Luxe Owner: Our New Milford Sound Tours from Queenstown
- Toby Pascoe - Lead Guide
- Aug 1
- 8 min read
Updated: Aug 19
When you’re planning a trip to Milford Sound from the other side of the world, you might wonder, “What’s the difference between tours? Does it really matter?” I can tell you, it absolutely does matter.
How you experience Milford Sound can mean the difference between feeling rushed through or truly connecting with this incredible place.
For my wife Katelyn and I, Luxe Tours is about sharing the New Zealand we know and love, in a way that feels relaxed, personal, and meaningful.
Whether you join us for a carefully paced day tour or an immersive three-day backcountry adventure, every detail is designed to ensure you travel relaxed and comfortably while creating lasting memories.
Key Takeaways
Travel in comfort with custom-designed vans that offer extra space and fewer passengers than standard tours.
Choose between a relaxed, full-day tour or an immersive three-day backcountry adventure with exclusive access to remote locations.
Both tours include a Milford Sound cruise on the spacious Milford Haven, with reserved seating and tables to ensure a comfortable, uncrowded experience.
Spend quality time in Te Anau, a charming town many tours only pass through briefly.
Every detail, from seating to stops, is designed to help you connect deeply with the stunning landscapes and wildlife.
How Our Queenstown Tours Began
Katelyn and I started Luxe Tours to do Milford Sound tours differently. We’d seen many tours funnelling people through from point A to point B without giving them the time to truly appreciate the incredible wildlife and scenery around them.
As Te Anau locals, we created our five-star Te Anau to Milford Sound Tour by focusing on what really matters to us: comfortable travel, smaller groups, and slower tours with more time in nature, rather than rushing people through.
But not long after we started, we began getting requests to run our tours from Queenstown too. The requests became so frequent, we realised we had to find a way to bring Luxe Tours to Queenstown.
We have this thing we like to ask ourselves at Luxe Tours: "How do we 'luxify' this?"
We sat down with our team of guides and asked the crucial question: how do we do a Queenstown to Milford Sound tour the Luxe way?
With Queenstown to Milford Sound being a long journey, we decided to zero in on two key things: absolute comfort and authentic experiences out in nature.
That direction led us to create two distinct tour options from Queenstown: one for travellers wanting a premium day experience, and another for those seeking a deeper, multi-day immersion, both reflecting our core philosophy of comfortable travel and meaningful exploration.
Learn who we are & why Luxe Tours is different
Premium Milford Sound Day Tour from Queenstown
Our Custom-Designed Van
The foundation of any great tour is comfort, especially on a 12-hour day. That's why we invested heavily in our custom van and removed a full row of seats, reducing capacity from 17 to 13 passengers.
This gives our guests 60% more legroom compared to standard tour vans.
We also decided to with a wider leather seat, it narrows up the aisle slightly but we feel for the amount of time that is in a vehicle for a Queenstown to Milford Sound Tour, the seat being spacious is more important.
The reclining leather seats and extra legroom let you nap on the way back without bothering anyone behind you.
We’ve even added extra seat padding so every part of you is comfortable for the day. It's a small group tour, but it's a big day, so comfort is paramount.
Meaningful Stops
As locals, we find it frustrating that most Queenstown to Milford Sound tours rush through Te Anau without properly stopping. It means a lot of visitors miss out on the peaceful, scenic town we call home.
Despite the time constraints of a 12-hour day, we've made it a priority to spend half an hour in Te Anau. You can walk along the lakefront, grab a coffee, or just soak in the atmosphere before we head into Fiordland National Park.
Along Milford Road, we visit all the classic stops like Mirror Lakes and Eglinton Valley, but we also take you to some special places that other tours don't visit.
These are places where we’ve camped and fished with our kids, where we've had family picnics, and where Katelyn and I go to unwind after a busy time.
Sharing these spots feels more like introducing you to family friends rather than just ticking off tourist attractions.
The Cruise Experience
For the cruise portion of the tour, we've teamed up with RealNZ, because they're a locally-owned, conservation-focused company that shares our values.
It’s all about comfortable cruising while immersing you in nature and showcasing the best parts of Milford Sound. The cruise is a two-hour experience on a medium-sized boat called the Milford Haven.
There's a full restaurant and bar on board, allowing you to enjoy a meal and a drink during your journey. The boat has the capacity for 400 people, but they cap it at 150 to ensure you don't feel crowded. It has three decks so there ends up be a lot of space!
Luxe Tours guests have reserved tables and seats on the cruise, which is great when it's raining outside. If you prefer to stay inside rather than on the deck in the rain, you'll always have a seat. Luxe has most of the bottom floor reserved for our guests, so you won't feel cramped.
On the way back, we stop in Te Anau again for a bathroom break & a short chance to stretch the legs, before continuing on towards Queenstown to get you back to your accommodation around 7:30pm.
Luxe Three-Day Backcountry Milford Sound Tour
Ultimate Comfort and Space
The three-day backcountry tour features our most spacious van configuration with only 10 seats instead of the standard 17.
The reclining seats have extra padding and are 20% wider than usual to ensure extra comfort while travelling on backcountry roads. Since the van is designed for 17 seats and we only have 10, this provides incredible space inside.
You have plenty of legroom for the multi-day trip, and there’s room in the rear storage compartment for each guest to take a main luggage bag plus a carry-on bag.
True Backcountry Experience
Creating this tour was a real team effort. Our guides helped us figure out where to take the tour and which stops would provide the most meaningful experiences for guests.
We decided we wanted to really focus on what you can see and hear around you. We wanted to provide a wide variety of landscapes and truly immerse people in the area.
Day one takes you through back-country and high-country areas. This isn’t a farm tour, though you’ll pass through areas with active farming. We take you through large high-country stations that aren’t set up for tourists, but we have access to bring you through these amazing places.
You’ll see animals like bulls and sheep going about their lives, all just part of the authentic landscape scenery.
The tour takes you through Mount Nicholas Station, Von Valley, and Mavora Lakes. These are places most visitors don’t get to see because rental car companies discourage driving on the gravel roads due to insurance restrictions.
Coming with us gives you access to some of the most remote and untouched parts of the region.
Exploring Milford from Te Anau
Guests on this tour spend two nights in Te Anau. This gives you time to relax and settle in, get a proper rest between travel days, and explore a peaceful lakeside town that most tours only pass through.
We’ve hand-picked the accommodation at the Distinction Hotel so you can get a good night’s sleep. You can grab dinner at one of the local eateries, and you can add activities like the glowworm caves tour on day two if you feel like doing more.
The Milford Sound cruise happens on day two, departing from the cruise terminal in Milford Sound at 10:30 AM. We chose this slot because, after months of running different timings, we realised it gives us the best experience for this specific tour.
By the time we’re heading back from the cruise, most of the other tours are only just arriving in Milford, which means we have the stops on the return journey mostly to ourselves.
Understanding the Investment
Our three-day backcountry tour ranges from $1,249 to $1,649 per person, which I know looks expensive at first glance. But let me put this in perspective:
You’re getting three full days of carefully planned experiences designed to immerse you in places most travellers simply can’t reach.
Plus, the backcountry routes we take aren’t accessible by rental cars due to insurance restrictions.
When you consider that many single-day activities elsewhere cost $300 to $500 per day anyway, our three-day package offers real value. It’s an experience that’s virtually impossible to arrange on your own but easy to enjoy with us.
Why We Do Things Differently
Katelyn and I didn’t start Luxe Tours to build a big tour company. We started it to share the New Zealand landscapes we love and create an amazing experience.
We're not a volume company, we’re a value company, and our focus is on making sure every guest leaves feeling like they’ve truly connected with this special part of the country.
Our guides aren’t just drivers, they’re locals who’ve spent years exploring these places.
When they share stories about the landscape or wildlife, it comes from real experience.
We also pay close attention to the little things that matter, whether it’s seating someone prone to motion sickness at the front or adding extra stops for fresh air, because comfort and care go hand in hand with meaningful experiences.
For us, doing things differently means slowing down and finding those little moments that make a journey memorable. It's about allowing you to connect with places rather than just seeing them, and leaving you with memories that last a lifetime.
Whether you’re joining us for the day or the full three-day adventure, our goal is the same: to give you a deeper, more comfortable, and more meaningful experience of Milford Sound and the landscapes that surround it.
Both tours are built with care. From the routes we take to the way we pace the journey, everything is designed to help you connect with places most travellers only pass through.
The three-day tour gives you access to remote backcountry areas that are difficult to reach on your own, while the day tour makes the most of every moment without ever feeling rushed.
No matter which option you choose, we hope you leave feeling like you've been part of something special — something that stays with you long after the journey ends.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's included in the cruise experience?
Both tours include a two-hour cruise on the Milford Haven with reserved seating and tables. The boat has a full restaurant and bar, and you can pre-order a meal for your cruise when you book your tour, so it’s ready when you board the cruise. We have the entire bottom floor reserved for Luxe guests, so you’ll never feel cramped and always have a seat, whether you prefer inside or on deck.
When does the tour start on day two of the three-day tour?
You’ll be picked up from your accommodation at 7:30 am and head straight to Milford Sound for the 10:30 am cruise. This timing allows for plenty of stops on the way back to Te Anau after the cruise.This also allows the afternoon to explore or add extra activities like the glowworm cave tour. We’re happy to help you arrange any additional experiences to make the most of your time in Te Anau.
Can I bring my own luggage on the tours?
Of course. For the day tour, you can bring a daypack. On the three-day tour, there’s room for a main luggage bag plus a carry-on, all comfortably stored in the van. Just let us know in advance if you have any special requirements.
