The Milford Sound coach-cruise-coach trip departs Queenstown at 7:00 am and returns about 8:30 pm. So, plan on a full day and don’t forget to take snacks…it will save you money from buying food at one of the stops. I chose Eco-Tours, but there are a number of companies that offer the same trip itinerary leaving from Q-Town. It was a rainy, foggy day when we left Queenstown. I knew the weather was going to be bad, but I did my best to act like it didn’t matter.
Rain poured down on us on many of the stops we made heading to Milford Sound. The bus ride is almost six hours going out there because of the stops (it’s probably around 4 hours coming back to Queenstown). One of the stops was at Mirror Lakes, which is supposed to be amazing. However, we saw no reflections…only rain drops! I met a girl from Oregon on the bus though, and we were determined to be silly and have fun anyway.
When we finally got to Milford Sound, the rain was coming down in buckets and the fog was so thick you couldn’t see the boat from the dock. The boat was nice and we hugged the mountains most of the cruise to optimize “viewing opportunities”. Oddly, I felt better when someone told me it rains some 200 odd days a year in Milford Sound. They receive almost 18 feet of rain per year! The waterfalls were incredible and I can only imagine how beautiful it is on a clear day. My advice is to give yourself enough time in Queenstown so you can book a Milford day when the weather cooperates!
