Why Milford
Visually unparalleled, Milford Sound is a must-do when visiting New Zealand. Huge rainfall gives the region its unique character, with rainforests, rivers and waterfalls on show. The best thing about Milford is that the weather doesn’t matter: on a sunny day it is beautiful, and on a wet day it is spectacular, with water cascading down massive cliffs into the sea.
Milford sits inside Fiordland National Park, part of the Te Wāhipounamu World Heritage Area — 1.2 million hectares of largely untouched wilderness. Mitre Peak rises 1,692 metres straight from the water; Stirling and Bowen Falls drop into the fiord; seals, dolphins and the occasional Fiordland crested penguin appear beside the boat.
Three ways from The Spire
By helicopter
The helicopter is admirably suited to this diverse terrain, ensuring optimum visibility of glaciers, alpine lakes and the Sutherland Falls. A private charter from Queenstown lands on a snowfield or beside the fiord, includes a cruise, and has you back at Church Lane in time for pre-dinner drinks. Roughly four hours door to door. The most expensive option and, on a clear day, the one guests talk about for years.
Coach, cruise and walk
Described as the most scenic alpine drive in the world, the road to Milford through the Eglinton Valley and the Homer Tunnel is worth the day on its own. Small-group coaches leave Queenstown early and return early evening; the cruise runs the full length of the fiord to the Tasman Sea. Allow twelve to thirteen hours. Our concierge favours the smaller-coach operators with a nature guide aboard.
Fly-cruise-fly
A fixed-wing scenic flight from Queenstown Airport over the Southern Alps, a cruise, and the flight home — about four to five hours all in, at a fraction of the helicopter cost. Weather-dependent, so keep the day flexible.
The two-day version: Fiordland Lodge
Our sister property Fiordland Lodge sits at the gateway to the park above Lake Te Anau, two hours from Queenstown. Stay a night there and Milford becomes a relaxed morning rather than a marathon day: the road from Te Anau is under two hours, private cruises on the fiord can be arranged, and helicopters land on the lodge lawn. Ask our concierge to pair two nights at The Spire with one at the lodge.
The road in
If you drive or coach, the journey is half the point. The road runs south along Lake Wakatipu to Kingston, across the Southland plains to Te Anau, then north into the park: the Eglinton Valley’s golden tussock flats, the Mirror Lakes, the beech forest at Lake Gunn, the alpine amphitheatre of the Hollyford divide, and the 1.2-kilometre Homer Tunnel bored through the mountain in the 1930s. On the far side, the Cleddau Valley drops through the Chasm to the fiord. Stop at every pull-off; the sandflies are a fair price for the views. In winter the road can close for avalanche control — the concierge checks conditions the evening before.
Doubtful Sound, the quieter fiord
For guests who want the fiords without the crowds, Doubtful Sound is the alternative: three times the size of Milford, reached by boat across Lake Manapouri and a bus over Wilmot Pass, and typically a longer day or an overnight cruise. When you discover Doubtful you will be struck by its silence — a silence broken only by birdsong or a distant waterfall. From Queenstown it is a very full day; from Fiordland Lodge in Te Anau it is a comfortable one, which is another argument for the two-night version.
What to bring
Layers, a proper rain jacket, walking shoes, insect repellent for the sandflies at the wharf, and a charged camera. Milford records around seven metres of rain a year; the waterfalls are why. Book at least a week ahead in summer, and a day or two in winter.
