Milford Sound is one of the many fiords in Southern New Zealand. Although it’s not the biggest, it’s the most popular fiord to visit. A special highway was built right through the fiordland and now SH94 brings you straight to Milford Sound. Apart from the cruises on the fiord there isn’t much to do.
From the car park you follow the foreshore walk to the boat terminal, where various companies offer cruises. They vary in length from 1,5 hours to 2 days. I boarded a Jucy cruise that I had booked via bookme.co.nz, where they had some good deals at this time of year. We were one of the first boats to enter the fiord, so we beat the crowds that come on the big tour buses. Instead, the parking lot was filled with rental cars and campervans and the boat had about 35 backpackers on it.
The fiord is absolutely beautiful and makes a great trip combined with the many activities the Milford Road has to offer. Unfortunately the mountains were in the shade most of the time during my morning cruise. I had a hard time taking photos with the bright sunlight turning the beautiful blue sky in a bright white spot. The contrast between that and the shadows was just too big for my camera to capture. I gave it my best shot though and all I can add is that the reality is even better!
Some people are lucky and spot some of the wildlife in the sounds. I only saw the fin of a dolphin, but it was gone as soon as I reached for my camera. A while later I got another glimpse of a water creature. A small thing, which I believe to be a penguin, was swimming close to the rock walls. If you don’t get to see much wildlife, it’s still worth your trip though. The waterfalls and massive mountains are an eye catcher!
Fantastic! Thank you! 🙂
Thanks for the post. I understand what you mean about the direct sunlight effects. If you have a few days and are a keen tramper/hiker the Milford Track is great in summer time.
thanks, yeah I figured that wouldn’t be so awesome in winter. I heard they take down the bridges etc. So maybe after winter if I’m in the area. Who knows!
Stunning. It reminds me of Alaska’s Inside Passage.
Looks great, lucky you got a good day! When I went it was raining which is apparently the norm. Did add a pretty cool atmosphere to the place and there were extra waterfalls but would have loved to have seen it like this too!