Do what gets you here!
No stress - you'll get an email or text letting you know, and we'll automatically try again in three days. Just make sure there's enough in the account by then.
If that second attempt fails too, we'll give it one more go in two days. If this one fails, please get in touch with us as soon as you can — we'd rather find a solution together than have your plan stall.
Yes, you can! Just make an additional payment manually in MyOB whenever you like, and your remaining automatic monthly payments will be recalculated to reflect it.
If you're aiming to pay off your course faster, or just come into a bit of extra money and want to put it toward your course, this is the easiest way to do it.
If you've genuinely given it your best, you've made the maximum personal contribution possible, and you can show 100% effort has gone into your fundraising*, we may have scholarship funding available to help with the remaining course fee.
This reserve scholarship funding is open to all New Zealanders, regardless of age, circumstance or where you live in Aotearoa. It's not guaranteed, and it depends on your situation and what's available at the time, but it's there for people who've genuinely tried.
Your fundraising deadline is more flexible too. While course fees are normally due 8-weeks before your start date, we can extend this if you're fundraising to cover your free. Just get in touch and we'll work out what's realistic for you.
* Use your Fundraising Activity Log to show us your activities. This must include evidence you have contacted your local Lions and Rotary Clubs.
If you're currently paying manually and want to switch to an automatic plan, you can set that up any time yourself in the payments module of MyOB. Simply click the 'Set up a payment plan' button beside 'Make a payment'.
Already on an automatic payment plan and want to turn it off? That one needs an email to accounts@outwardbound.co.nz — we'll sort it from our end. However, if you simply want to make an extra payment, you don't need to switch anything.
You can top up manually whenever you like while your automatic plan keeps running — your remaining monthly payments will automatically be recalculated to reflect what you've already put in.
Yes, all payments go through Stripe - a secure, industry-standard payment processor. We don't store your payment information ourselves.
Yes! In the payments module of MyOB (under funding), you'll find a shareable link that you can send to friends, family and supporters. They can use it to contribute straight to your course fee, no login or account needed on their end. It shows exactly how much is left to pay and how much time you've got, so anyone chipping in can see their contribution actually make a dent.
If they prefer to pay via bank transfer, please email accounts@outwardbound.co.nz to request an invoice. However, for a faster and easier payment experience, we recommend paying by credit or debit card through your share link.
Check out our full list of FAQs for further information. If you have any questions that aren't answered there, contact us here.