Milford Travel Guide

Milford Sound is the jewel of Fiordland National Park and the most celebrated of New Zealand's glacier-carved fiords — Rudyard Kipling reputedly called it the eighth wonder of the world. Mitre Peak rises 1,692 metres straight from dark water, and after rain hundreds of temporary waterfalls pour down cliff faces approaching 1,200 metres. Seals, dolphins and the rare fiordland crested penguin work the sheltered arms near the Tasman Sea. Most visitors take a 1.5-2 hour cruise from the harbour, reached by a spectacular alpine drive of about two hours from Te Anau.

Milford Sound is hailed as the 'eighth wonder of the world' and New Zealand's most spectacular fjord. Cruises glide past sheer cliffs and waterfalls, among seals, penguins and dolphins, beneath Mitre Peak plunging into the sea — the most immersive nature cruise in the fiords. In rain the waterfalls roar fullest; on clear days snow peaks mirror the sea, and cruises often add commentary and deck dining.

Mirror Lake lies by the road to Milford Sound — a tiny alpine lake whose surface is a mirror, reflecting the surrounding peaks and sky. A few minutes' walk brings you there, yet it is the most easily overlooked and most tranquil landscape painting of the Fiordland journey. A boardwalk and signs teach you to name the reflected beech and moss.

Mitre Peak rises to about 1,692 metres almost vertically from the water of Milford Sound, making it one of New Zealand's most recognisable mountains. Its name comes from the mitre-shaped summit, and the mountain is essentially sheer rock: the relief from the fiord floor to the top exceeds 1,600 metres, which is what gives it such force. The best way to see it is by boat from Milford wharf, looking back near Stirling Falls and Sinbad Gully, where on calm days the peak is mirrored in the water. Climbing it is extremely demanding; most travellers admire and photograph it from the water.

Bowen Falls is one of the signature waterfalls of Milford Sound, dropping almost vertically about 160 metres from the cliff top into the fiord — among the highest in the sound. It is fed by alpine rainforest and snowmelt above, so it swells dramatically after rain and thins into drifting spray in dry weather. Fiord cruises bring boats close enough for the mist to reach the deck. Usually paired with Stirling Falls on the standard cruise route, it is the clearest illustration of why Milford — one of the wettest places on earth — is a landscape of waterfalls.

The Milford Sound Underwater Observatory is a floating facility on the fiord; a spiral staircase descends to a viewing chamber about 10 metres below the surface, where large windows look out onto the sound's unusual deep-water ecology. Because a layer of dark, tannin-stained fresh water sits above the salt water, species normally found only in the deep sea thrive here in the shallows — black coral, anemones, seahorses and many fish among them. The observatory is usually included as part of a fiord cruise, making it a direct window onto Milford's distinctive hydrology and marine life.