Milford Sound Overnight Cruises

If you are travelling from Queenstown it will take around 5 hours to reach Milford. Te Anau to Milford is around 2 hours 30 minutes. This timing allows for toilet and photo stops along the way.  If driving, make sure you fill your vehicle with petrol in Te Anau before travelling to Milford as there are no petrol stations at Milford Sound or en route. For more details, refer to our Driving Times webpage.

Overnight Cruise guests who are driving directly to Milford Sound may park free of charge in the coach parks outside the Visitor Terminal, after 3.30pm. Parking attendants are present at Milford Sound and will direct you - please inform them you are travelling on an Overnight Cruise with RealNZ. Check in is at the Milford Sound Visitor Terminal, 30 minutes prior to cruise departure.

The Milford Sound Levy is paid to the Milford Sound Tourism authority and helps to maintain, preserve and develop the Fiord.  For more information, see the Milford Sound Tourism website.

Yes, bedding and towels are provided to all guests.  

Yes, you could potentially be sharing with another guest. Alternatively you could choose to pay for the entire quad cabin, or two double cabins, to ensure privacy.  If you wish to pay for an entire quad cabin, please contact us directly.

Note: quad-share cabins are mixed gender.

Fiordland’s weather is what gives the region its unique character. Rainfall is what makes Fiordland a land of lakes, rivers, streams, waterfalls and fiords. Visitors should always be prepared to enjoy some rainfall during their stay. It is recommended to bring sensible clothing for cool and wet weather to fully appreciate your stay.

The temperatures you can expect in the different seasons are as follows: 

• Summer (December-February) 19-23 Celsius / 66 - 73 Fahrenheit 
• Autumn (March-May) 8-18 Celsius / 46 - 64 Fahrenheit
• Winter (June-August) 5-9 Celsius / 41 - 48 Fahrenheit
• Spring (September-November) 10-19 Celsius / 50 - 66 Fahrenheit

Many say you have not seen Fiordland unless you have seen it in the rain.  When it rains in Fiordland the landscape is dramatic - rock faces stream with waterfalls, mist hangs around the tops of the mountains and rivers and streams rage.  From a dry comfortable vantage point on the bus or boat, this landscape is spectacular for sightseeing.

While we cannot guarantee you will see wildlife, sightings of fur seals are reasonably common in both Doubtful and Milford Sounds.  A pod of bottlenose dolphins resides in Doubtful Sound so you have a good chance of seeing these fascinating mammals, and in Milford Sound dolphins are occasional visitors.  In both sounds the rare Fiordland crested penguin can at times be observed.

We recommend each passenger brings no more than a carry-on sized bag due to space restrictions in the cabins. For a list of what to bring please see the 'more info' section or your booking confirmation.

There is limited luggage storage available at the Milford Sound Visitor Terminal.

A double room is a private room for two people, with one bed to share. A twin room is a private room for two people, with two single beds.

Your travel agent or the outlet where you purchased your Milford Sound trip will refund the flight component of your ticket.  You will return to Queenstown by coach.

Our places. Our experiences. Milford and Doubtful Sounds, NZ.

Milford Sound at the mountainous north end of Fiordland National Park is the classic fiord - a deep water inlet between steep sided high mountains.  Milford Sound is a middle-sized fiord at around 13 kms in length and it is famous for its dramatic scenery, especially Mitre Peak.  This fiord is the most accessible of Fiordland National Park’s 14 fiords and it can be reached by bus, car or flight connections from Queenstown.

Doubtful Sound is located in the heart of Fiordland National Park where the mountains are still very impressive but not as high as Milford Sound.  Doubtful Sound is three times longer and  has a sea surface area roughly ten times larger than Milford Sound.  Its three arms are Hall, Crooked and First Arm.  It is famous for its wilderness scenery and wildlife sightings.  To get to Doubtful Sound visitors first take a launch trip across Lake Manapouri and drive over Wilmot Pass.

Visitors with enough time choose to visit both fiords as they have different characters.

Driving conditions during winter (May to September) can be difficult.  Extreme care is needed as freezing temperatures mean the road can ice over in shaded places.  During the winter it is mandatory to carry snow chains in your vehicle as the road can sometimes be covered in snow.  These are available for hire from petrol stations in Te Anau and Queenstown.

If you are not confident about driving in winter conditions then take a RealNZ coach to Milford Sound so you can relax and take in the stunning scenery.

Throughout Fiordland the fiords are officially mapped as sounds.  Strictly speaking, they should be called fiords.

A fiord is a glaciated valley - typically narrow and steep-sided - that has been flooded by the sea after the glacier’s retreat.  A sound, on the other hand, is a river valley flooded by the sea following a rise in sea levels or depression of the land, or a combination of both.

All prices and transactions on the RealNZ website are in New Zealand dollars (NZD).  This is specified on the Terms & Conditions page.

Our staff are trained to deal with incidents and in case of an emergency you should listen to their instructions.
We have a portable defibrillator on each of our overnight cruise vessels (Milford Mariner, Milford Wanderer and Fiordland Navigator).
In addition to this we also have portable defibrillators at the following locations:
•    Milford Sound Visitor Terminal
•    RealNZ Visitor Centre, Manapouri
•    Cavern House (Te Anau Glowworm Caves)
•    Colonel’s Homestead Restaurant, Walter Peak
•    TSS Earnslaw Vintage Steamship
•    Stewart Island Ferry (Bluff - Oban - Bluff)