Milford Sound Regional Information

Milford Sound | Regional Information | Activity Highlights | Scenic Highlights | History

Nestled in the beautiful Fiordland region, Milford Sound is New Zealand's most famous tourist destination.

Milford Sound Overview

Milford Sound is New Zealand's most famous tourist destination. It enjoys some of the most spectacular, wild, untamed and unspoiled scenery in New Zealand.

Milford Sound has been voted the most got-to-do thing by tourists in New Zealand. According to an international survey Milford Sound rated the world's top travel destination trumping all other destinations in all other countries listed.

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The Sound

The sound is a 15 kilometre inlet from the sea with a fresh water layer on top. On either side steep mountain sides rise dramatically in steer cliff faces up to 1,200 metres (3,900 feet) or more. Among the peaks are The Elephant at 1,517 metres (4,977 feet), said to resemble an elephant's head, and The Lion at 1,302 metres (4,272 feet) said to be in the shape of a crouching lion.

Lush rain forests cling precariously to these cliffs, while seals, penguins, and dolphins frequent the waters and whales can be seen sometimes.

Water Falls

Milford Sound is an incredibly wet area with a mean annual rainfall of 6,813 mm on 182 days a year. With nearly 7 metres of rain a year, Milford is one of the wettest inhabited places on earth. Rainfall can reach 250 mm during a span of 24 hours.

Milford Sound has two permanent waterfalls all year round, Lady Bowen Falls and Stirling Falls. The intense rainfall creates dozens of temporary waterfalls cascading down the cliff faces, some reaching a thousand metres in length.

Smaller falls from such heights may never reach the bottom of the sound, drifting away in the wind. These temporary waterfalls are fed by rain water drenched moss and they last at most for a few days once the rain has stopped.

Milford Activities

Milford Sound enjoys a range of activities, all of which involve enjoying the breath-taking scenery. Activities include:

• Boat tours (by far the main activity)
• Canoeing
• Tramping (including the world famous Milford Track)
• Seal, Dolphin, penguin and sometimes whale watching (can be seen during boat tours)
• Under water observatory (where one can see normally deep water species)
• Scenic flights

Useful Milford Sound Links

To help plan your Milford Sound holiday choose from the main categories below:

• Milford Sound Accommodation
• Milford Sound Tours
• Milford Sound Attractions and Activities
• Milford Sound Transport
• Milford Sound Visitor Information

Send a Fiordland related E-Postcard to your friends.

Milford Sound Region Information

Milford Sound Tourism Operators