"We were nervous to book a Milford Sound Tour"
Having spent most of our working lives in the big city of Wellington, we'd always planned on eventually moving out of the rat race. When Tim retired, we decided we needed a change and wanted an adventure that would keep us physically and mentally active. So Wendy left work, and we bought a caravan, stout walking boots, and e-bikes, and hit the road.
Milford Sound had always been on our to-do list, but we'd never found the time to go. We wanted to travel slowly and really get to know the places we visited, rather than cramming everything into short breaks.
Now that we had the time to explore, we could finally get to Milford Sound, but would a tour allow us to experience it the way we wanted to?
Key Takeaways:
A day trip to Milford Sound is long and immersive, so the pros and cons of touring vs self-driving are worth thinking through before you book.
You can choose between a large group tour, usually on a large bus, or a small group tour, usually in a mini-bus or large van.
These guests used the Luxe Tours website extensively to research their trip & tour, which has many articles providing information on all aspects of Milford Sound.
Luxe Tours has spacious vans with comfortable leather seating and a spacious cruise with reserved seating.
To Tour or Not to Tour?
Having driven ourselves to several amazing NZ locations already, driving ourselves to Milford Sound was certainly an option we considered. We'd have complete freedom to choose when to take our cruise and when and where to stop, and we'd get to take things as slowly as we wanted, making sure we were taking it all in.
But when looking at it further, we realised that the whole trip would be quite a long day, and only one of us would get to admire the scenery while the other drove.
We had also heard from other travellers that parking in Milford Sound could be difficult and expensive, and we'd also need to organise our own boat trip and food. So we decided that to get the most out of the journey, we should try a tour.
Our Tour Priorities
We were a bit nervous about this decision because we are not big-group-tour kind of people.
We wanted our Milford Sound trip to be relaxing and stress-free, and we didn't want to feel like we were being rushed between all the great stops and not getting to enjoy them properly. We thought we might not get the peaceful and nature-immersive experience that we wanted.
Sitting in a cramped bus run by a company that might not be locally owned was definitely not for us. But we remembered that during our past overseas travels, we'd gone on some great trips run by small, local companies with in-depth local knowledge and were passionate about sharing it with visitors.
We decided we needed something similar for our Milford Sound tour, and luckily, we found it in Luxe Tours.
The Luxe Tours Website - Everything We Needed to Know
When looking at tours online, we found that the Luxe Tours website was helpful and informative.
We also read the first Luxe Tours reviews online, and they were all very positive and complimentary of the tour guides.
We liked that the website had lots of detailed information about the tour and the stops along the way, so we had a great idea of what we'd experience.
It specifically mentioned that guests get plenty of time to enjoy each stop, and they also limited the number of passengers so that we wouldn't be crammed in.
It also mentioned that the boat had limited the number of passengers to around half capacity, so we wouldn't be crammed in on the boat with crowds of people.
We also loved the way the website talked about the owners' love for the area and commitment to sustainability and the environment. The main deciding factor for us was that Luxe Tours is run by locals. Supporting local businesses is something very important to us, and we endeavour to do so in every place we visit.
Booking and Confirmation
Tim made our tour booking through the Luxe Tours website, and he found the experience easy and straightforward. He also signed up for the newsletter and received a bonus of a discount code.
We liked that as part of the booking process, we could pre-book a meal for the cruise, and that we got lots of information about the itinerary and what to expect.
Even at just the booking stage of the tour, we knew we'd made the right decision, and we could tell the owners knew what they were doing. The process was thoughtful and helpful, and we promptly received the confirmation email and tickets.
Our confirmation email had our scheduled pick-up time for the tour and lots of information to ensure our tour was comfortable, such as what to bring and what to expect. We were well taken care of right from the get-go.
The Tour Experience
Pick-Up and the Van
We were picked up from our caravan park in Te Anau at the time scheduled on our confirmation email.
Our tour guide was Murray, and we both thought he was very friendly and welcoming. He had obviously done his preparation work, as he was calling us by our names straight away, and it was nice to know that he had taken the time to familiarise himself with his passengers.
Our initial thoughts regarding the van were that it was quite "flash".
It had all the bells and whistles that one would expect for a very relaxing and enjoyable tour: plenty of legroom, tray tables and storage pockets, USB charging ports, comfortable lighting, and a high roof so we felt we had plenty of room and didn't feel crammed in.
The van was extremely comfortable, and we were surprised to find that we had a bottle of cool water and some lollies for the journey. The water bottles were also made of plant-based materials, and they were ours to keep.
Friendly and Knowledgeable Guide
We found Murray to be a very competent driver and a great tour guide. The Milford Road was long and winding, but Murray drove at a comfortable pace, so it didn't feel like we were being rocked about at all.
The space and airflow in the van, along with the lovely stops along Milford Road, made for a lovely drive. We certainly felt very safe and comfortable at every stage of the journey.
Murray was very friendly and professional, and he was clearly passionate about the location. He gave some great history on the area, and his knowledge and stories of the local fishing spots along the way were awesome.
We loved hearing that he often returned to the area on his days off work, showing how much he loved the area and sharing it with others.
Our Tour Highlights
Having our tour in a smaller van meant that we could access places a larger coach wouldn't be able to reach, and this was a definite bonus for us. All of the many stop-off points were incredibly beautiful.
The Mirror Lakes were just spectacular, and seeing them was a wow moment for us both.
The Marian Falls short walk was also a great opportunity to stretch our legs and get out into the native forest. It was great to feel disconnected from the road and away from large groups of people, with just our small group in the rainforest.
The track to the falls was well laid out, the falls themselves were very picturesque, and we managed to capture some lovely photos.
The Milford Sound Cruise Experience
The Milford Haven Boat
We loved that the Milford Haven boat was not too big or crowded, yet had all the facilities we needed. We definitely appreciated that they didn't overcrowd the boat, as there were other boats with crowds of people all piling in.
Everyone in our little tour group seemed very happy with the tour so far, and we had formed a rapport with the other tour guests by this stage. That's something that probably wouldn't happen on a big group tour. It was also nice for our tour group to have reserved seats on the boat so we could sit together.
Lunch on the Cruise
We certainly recommend ordering the lunch option on the cruise in advance. It arrived soon after we left the dock, so we had plenty of time to go out on the deck to view the amazing scenery afterwards. The lunch option of a delicious pie was also really nice, and something we'd definitely recommend to future Luxe guests.
Cruise Highlights
We got stunning views of the mountains and waterfalls during the cruise, and we enjoyed seeing seals basking on the rocks.
We were very fortunate with the calm, sunny weather, as we were able to sail out a little way into the Tasman Sea. It was a cool experience sailing out of the fiord and seeing the giant, expansive sea opening up before us before we turned back to port.
Final Thoughts
We had a fantastic time on our Luxe Milford Sound Tour. We had lovely weather, but we learned that the waterfalls are even more spectacular after the rain.
Because we had such a great time, we're already talking about doing the tour at a different time of year, as we feel that every season would give us a completely different experience.
We would definitely recommend Luxe Tours to others, and we have already. We were also so impressed with the tour that we left some pamphlets at some of the campgrounds we've visited since.
To any potential future Luxe Tour guests, we'd say: just book the tour; you won't have any regrets!
