Milford Sound Flight and Cruise ex Queenstown (incl Lunch)
Description
Milford Sound is an area of extraordinary natural beauty. It offers a majestic fiord, dramatic and awe-inspiring scenery and prolific flora and fauna. This tour with Air Milford allows you to combine the stunning flight to Milford Sound with a beautiful cruise on the fiord. Relax as you enjoy the best of both worlds from above and from the sea.
Tour Options
Itinerary
On arrival that the Air Milford base you will meet your pilot, for a full pre-flight briefing, before embarking on your 35 minuet scenic flight over the Southern Alps, to Milford Sound.
After takeoff, view Coronet Peak, one of New Zealand's premiere ski fields.
Fly over the Shotover river and Skippers canyon, this is where gold was discovered in the 1860's. This river became the world's 2nd highest gold bearing river in the world, next to the Klondike in Alaska.
Fly over the small settlement of Glenorchy, located at the head of Lake Wakatipu. Here you enjoy wonderful views of two braided river mouths joining the lake. The two rivers are the Dart and the Rees, both glacial fed, display wonderful colors as they mix with the lake.
Fly over the dense beech forest of the Routeburn and Hollyford. valleys. One of new Zealand 'great walks' traverses the Routeburn valley, its a 3-day hike through the valley and over an alpine pass into Fiordland National Park.
Fly over the main divide of the Southern Alps and into Fiordland National park. One of the first sights you will encounter on arrival in Fiordland National Park is Mt Tutoko, at over 8,900ft / 2,700meters it is Fiordland's highest peak. There are two main glaciers to view here, the Donne and the Age.
Fly the full length of the fiord, right out to the Tasman sea where you will turn and descend, before coming into land. This part of the flight really makes you appreciate the sheer size of the towering cliffs of the fiord, which rise over a mile high in some parts!
View the highest peak in Milford Sound, Mitre Peak. It impressively rises directly out of the water of the fiord, to it's summit at 5,560ft / 1,690 meters, which is just over a mile of vertical gain!
Experience the overhead beauty of Milford Sound
When your cruise returns, your pilot will meet you and escort you back to the airport. If time allows, the pilot will take you on a short bush walk through the native beech forest. The flight time back to Queenstown is 35 minuets.
After landing in Milford Sound, your pilot will escort you to the boat docks to board your Milford Sound Nature Cruise.
On your cruise, numbers are capped at 150 passengers and on this intimate experience, nature guides offer a personal commentary. The boat explores nooks and crannies along the edge of the fiord, nudging into sheer rock faces to examine flora and fauna in detail. The boat traverses the full length of the fiord, right out to the Tasman Sea, allowing guests to relax and take in the stunning scenery.
After taking off in Milford Sound the flight path first takes in another view of the fiord, before tracing south, down the Arthur valley. At the head of this valley, the Sutherland Falls can be viewed, this is New Zealand's highest waterfall, falling impressively 1,900ft / 580 meters to the valley floor below.
During your cruise, view the Bowen Falls, it is one of Milford Sound's two permanent waterfalls and at 530ft / 162 meter is it's highest. After rainfall, there are hundreds of waterfalls to be viewed in the fiord!
After once again crossing the main divide of the Southern Alps, taking in stunning views of small alpine lakes and jagged snow capped mountains, the route then traverses the densely forested Greenstone and Caples valleys.
After emerging from the Greenstone valley, fly over Lake Wakatipu. Lake Wakatipu is New Zealand's longest lake at 46 miles / 75 kms, it is also incredibly deep, up to 1,250ft / 380 meters at some points! Queenstown is nestled on the lake's shores, so some great views of the town are enjoyed before landing.
View the Walter Peak high country station, which is one of New Zealand's largest merino sheep farms.
View the Remarkable mountain range and Queenstown, before landing back at the Air Milford base for your drop-off back to your accommodation.
The flight path then begins to track east over the Southern Alps and back towards Queenstown. New Zealand's second largest lake, Lake Te Anau can be viewed, stretching out to the south.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We provide a pick-up/drop-off service from all centrally located Queenstown accommodation, for an additional cost, please update us with your details. If your accommodation is not centrally located, please let us know and we will send through parking directions.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Wheelchair accessible
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Subject to favorable weather conditions. If cancelled due to poor weather, you will be given the option of an alternative date or full refund
- Do not forget to bring a jacket and your camera
- Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
- Infant rates apply for 0 - 1 years of age, when the infant is sat on a parents lap, with an infant lap belt
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
Reviews(703)
This was my fourth visit to Milford Sound and my first visit by air. Flying from Queenstown to Milford Sound was an amazing experience. The scenery during the flight was incredible , and flying through Milford Sound on approach provided a different perspective. I even commented upon landing that the cruise would be anticlimactic after the flight. It wasn’t. We were fortunate to see NZ Fur Seal feeding and a Fiordland Crested Penguin making its way from the sound to its nest. The flight back was even more spectacular, passing by Sutherland Falls, near Lake Te Anau, and over Lake Wakatipu. The best part: Avoiding the four-hour bus ride in each direction. I also need to mention how awesome Air Milford and Southern Discoveries were. Southern Discoveries did the cruise. The commentary was informative, and everyone demonstrated the Kiwi hospitality I expect in New Zealand (especially in the South Island). Air Milford is a top-notch organization; everyone was so friendly. Communication beforehand was easy, and you can tell their clients’ safety and satisfaction are their top priority. If you’re thinking about booking this experience, do it! A tip: The weather can’t be controlled, so plan to do the tour your first full day in Queenstown and be prepared to do it the next day or day after if you need to. I was fortunate that the tour was able to operate the day I booked.
This was my fourth visit to Milford Sound and my first visit by air. Flying from Queenstown to Milford Sound was an amazing experience. The scenery during the flight was incredible , and flying through Milford Sound on approach provided a different perspective. I even commented upon landing that the cruise would be anticlimactic after the flight. It wasn’t. We were fortunate to see NZ Fur Seal feeding and a Fiordland Crested Penguin making its way from the sound to its nest. The flight back was even more spectacular, passing by Sutherland Falls, near Lake Te Anau, and over Lake Wakatipu. The best part: Avoiding the four-hour bus ride in each direction. I also need to mention how awesome Air Milford and Southern Discoveries were. Southern Discoveries did the cruise. The commentary was informative, and everyone demonstrated the Kiwi hospitality I expect in New Zealand (especially in the South Island). Air Milford is a top-notch organization; everyone was so friendly. Communication beforehand was easy, and you can tell their clients’ safety and satisfaction are their top priority. If you’re thinking about booking this experience, do it! A tip: The weather can’t be controlled, so plan to do the tour your first full day in Queenstown and be prepared to do it the next day or day after if you need to. I was fortunate that the tour was able to operate the day I booked.
Antony was our pilot and we had a wonderful experience. There was a lot of fog at the sound so wasn’t safe to land, but he added some flight time over glaciers and Cardrona. Great time! Highly recommend.
Amazing views, well worth the money. People are lovely that work there. You get some beautiful photos
Overall amazing experience! This was one of our favorite moments during our trip! This is a must if visiting Queenstown!
An absolutely amazing experience. The views of the mountains were unbelievable. The flight crew could not have been more friendly and accommodating. Milford Sound needs no introduction and there’s nothing I can say to top what everyone else has written.
Start to finish it was a fantastic and we’ll organise trip. The photos don’t represent the true beauty of this land. The pilot Alex was fantastic. I would highly recommend this company from the Pick Up to the drop-off I think was professional and well done. Made a seamless trip.
We were visiting New Zealand for a wedding and our hosts treated us to this tour. We had a great time. Our pilot kept us informed of what was going on and pointed out sights as we flew over the mountains. It was breaktakingly beautiful. The lunch was nice and the cruise was beautiful. The captain made the trip interesting and pointed out sights on the trip. He also took the time to position the boat for exceptional views of the waterfalls and seals. Highly recommended if you are in Queenstown.
Excellent service from start to finish- great day all round. The views from air and water were great and commentary provided by both Captains informative and excellent.
Best ever experience..excellent pilot Ben…amazing views and commentary..well worth it..then to top it off was the Milford sounds cruise..highly recommend
