Milford Sound vs Doubtful Sound – Which Excursion To Do?

Let’s compare Milford Sound vs Doubtful Sound. Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound are two of the best and most popular destination in all of New Zealand. Located in Fiordlands National Park, both of these sounds, which are technically fjords, host incredible cruise excursions that give you an up-close-and-personal view of New Zealand’s most beautiful bodies of water.

The Milford Sound cruises to Mitre Peak, Bowen Falls, and Fairy Falls. Doubtful Sound cruises bring you on calm, reflective waters among numerous towering waterfalls. Both cruise locations give the opportunity to see seals, dolphins, and even whales.

So Milford Sound vs Doubtful Sound… which destination should you choose? As you might expect, the best way to see Fiordlands National Park is to see both! But if you have to choose one, we are going to help you decide which one is the best for you. Are you ready? Let’s go!

Milford Sound – The Adventure Destination

Milford Sound is the number 1 tourist destination in all of New Zealand, and there are reasons why. This waterway is incredibly beautiful, accessible via road, and has a wide array of tour options. Booking a Milford Sound tour is the easiest way to see one of the most wonderful waterways in New Zealand.

That doesn’t mean Milford Sound is the best option for you however. Let’s go through the Pros and Cons of Milford Sound vs Doubtful Sound.

Milford Pros

• Cheaper Options than Doubtful Sound
• Mitre Peak – A Stunning View
• Bowen Falls
• So Many Seals!
• Chance to See Dolphins and Whales
• Huge Selection of Tour Companies
• Airport – Have the Opportunity to Fly To/From Milford
• Huge Selection of Tours
  • Fly Cruise Fly from Queenstown
  • Coach Cruise Fly from Queenstown
  • Cruise from Milford Sound
  • Coach Cruise Coach from Te Anau
  • & More!
• Short Day Hikes in the Area
• Accessible via Road

Milford Sound has a huge selection of tour options.

If you drive all the way to Milford Sound on your own, then you can book your own cruise. From Te Anau, you can book a coach bus to bring you to and from Milford, with a cruise while you’re there. If you don’t want to get closer than Queenstown, you can even see Milford from there! The fly-cruise-fly option is what we decided to do, and the tour was absolutely incredible.

That selection of tours comes with a variety of prices. A Milford Sound cruise is cheaper than a Doubtful Sound cruise, but the Milford Sound fly-cruise-fly is more expensive than the Doubtful Sound cruise. More variability in tour types and more variability in costs.

Mitre Peak and Bowen Falls are 2 incredible sites you’ll see during your Milford Sound cruise. You are also basically guaranteed to spot seals, and have the chance to spot dolphins and, if you’re lucky, whales!

A final pro of Milford Sound is that there are a few quick day hikes in the area.

Milford Cons

• Difficult to Drive To
• More Tourists

The cons of Milford Sound are few. First off, if you are driving out to Milford Sound yourself, the road is long. The drive from Te Anau to Milford Sound will take around 2 hours, and involves a somewhat steep ascent and descent through the mountain pass.

A second con of Milford Sound vs Doubtful Sound is the fact that Milford is much busier. Due to the fact that Milford is easier to get to, both by car and by plane, the tours are much more full. There are also many more boats on Milford Sound, which makes the tour a bit less scenic than Doubtful Sound.

Here is the exact excursion we chose to do, the Fly Cruise Fly option with Milford Flights!

Doubtful Sound – The Peaceful Paradise

Doubtful Sound is pure peace. We have never been on an excursion that was more calm and peaceful than our Doubtful Sound cruise.

This beautiful waterway is located deep in Fiordlands National Park on New Zealand’s South Island, in a location you cannot drive to on your own. Therefore, the only way to reach Doubtful Sound is via an excursions. These day trips leave from Manapouri, starting with a cruise across Lake Manapouri, a stunning waterway in its own right.

After you complete the Lake Manapouri cruise, you’ll take a coach bus through Fiordlands National Park through Wilmot Pass. After Wilmot Pass, your buss will take you straight down to the Doubtful Sound harbor, where you’ll board a ship and cruise the sound for a few wonderful hours.

However, is the Doubtful Sound cruise the very best Fiordlands excursion for you? Let’s take a look at the Pros and Cons of Doubtful Sound:

Doubtful Pros

• Stunning 360 degree Panoramas
• Less Tourists than Milford
• Get to Cruise Lake Manapouri for Sunrise
• Chance to see Dolphins and Whales
• Incredible Reflective Waters
• Waterfalls on Waterfalls
• 15 Minutes of Pure Peace and Quiet

The best part about a Doubtful Sound cruise, and the number one reason you would choose Doubtful over Milford, is because of the peaceful, reflective waters. Doubtful Sound is more difficult to reach, and as a result there are far fewer tourists on these excursions.

The fact that there are few boats on the sound means that there are almost no waves, especially on a calm day. Even on windier days there are places the enormous cliffs in Doubtful Sound where the wind is almost entirely blocked.

During your Doubtful Sound cruise, your captain will likely turn off the engines for 15 minutes, and ask for complete silence. During this time, as the boat is just floating, you’ll experience the true peace of Doubtful Sound. The full 360 degree panorama will be reflective, and you’ll be fully immersed in a truly natural experience.

The beauty of Doubtful Sound is unmatched. There are waterfalls everywhere you look, flowing over enormous cliffs that are dotted with lush greenery. On the cruise, you’ll have the chance to spot dolphins and, if you are super lucky, a whale.

A final benefit with the Doubtful Sound cruise is that it also comes with a Lake Manapouri cruise. If you choose an early option, you can be cruising Lake Manapouri for a stunning New Zealand sunrise. You’ll also get an awesome bus ride through the heart of Fiordlands National Park, a great excursion all on its own.

Doubtful Cons

• More Expensive
• Fewer Cruise Company Choices
• Only Option to do the Cruise-Bus-Cruise

Due to the fact that Doubtful Sound is more difficult to reach than Milford, it is slightly more expensive. We ended up spending 199 $NZD on our cruise, which included the Lake Manapouri portion, the bus through Fiordlands National Park, and 2-3 hours cruising Doubtful Sound.

Due to lower demand, there are also fewer choices for cruise companies when cruising Doubtful Sound. Also, this area does not have an airport like Milford Sound does, so there is no option to fly into the sound area.

Here is the Doubtful Sound cruise we did, with Go Orange.

Milford Sound vs Doubtful Sound?

So, now you know the pros and cons of Milford Sound vs Doubtful Sound. So which one should you choose?

In our opinion, we think the best excursions list would go like this:

• The Best – Fly Cruise Fly to Milford Sound
• Second Place – Cruise Doubtful Sound
• Third Place – Cruise Milford Sound

However, cost will have to play into your decision, as well as your own personal preferences.

Doubtful Sound is, in our opinion, a better cruise. Milford is beautiful as well, however the fact that it is more busy makes the waters less calm (and reflective). Doubtful Sound is quiet, stunning, and absolutely incredible.

Milford Sound has more opportunity for adventure. You can do a few hikes in the area, you can get up-close-and-personal with the water itself, and you have the opportunity to fly into/out-of the Milford area. If this floats your boat (pun intended) then Milford Sound may be the choice for you.

If you need more evidence to make your decision, check out these videos on Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound.

We thoroughly hope you enjoyed this article on Milford Sound vs Doubtful Sound. And of course we hope you learned a thing or two along the way!

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