Milford Sound (known as Piopiotahi in the Maori language) inside Fiordland National Park on the southwestern corner of the South Island is New Zealand’s most visited natural attraction. So why should you add a Day trip to Milford Sound to your New Zealand Bucket list?
Well, its awe-inspiring beauty and scenery amazes visitors every day, whether it’s rain or shine. Milford Sound is one of the most stunning places on earth, and English writer Rudyard Kipling even called it the “8th Wonder of the World”!
Milford Sound is a fiord, so a sea inlet that’s surrounded by mountains, stunning waterfalls, rock cliffs and rainforest, and seals, dolphins, penguins, and other wildlife live here. Fiordland National Park (Te Wahipounamu in Maori) is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Milford Sound is in the middle of nowhere and many visitors drive here from the town of Te Anau (1.5 hours south) or Queenstown (about 4 hours) and take a boat cruise around the fiord. Of course, it’s possible to book a Day Trip to Milford Sound on a bus as well.
When I visited Queenstown in June 2025, I booked this 12.5-hour Milford Sound Cruise & Glass-Roof Coach Tour through Get Your Guide. This tour is perfect for travelers without a car, and it includes cool stops along the way, like Eglinton Valley, Homer Tunnel, and spectacular Mirror Lakes.
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Meeting our Guide in Queenstown
Our day started around 7:30 am at the Intercity Bus Stop in Queenstown’s city centre, where our guide and bus were already waiting for us.
Once everybody was on board, we left towards Milford Sound. The guide was happy to share many great stories about this region of New Zealand along the way!
Driving along Lake Wakatipu & Breaktime in Te Anau
First we drove next to stunning Lake Wakatipu for a while, which is New Zealand’s third largest lake and it nestles around Queenstown and its nearby communities. It stretches for 84 km (52 miles), which also makes it the country’s longest lake.
Lake Wakatipu was carved out by a glacier more than 15,000 years ago during the last ice age. Besides, it has its own “heartbeat”, as it rises and falls by about 20 cm (7.8 inch) every 27 minutes!
After about two hours we arrived in the town of Te Anau, where we stopped at a coffee shop and the bus also picked up a few more passengers here.
Stop #1: Eglinton Valley
Our first stop after entering Fiordland National Park was Eglinton Valley. It was carved out by glaciers thousands of years ago and is one of the few places in New Zealand with a lowland beech forest.
The rugged mountains with golden tussock grasslands in front are a paradise for professional and amateur photographers. Besides, it’s one of a few valleys in the national park that are right beside State Highway 94.
Finally, this area is known for its unique flora and fauna, which cannot be found anywhere else in the world! More than 30 rare or endangered species live here. One example is the short-tailed bat, New Zealand’s only land mammal.
Stop #2: Mirror Lakes
The greatest highlight on the way to Milford Sound, in my opinion, is Mirror Lakes. This scenic attraction sits next to State Highway 94, so it’s super easy to access. There’s also tons of free parking for cars, RV’s, and buses.
Mirror Lakes is a popular photo stop thanks to crystal clear reflections of the nearby Earl Mountains and Eglinton Mountain. It looks even more amazing in winter, when the snowcapped mountains and clear reflections on the water create the perfect picture!
Mirror Lakes is the perfect location for stretching your legs and enjoying beautiful views! The wooden boardwalk for admiring the lakes is 400 meters (1,312 ft) long and is wheelchair accessible as well.
It’s best to visit Mirror Lakes in the morning to avoid the crowds.
Unfortunately, visiting Mirror Lakes on a rainy, windy, or cloudy day is much different, as the reflections aren’t visible. So if you can, it’s best to go to this place on a sunny, still day.
Stop #3: Monkey Creek
Another place to enjoy breathtaking vistas on the road to Milford Sound is Monkey Creek. This glacier-fed spring inside Hollyford Valley surrounded by majestic mountains is famous for its pure, drinkable water right from the source!
You might be wondering how this scenic spot got its name? While no monkeys live here, it was named after “Monkey”, William Henry Homer’s dog! Homer was a European settler who worked as a surveyor in the Fiordland area in the 1800s.
If you’re lucky, you might meet some local wildlife here as well. Kea (New Zealand’s alpine parrot) hang out here sometimes, and beware, they are usually not shy towards people and often pose for pictures! Still, please ensure to give them their space and don’t feed them.
Stop #4: Homer Tunnel
Just a few minutes later, we reached Homer Tunnel, which opened in 1954 and is 1.2 km (0.74 miles) long. It’s the only vehicle access through the Southern Alps to Milford Sound and goes right through a solid rock!
Since it’s very narrow, this is a one-way tunnel in the summer months and there’s a traffic light to direct cars, RV’s, and buses. Homer Tunnel is open year-round, but it might be closed sometimes because of heavy snow or rock falls. So if you’re driving, don’t forget to check road conditions before departing.
Although it can take up to 15 minutes until the light goes green, there’s a great way to kill time: Watching out for kea. These often cheeky birds only live on New Zealand’s South Island. We were amazed to meet three kea in front of Homer Tunnel in this short timeframe!
Entrance to Homer Tunnel (Photo credit: Mikedux on Wikimedia Commons) and one of the kea birds!
Boat Cruise around Milford Sound
Finally, we reached our final destination: Milford Sound. Soon after, we hopped on the Pride of Milford for an 1 hour 45 minute boat ride all around the fiord. Passengers can watch this jaw dropping area from the outside deck or from the inside.
During the boat ride, you’ll go by glacier-scarred rock walls, stunning waterfalls, and steep rainforest-clad cliffs. Besides, be sure to look out for native wildlife, like seals, bottlenose dolphins and the rare Fiordland Crested Penguin!
Finally, you can’t miss majestic Mitre Peak, which is 1,692 meters (5,551 ft) high. It’s on the top left picture below.
Participants of our bus tour could order a picnic lunch (sandwich, fruit, chips, granola bar, and drink) before the trip and the boat staff’s commentaries about the area were both interesting and funny!
Maori peoples found Milford Sound more than 1,000 years ago. While they didn’t live here, they’ve used this area for fishing, hunting, and collecting pounamu (greenstone).
The Best Time to Visit Milford Sound
Adding Milford Sound to your New Zealand itinerary is a must any time of the year. In the summer months (December to February), temperatures reach up to 19 C (66 F) and it gets down to 10 C (50 F) in the winter months (June-August). This is the busiest tourist season in New Zealand as well.
With an average of 180 days of rain per year, Milford Sound is one of the Wettest places on Earth. If it rains during your visit, just look at the Bright side: The mountains are surrounded by mist and the falls are bursting with water!
But I have to admit, I was thrilled to experience the breathtaking Milford Sound on a bluebird day in early June 2025! Still, I was grateful that I’d brought a thick jacket, hat, and scarf, as it was quite windy and cool on the outside deck.
Shall I Drive or Join a Bus Tour to Milford Sound?
A Day Trip to Milford Sound is possible by self-driving or by taking a bus from Queenstown or Te Anau. Either way, it will be a long day, especially if you’re going from Queenstown and back (about 4 hours each way) and stopping at several stops along the road.
If you’re driving, just keep following State Highway 6 at first. Then change on to State Highway 97 and 94, that takes you all the way to Milford Sound. You’re more flexible and can stop at any attraction on the way that you’d like. Just be sure that you’re comfortable with driving on narrow roads.
I was glad to join the bus tour with Get Your Guide, as I left the driving to someone else and loved checking out the beautiful scenery and having a snooze on the way back. 😉 The only disadvantage was that I had to hurry at the photo stops so the bus wouldn’t leave without me!
Conclusion: A Day Trip to Milford Sound
Milford Sound is a stunning spot to visit year-round, whether rain or shine. Looking at the scenic waterfalls, Mitre Peak, and steep rainforest-clad cliffs was truly spectacular. So it’s very understandable why Milford Sound is New Zealand’s top natural attraction!
Although it took quite a while to get from Queenstown to Milford Sound, I never got bored along the way. Watching the beautiful Southern Alps from the bus, and visiting highlights like Mirror Lakes, Monkey Creek, and Homer Tunnel (and meeting the kea, of course!) was just amazing.
So if you’re traveling around New Zealand, going to Milford Sound is a must! 🙂
Looking for inspiration on other cool places in New Zealand? Then check out these posts:
How to Spend 36 Hours in Rotorua without a Car
The 9 Best Things to Do in Paihia, New Zealand in Two Days
Writing and traveling have been my passions for 25+ years, so I launched this travel blog in May 2020. I love writing travel guides about amazing destinations and I'm passionate about music tourism and animal-friendly and sustainable travel.
So far, I've been to 20 countries on five continents, and Japan and Iceland were my favourites!
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