Premium Milford Sound Tour Including Cruise, Flight & Lunch
Description
This small group day trip includes a stunning boutique Milford Sound cruise and an amazing scenic flight back to Queenstown. Highlights: •Bus tour From Queenstown •Milford Sound Cruise •Scenic flight Milford Sound to Queenstown •Fiordland National Park •Lake Te Anau, Eglinton Valley, Mirror Lakes, Hollyford River, Homer Tunnel & Mitre Peak •Wildlife Spotting Our tours are led by our passionate tour guides, notorious for bringing your journey to life by sharing stories and rich background knowledge, and run in modern, comfortable minibuses that are packed with extras, ensuring your comfort and safety. While the destinations you will be visiting are truly spectacular, we at Cheeky Kiwi Travel believe it is our small groups, our guides, the journey and the little details that set our tours well apart. Secret stops, wildlife viewings, specially designed vehicles and many other pleasant surprises ensure our tours are an experience to remember.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Your tour starts in the stunning city of Queenstown. As we drive out of the city your guide will not only set the scene for your adventure today but also point out and guide you past some of the area’s top highlights.
Departing Queenstown we wind our way around Lake Wakatipu, with amazing views of ‘The Remarkables’ Mountain Range and the lake.
Continuing around the lake we will pass through Devil’s Staircase. This elevated windy part of the road is famous for dramatic photos and setting the scene for the day to come.
After more amazing mountain, river and farmland views we arrive in Te Anau, home to Lake Te Anau, New Zealand’s second largest lake. While in this idyllic town we will stop for a break and maybe meet some of the local animals or wildlife. Continuing along the lake we stop at Te Anau Downs, the starting point for the Milford Track, to hear the stories and admire the views.
Leaving Te Anau and entering Fiordland National Park we stop in Eglinton Valley. With views worthy of Lord of the Rings, this valley follows the path of an ancient glacier through Fiordland. One of the first major attractions as you enter the park, it really sets the scene for a journey that only get more impressive the deeper you get.
Our next stop on this epic adventure is Mirror Lakes for a short stroll to see the famous reflections of the Earl Mountains. Get the right day, take a good picture and no one with be able to tell which way is the right way up for the photo.
Continuing along the Milford Road we come across Lake Gunn. Named after a famous explorer and popular for fishing, often we will stop at Lake Gunn for some photos and to enjoy the peace.
A short drive away we start passing the Hollyford River a gorgeous and powerful river full of large boulders and rapids. Feeding into the river at Falls Creek is the first of our extremely impressive waterfalls of the area, one of many to come.
Climbing in altitude we go deeper into the Darran Mountains and these views require another stop to admire and take photos. We are also entering the area where Kea (the world’s largest alpine parrot) like to live. Start keeping an eye out for these large, cheeky and colourful birds that never fail to thrill and entertain when found.
To make our way back down towards the sea we enter the mind-blowing hand-built Homer Tunnel, hearing the incredible history and stories. Emerging from the tunnel the valley descends sharply towards Milford Sound and on a rainy-day hundreds of waterfalls cascading down the mountain side.
Following the valleys to the sea we arrive at Milford Sound where you will board your cruise with Cruise Milford (the No. 1 Cruise operator in Milford Sound on TripAdvisor). The Cruise Milford experience offers a boutique cruise on a smaller boat which is less crowded and a crew that offers a much more informative and personal tour of Milford Sound. The smaller boat means you get closer to the wildlife and nature including the New Zealand fur seals basking on the rocks, massive rock faces rising for hundreds of metres out of the sea and the waterfalls cascading from an ancient rainforest high in the mountains. This cruise is unbeatable.
While on the boat cruise you will be able to marvel at the awe-inspiring Mitre Peak, the iconic Milford Sound mountain, with its steep triangular peak rising high up above the reflective waters of the Milford Sound.
Lastly you take to the skies on the amazing scenic flight from Milford Sound back to Queenstown. Your friendly and knowledgeable pilot will provide commentary during the flight, pointing out hidden lakes and waterfalls and the history of the areas you're flying over. Flight admission included in tour price.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
*If no pickup is selected at time of booking, you will be allocated our default meeting point (The Station - Home of Adventure). You are welcome to update this at any time. If your location isn’t listed, please choose your nearest available option & meet us there. *Pick-ups can begin up to 20 minutes before the tour departure time, depending on location. To ensure a smooth start, please be ready and waiting outside 5 minute prior to your specific pickup time. *Pick-up locations are carefully planned for each tour and may vary by day. If your pick-up location changes, kindly inform us in advance. *Our guides make multiple stops and may arrive within a 10-minute window. We are unable to wait for late guests.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Flights are always 'On Request' until confirmed with our partner airline
- If our regular flight operator is unavailable, we may be able to arrange an alternative operator; however, this could be at an additional cost
- Return scenic flight may be cancelled due to weather conditions. In this situation your return transport will be via mini bus and you will receive a partial refund.
- Due to uneven surfaces, this tour is not recommended for those with walking disabilities or using a wheelchair.
- Bus tour operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately.
- Please advise any dietary requirements per person at time of booking
- Scenic Flight weight restrictions are 140 kg per person
Reviews(244)
Abby was an awesome guide. Especially appreciated the curated music which she played at key moments in the ride, which made it all very much more special and dramatic. What an experience!
What an absolutely spectacular day out! The entire operation ran like clockwork from start to finish, and the four of us couldn't have asked for a better way to experience the sheer scale and beauty of Milford Sound. The water was stunning, the logistics were seamless, and getting right up close to the cascading waterfalls was an absolute highlight for the whole family. A huge shoutout to our driver and guide, Jason. He kept us thoroughly entertained the whole way down. I'm still trying to figure out if his relentless jokes or the hairpin turns on the Milford Road were more dizzying, but he navigated both like a total pro! The absolute cherry on top was the scenic flight. Our pilot, Isabelle, was fantastic and gave us an incredibly smooth ride over the peaks. This was quite a relief, considering she deadpanned right before takeoff that it was her very "first time" flying an airplane. We all had a minor heart attack before we realized she was completely pulling our leg! Her landing ended up being significantly smoother than Jason’s punchlines. If you're on the fence about booking this tour, just do it. Incredible views, a wonderfully organized itinerary, and a brilliantly funny crew. Highly recommended!
We loved the drive, cruise, fly experience to see Milford Sound. We were able to see so many beautiful sights in just one day. Hannah was an amazing guide and took great care of us. We especially loved the stories and information along the drive.
So great you could get a flight as well on your trip. It is an amazing experience. Thank you choosing to travel with Hannah and Cheeky Kiwi.
Our guide Abbey was the best, she entertained us, answered all our questions and shared so much great info on the area. The play list was great, it was a wonderful day out.
Abbey with great info, a killer playlist and Milford Sound from the air? That really is the full package! So glad you had such a brilliant day out with us, Sahra.
We booked the Premium Bus-Cruise-Fly package and it was worth every cent. The entire process was incredibly thoughtful and friendly from start to finish. The highlight was definitely the small group setting, which made the whole experience feel much more exclusive compared to the larger tour buses we saw. Unlike the bigger cruises that seemed rushed, our cruise took much more time, allowing us to truly soak in the atmosphere. Because we were on a smaller vessel, we were able to get incredibly close to the waterfalls, which was a breathtaking experience. Every detail was well-managed, allowing us to truly recharge and enjoy the stunning scenery without any stress. If you want a professional, seamless, and high-end experience in New Zealand, I highly recommend this package. Great people, great views, and a world-class arrangement!
Jerry, what an incredible review — thank you so much! We're so glad the Premium Bus-Cruise-Fly experience lived up to every expectation. It truly is a special way to see Milford. We're grateful you chose to travel with us and would love to welcome you back someday!
This all day tour includes everything-bus, boat & plane. Definitely worth the trip to such scenic spot as Milford Sound. Sonya was a fun & informative guide.
So nice to hear that you enjoyed your day with Sonya. We hope you took lots of photos to take home with you . Thank you for travelling with us.
We had a wonderful experienced guide (gosh I forget his name right now-it was his last day sadly and he was amazing). Got picked up at our hotel without a hitch. On the way to Milford Sound, there are plenty of stops to get off and take unreal photos of the landscapes and scenery. Once you arrive, the cruise is top notch and the views or the mountains, waterfalls, etc is spectacular. We had a flight back, but sadly it was cancelled due to weather (and they promptly refunded us for the flight difference). Unfortunately, can't control the weather and safety comes first. Highly recommend and definitely don't book anything exhausting the night before or the day after this tour as you'll need to recover from the long but fun day.
Thank you for your wonderful feedback about our guide and your trip. A shame you could not experience the flight home to Queenstown but as you say safety first. Still a wonderful place to visit without the plane ride. So spectacular as you say. We wish you well in your travels and maybe we will see you again one day.
The bus ride and tour with multiple stops on the way to the Sound was very nice. I do recommend taking the plane ride back to Queenstown though, as the bus ride is about 3 hours each way. Plus, it gives the opportunity to see the landscape from land, sea and air. All of which are truly amazing.
It sounds like you had a great day out in Milford. The plane ride is pretty special and gives an idea of how beautiful our mountains are. Thank you for choosing Cheeky Kiwi.
Wonderful experience, very friendly guide
Hannah was fantastic tour guide Very lovely personality and welcoming. Loved her stories We did the fly back option on the plane and saw the most stunning views Absolutely loved that - highlight of our trip!
