Milford Sound is, without a doubt, one of our favourite places in the world. And from someone who’s been travelling full-time for almost a decade, that means a lot. Words cannot begin to describe how beautiful this place is and if you’re making the trip all the way to New Zealand, Milford Sound (Piopiotahi) is one of the places you simply cannot miss!
We might be a little biased because, when we lived in New Zealand back in 2017, Milford Sound was the place we were lucky enough to call home. We lived and worked at Milford Sound Lodge where we did housekeeping and worked at the café, Pio Pio – but that’s a story for another day.
But if (actually, scratch that) WHEN you visit Milford Sound, the tips we’ve laid out in this blog post will help you make the most out of your trip – whether you decide to go on a day trip to this little Paradise or if you decide to stay for a night or two (which we highly recommend doing if you have the time).
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Everything you need to know before visiting Milford Sound
1. It’s the wettest place on Earth
This might surprise you but Milford Sound is one of the wettest places on Earth! On average, it rains 182 days a year and the mean annual rainfall is 6.8 meters a year (that’s 268.3 inches if that means more to you). That’s absolutely wild!
On one of our first work days at Milford Sound Lodge, it rained more in 24 hours than it does in London in an entire year (yes, a full year)! It was like a solid cloudburst that just didn’t have a plan to stop.
Knowing this, you think “If it rains that much, why would I want to go there?”. Trust me, you absolutely do! The true magic of Milford only truly shows when it’s pouring rain. Don’t get me wrong, it’s absolutely stunning when it’s sunny out (and there’s some pretty epic hiking in the area too that you can enjoy while it’s sunny).
But here’s what makes Milford Sound so special when it rains:
- It is unlike anything you’ve ever seen before! (take a look at this Reel to see what we mean). Water is cascading down every single mountain face and because of the lack of soil and earth, the waterfalls come gushing down!
- And, actually, there are only 2 permanent waterfalls in Milford Sound (Lady Bowen Falls and Stirling Falls). So if you come on a sunny day, you won’t see most of these temporary waterfalls.
Embrace the rain, put on a rain jacket and bring an umbrella, go outside and take in the magic! ☔️
2. Stay the night (if you can)
If you have the time for it during your time in New Zealand, please do yourself a favour and stay the night in Milford. Up to 1 million people a year visit Milford Sound, and the majority of them don’t stay the night!
When people go on a day trip to Milford Sound, they usually leave Queenstown very early in the morning, drive for 6 hours to Milford Sound with a few stops along the way, and once they get to Milford, they hop straight onto a boat to sail out on the fjord. After the boat tour, they head back to Queenstown.
If you only come for a day trip, you only get to explore a fraction of Milford and you likely only get to experience it with the crowds.
If you are able to, do yourself a favour and spend the night. There’s only one place to stay which is Milford Sound Lodge (our old workplace) but they have both chalets and campervan spots available.
Since this is the main place of accommodation the price does reflect this and it does book out. So make sure you book in advance during peak season.
The campervan sites are definitely the more affordable option of the two, but if you really want to splurge, you can book one of the riverside chalets (Superior Chalets). If you’re there to celebrate a special occasion such as a birthday or an anniversary, the chalets are great!
Check Milford Sound Lodge’s prices & availability here.
3. Book your boat tour without crowds
There are around 1 million visitors in Milford a year and the majority of them come to do a boat tour in the middle of the day since they come in just for a day trip from Queenstown or Te Anau.
Going on a boat tour is an absolute must-do if you’re visiting Milford (even if that’s the only thing you do here). If you want to avoid crowds as much as possible, your best bet for avoiding the crowds is to go on either the first boat of the day or the last one.
We’ve done our fair share of boat tours here as they were one of the perks for staff members when we lived there, and we’ll say that this boat tour with Southern Discoveries is one of our favourites as it also has an Underwater Observatory where you get to see black coral!
Black coral usually lives in the deep sea and has been found as far down as 8000 meters (26,250 feet!), but you can see it from the Underwater Observatory here which is pretty cool.
You’ll likely also see a bunch of small fish, sponges, and starfish – and, if you’re lucky, you might be able to spot a shark, penguin, seal, or dolphin! It doesn’t happen often, but our guide had seen one recently when we last went.
^This tour is if you’re driving yourself to and from Milford. If you’re going just on a day trip from Queenstown and want transportation included, you can book this tour instead.
4. Bring your rain jacket on the boat tour
Speaking of boat tours… To get the full experience on your cruise out on Milford Sound, when you get close to Stirling Falls, do the following:
- Put on your rain jacket
- Put away your electronics (unless they’re waterproof)
- Go outside to the front of the boat
And enjoy getting soaked in the waterfall!
Trust us… this is such a fun and unique experience that’s worth getting soaked for, haha. There will be hot coffee and tea on the boat that you can enjoy after if you need to heat up a bit.
5. Don’t go swimming at the Deep Water Basin
Unless you’re a bit of a daredevil, you might want to think twice before dipping your feet in at Deep Water Basin. Sharks are frequently spotted here and while I’m sure they’re a friendly bunch, I figured this is something you’d like to know before you head down there.
Deep Water Basin is a beautiful spot to check out though and this is actually where the Milford Track ends (one of New Zealand’s Great Walks).
6. There are plenty of amazing hikes in the area
While the most popular attraction in Milford are the boat tours, there are actually a ton of hikes in the area!
Our personal favourite is Lake Marian just 40 minutes down the road, but you can also check out the Milford Sound Foreshore Walk (20 minutes), Milford Sound Lookout Track (20 minutes), Tutuko Valley River Hike (5-6 hours), Gertrude Saddle (hard!), Falls Creek Falls, and Key Summit (a part of the Routeburn Track which is one of New Zealand’s Great Walks).
If you go hiking in Milford Sound, please go prepared! Milford is very remote and there aren’t always other people on the tracks, and there is very limited cell reception in certain areas (although it’s more reliable these days compared to when we lived there in 2017).
When hiking in Milford, please always:
- Tell someone where you’re going (which hike) and when you expect to be done
- Bring plenty of food & water + extra layers of clothing including a rain jacket
- A power bank for your phone
- A beacon (if you have one)
- Good hiking shoes (you’re in a rainforest, so the ground can get very muddy)
And don’t forget to follow the 7 principles of Leave No Trace!
7. There are no grocery stores in Milford Sound
In case you didn’t know, Milford Sound is located very remotely, 2 hours deep into Fiordland National Park only connected by one road in and out. This is a big part of what makes Milford so special, but it also means that there are no grocery stores nearby…
The closest grocery store is in Te Anau, 2 hours away. There is a café and restaurant at the lodge and they also have a bistro/café down at the Information Centre — but if you’re on a budget, make sure you bring some food with you.
PS: The best coffee in Milford Sound can be found at Milford Sound Lodge ☕️
8. Bring insect repellent!
This header deserves an exclamation mark because I am not exaggerating when I say there are a ton of sandflies. They bite and their bites are extremely ITCHY!
If you’re not familiar with sandflies (I wasn’t before I came to New Zealand), they’re also called ‘midgets’, ‘biting midgets’, ‘no-see-ums’, ‘te namu’, or ‘little devils’.
According to Maori legends, sandflies were put in Milford by Hinenui-te-Po (the goddess of death) to protect the place from people. She believed that this place was so beautiful that people would want to stay here forever.
Also, fun fact! When we worked at the lodge, some of the only negative reviews we got were: “There’s no wifi”, “It rains too much”, and “There are too many sandflies”. So funny as all three of these things were some of the things that we simply couldn’t control.
Looking for bug spray for your trip? This DEET-free bug-repellent is a good option!
9. There is no cell service
We briefly mentioned this under the hiking section, but there is no cell service in Milford Sound (yet). Honestly, this is one of the things we love about it. I know that might sound controversial coming from someone whose livelihoods are dependent on having a stable wifi connection but hear me out…
How many places in the world can you go now where you are 100% unplugged?
And we know we are biased, but when we lived here, we grew to love not having any cell reception. Back then we also didn’t have any WiFi. So for 10 days in a row, we were completely unplugged from the outside world and we were just present in the moment with the people that lived there with us – and it was awesome.
We would chat with guests, play games, watch movies with our coworkers without everyone being on their phones, we’d go hiking. It took some getting used to but it was truly amazing!
However, if you’re not as stoked about this as we are, we’re happy to tell you that the lodge recently did get WiFi and that it’s available FREE for all guests. (Back when we lived there, guests could get 50mb for $10 NZ!)
The WiFi is fast and reliable and you could FaceTime friends and family from home, although it does cut out sometimes while being on a video call. But it’s great for researching nearby hikes & activities and planning the rest of your NZ trip.
📍 Want to know about all the best spots in Aotearoa New Zealand?
Then check out our New Zealand Maps with +200 locations around the country that we have visited during our 8 months of living and travelling in NZ! 🗺️
10. Make sure to put your phone away and enjoy the moment
This leads us to our next and final point… Even though there is good WiFi, we urge you to try to be as present as possible during your time in Milford. It’s truly an incredible place and unlike anything you’ve seen before. There’s a reason why they call it the 8th wonder of the world!
The most magical part of Milford can’t be captured through a phone, it has to be experienced!
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Summary of visiting Milford Sound for the first time
We hope this gave you a good idea of what to expect and how to prepare for your visit to Milford Sound. As you probably know by now, this is an amazing place unlike anywhere else in the world – and we truly hope you’re going to have the best time during your time here!
If you have any questions about visiting Milford Sound or need specific help planning your trip, you’re more than welcome to reach out to us. We’re always happy to help by giving some advice or putting together a customized itinerary for you.
Feel free to send us a DM on Instagram, comment on this post, or shoot us an email! And, if you enjoyed this post, feel free to save it for later by pinning one of the images below or share it with a friend!
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