Milford Sound Day Trip Guide
Milford Sound is one of the most popular places to visit on South Island New Zealand. This guide will tell you everything you need to know including cruise info!
So, what is Milford Sound?
Ok, so firstly, Milford Sound (Piopiotahi in native language) isn’t a ‘Sound,’ it’s technically a 'Fiord.’ But really, we’re getting too deep into details here. Essentially it’s a body of water, surrounded by dense forest, mountains and a heap of waterfalls falling down the cliff sides. It’s big, impressive and pretty, plus is home to some beautiful wildlife like seals. Fiords tend to be pretty remote too. This is actually the only one in NZ accessible by road rather than boat, but it’s still a slog to get there!
How to get to Milford Sound?
You can day trip to Milford Sound from Queenstown or, like us and many others, go half way and stay in Te Anau then make the rest of the trip the following morning. It’s around 4 hours to Queenstown and whether you’re going on a tour bus or driving yourself, doing that both ways in a day is very tiring, hence breaking the trip up by stopping in Te Anau as the last town before entering the Fiordland National Park which contains Milford Sound.
Also note, if you are driving yourself to Milford Sound, there are somewhat scary/difficult parts of the drive. This includes a dark tunnel and a steep and winding mountain pass. Also keep in mind, many drivers are tourists, often with large vehicles, even caravans, and may not be used to driving on the right side of the road. Coming from Australia, it was easier for us, but we saw some dodgy driving, lane veering, speeding from locals and saw evidence of an accident or two. Wildlife is also common so keep an eye out. I don’t want any of this to put you off, especially as driving around South Island NZ gives you so much more flexibility - we had no issues at all, but if you’re a skittish driver, it may not be for you.
Things to know about Milford Sound
Milford Sound and Fiordland National Park is remote. There’s really only one way and out. Don’t be silly and allow a bit of extra time in case of traffic delays, pitstops and for parking. If you have a cruise boat tour booked for 10am, don’t turn up just on 10am!
When you arrive at the Sound, you have a few options for parking. There is a free parking area further back from the cruise departure terminal, about 20mins walk away called “Deepwater Basin Parking&Bus”. We had time to spare so decided to try the main parking area closer to the terminal area first, which costs money but we prepared for this. Surprisingly at 9:30 when arrived, there were still a few spots left (we read online it can fill up quickly. We went in December over Xmas holidays). It’s a short walk to the terminal where all the cruise tours will leave from.
There is a single self serve gas station in Milford Sound and other gas stops are few and far between on the way from Queenstown, so ensure your tank is full on your way there and back - don’t wait for last minute. We actually ran into some overseas travellers whose cards weren’t working and they had no gas left in Milford. No-one was helping them, so I stopped used my card so they could fill up and they gave me cash in return. There is a small cafe with surprisingly decent food prices (by NZ standards - so, still not cheap haha!) and free toilets. Consider bringing snacks with you if planning a big day.
Is a Milford Sound + a Milford Sound Cruise worth the hype?
We chose a 10:30am-12:30pm boat cruise tour to allow us time to do other stuff in the area afterwards. Coming from Te Anau, we also didn’t have to get up too early for this. We booked this cruise via Viator as it was the most affordable on the platform that also had excellent reviews. The boat was quite large when you’re on it but tiny compared to others at the dock. In the end, I am glad we went with a smaller boat, as it was less hectic and we still had plenty of room to take pictures out on deck. Inside was comfy and warm with snacks on offer + because it was a smaller group tour, it was easy to chat to the staff who had a lot of knowledge to share about the area. These 2 hour cruises all the do a similar loop around the Sound, provide some commentary and usually get really close to at least one waterfall.
So we rated our cruise tour choice, but do we rate Milford Sound itself? Yes, but with caveats…
The Sound is majestic and beautiful, especially the waterfalls, but like most places, it isn’t quite as awe-dropping as you see online, so just set your expectations accordingly. It’s also cold and wet, even in summer - this is fine by me, but just letting you know. I was surprised by how many seals we saw just hanging about, so this was a really nice surprise as a nature lover! I’m honestly not sure I would have made the entire trip just to cruise the Milford Sound on it’s own however. Doing a hike in the area afterwards and even just self-driving around the area were actually the more impressive highlights of the day for us. So, if you have time for more than just a cruise, then yes I would 100% recommend. Otherwise, it’s a maybe depending on your travel preferences and what floats your boat, so to speak.
What else can you do near Milford Sound?
Milford Sound is inside Fiordland National Park. This area has some amazing walks, hikes and scenery other just the Sound and this is totally worthwhile. The drive itself was exciting and fun. We then chose to do the Lake Marian Track hike after our cruise too. I would call that hike medium difficulty (we saw people of all ages doing it though) and around 3 hours round trip + time at the destination. It was an effort but the view there was far superior to the Sound for me personally - and with way less people. There are also shorter hikes and photo pit stops around the Fiordland National Park should this hike not be right for you. Access to the National Park is free too!
Lake Marian - the reward for the hike!
Planning a trip to Milford Sound or Fiordland National Park? Or been before? Share any tips or questions below :)
