Milford Sound Fly/Nature Cruise/Fly

After check-in completion, your pilot will give a thorough pre-flight briefing on the route and scenic highlights likely to be encountered. These include the famous Skippers Canyon, the Paradise region (recently made popular as film locations for Lord of the Rings/Hobbit Trilogies), and the Donne glacier among many other awe-inspiring features. Your 35 minute flight concludes with an over flight of the fiord of Milford Sound, prior to landing.

The second half of the adventure begins in Milford Sound, where your pilot personally escorts you to the boat docks to board the ‘Spirit of Milford.’ This is an intimate experience with numbers capped at 150, and on-board Nature Guides offering personal attention. The catamaran explores nooks and crannies along the edge of the fiord, nudging into sheer rock faces to examine flora and fauna in detail for 2 hours.

This ‘ecotour’ is perfect for close-up shots of seals, birds and other Fiordland wildlife, including dolphins ‘riding’ the bow wave and the rarest penguin in the world, the Fiordland crested penguin (Spring & Autumn). The smaller boat helps you appreciate the sheer size and grandeur of the fiord’s cliff faces rising hundreds of meters out of the water, scarred here and there by tree falls. You’ll get within touching distance of impressive geological features and close enough to catch and drink pure glacial water, or feel the full force from the powerful 15,000-year-old Stirling Falls. Join the skipper on the bridge for a birds-eye view and see first-hand how the boat operates. Help yourself to free tea and coffee.

Following your Milford Sound cruise your return flight takes in many of the pristine alpine lakes and waterfalls that Fiordland National Park is recognised for, including the Sutherland Falls which span 580m (1904ft). Flight time is another 35 minutes, with a total trip time of approximately 4 hours. After enjoying your scenic flight back from Milford Sound landing back in Queenstown we will return you to your accommodation to complete the journey.

Because of the weather dependent nature of flying over the Southern Alps to Milford Sound, we recommend booking in for your first available day in Queenstown. So that, should the weather be unfavourable for flying on the first day, you will have maximum flexibility to roll on to a following fine weather day.