What to do in Te Anau, gateway to the wilds of Fiordland
Te Anau is a small town that would be almost totally unremarkable, except for the fact it’s the last town on the road to Milford Sound.
A perfectly still morning at Te Anau Downs
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Humble Te Anau is the best entry point for exploring Fiordland National Park — one of New Zealand’s greatest wildernesses.
A permanent population of around 4000 swells to 10000 in summer, buoyed by visitors looking to set foot in Fiordland (many more pass through on day trips from Queenstown, but a night or two in Te Anau will allow you to explore the vast wilderness in a more meaningful depth).
Despite this, Te Anau has none of the commercial gloss of Queenstown. While the town is large enough to have a handful of places to eat, a Fresh Choice supermarket, and a smattering of motel-style accommodation, there are none of the ultra luxurious lodges, boutique coffee roasters, and degustation menus of Queenstown.
Te Anau is much friendlier to your budget, and to your senses – in between nature excursions, you can enjoy the peaceful lakeside setting, and perhaps even lakeside accommodation, for a fraction of the cost and energy you would expend in the ever stimulating Queenstown.
As always with my posts, this guide isn’t the most comprehensive run down of things to do in Te Anau; these are my selections based on the small businesses I love, the awesome places to eat, and the little things that make a place memorable.
The quick guide to Te Anau and Fiordland
BEST TIME TO GO
Hiking is best in summer (from December to March) but expect rain at any time of year. Ideally you want to pack a raincoat and a cosy fleece even for day hikes in summer.
Don’t worry if you do get rain, though — Fiordland is at her most beautiful when the waterfalls wake up.
PLAN AHEAD
Cell service is limited in Fiordland and on the road to Milford Sound. Check maps in advance or download offline maps.
Te Anau is also the last place to top up on petrol and snacks before heading to Milford Sound, which is a four hour return drive — so make sure you’re fuelled up before heading out of town.
MY PERSONAL HIGHLIGHT IN THE AREA
The Doubtful Sound overnight cruise is a true highlight of the whole South Island (there is an option to book a coach departure from Te Anau)
WHERE TO STAY IN TE ANAU
Fiordland Lakeview Motel and Apartments
This family owned motel has a prime location by the lake, spacious and clean rooms, and great sustainability credentials – opt not to have your room serviced, and the motel will donate $10 towards native tree planting.
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Dunluce Boutique B&B
On the fringe of town, Dunluce has four guest bedrooms with lake and mountain views. Host Hannah cooks an impressive breakfast, and the garden patio is a peaceful spot to relax.
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THE BEST MILFORD SOUND TOUR
If you’re looking for a tour to visit Milford Sound from Te Anau, I highly recommend Luxe Tours.
The small company is run by a young family from Te Anau. Their approach is very much about small groups and local guides, with some great sustainability credentials as well. I had a great time with them, and enjoyed the experience much more than travelling on one of the big tour buses.
Visiting Milford Sound from Te Anau
Milford Sound is the most accessible part of immense Fiordland National Park, rippled with forested valleys and mountain ridges.
State Highway 94, the Milford Sound Road, swings past Te Anau and carries on through the wilderness, depositing busloads of people in Milford Sound each day, to be transferred onto boats to be shepherded around the sound.
Somewhere between 500,000 and 1 million visitors per year make the trek to Milford Sound, arriving via tour bus, car, helicopter, and even on foot via the Milford Track; most of these visitors descend in the summer months, between December and March.
The sheer numbers mean visiting Milford Sound doesn’t always feel like a visit to one of the remotest corners of New Zealand.
This is where using Te Anau as a base to explore Milford Sound and Fiordland National Park can be a boon. If time permits, a night or two in Te Anau will allow you to explore the vast wilderness of Fiordland in a more meaningful depth.
Key to this can be timing; having the freedom to set out on the road to Milford Sound before the tour buses rumble to life.
Self driving
The Key Summit walk
A river alongside the Milford Road
Driving to Milford Sound offers the flexibility to pick and choose your scenic stops, and to select an early cruise – the tour buses from Queenstown and Te Anau arrive in a wave from around 1pm onwards, so boarding sooner means avoiding the worst of the crowds.
Beware that this is a four hour round trip – two hours each way – in a very remote area.
Make sure you top up your petrol tank in Te Anau. There is a petrol station in Milford Sound but it is tiny, and therefore expensive and unreliable. Get snacks and food in Te Anau as well (my preferred spot is the Milford Road Merchant), as there are only a handful of very limited options for food at the ferry terminal in Milford.
When driving the Milford Road, know that for such a narrow, remote highway, it gets a lot of traffic – as many as 4,500 people travel the road each day in summer. That can mean vehicles attempting dodgy overtaking maneuvers, and potential delays. Expect to have to wait at the one-way Homer Tunnel, especially in summer.
The road experiences a surge in traffic from 10am-12pm, as tour buses and visitors mostly aim to get on cruises between 12.30 and 2pm. The same flood of people tends to leave Milford between 3.45pm and 5.45pm.
If you can travel outside of those times, you’ll have a better chance of avoiding congestion on the road, at stops on the way, and in the parking lots at Milford Sound. Set off early and beeline for Milford Sound, making scenic stops on the way back, or leave later.
Choosing a Milford Sound cruise
Timing is more important than the boat when it comes to choosing a cruise; the boats all follow a similar route, and see the same things.
On the face of it, it would seem that the smaller boats offer a less crowded cruise experience. However, in my experience the passenger-to-space ratio remains the same regardless of the size of the boat.
The bigger boats, while they might take more passengers, have more viewing areas and more opportunities to escape the crowds. On the RealNZ boats I have been on, I’ve found the lower decks very quiet, with most people packed onto the upper levels.
Your best chance of having a quieter cruise experience is to leave Te Anau early and get on the first cruise of the day (usually around 9am). Then you can stop to enjoy the hikes and scenery of the Milford Road on your return drive.
RealNZ
Onboard the boat at Milford Sound — most people stick to the upper decks. Head to the lower decks to escape the crowds
I have cruised Milford Sound several times with RealNZ, and can’t fault their service or their boats. They do have larger vessels, but as mentioned above, I don’t think this impacts the overall experience.
The Sovereign and the Monarch are the largest, while the Haven is a little more dinky; the Mariner is the most atmospheric, as it’s in the style of a sailing ship. I would choose the Mariner for maximum effect, but in reality I scarcely notice the differences in the boats, as I have always spent most of my time outside looking at the scenery.
Cruise Milford
If you want a small boat, Cruise Milford is the only family-owned operator in the fjord.
Taking a tour to Milford Sound from Te Anau
By far the most relaxing way of visiting Milford Sound from Te Anau is to take a tour.
Outsourcing the driving means you get to enjoy the views along the road, and dodge the stress of having to make your cruise at a certain time.
The downside is that you will be among the crowds which roll through the Milford Road each day, arriving at the different stops and the ferry terminal at around the same time.
If you’re looking for a tour, I recommend going with Luxe Tours, a small company run by a local Te Anau family. They focus on small groups, and take the time to stop along the road into Milford, which for me is the highlight of the trip.
A local guide, lots of stops, and morning tea by a river; Luxe Tours made the trip feel as personalised as is possible (and if you get Murray as a guide, you’re in for a treat).
Hikes and scenery on State Highway 94, the road to Milford Sound
The drive in to Milford Sound is fantastic. If you have time, you could easily spend a whole day just touring the road, stopping at the different hikes along the way.
Some of the day walks you can do along the road to Milford Sound:
Key Summit Track is a brilliant walk on a clear day. Around 3 hours return.
Lake Marian Track is a great option if the weather is not as clear — the lake is still beautiful when there is cloud around)
Gertrude Saddle Track is one for the more adventurous and experienced hikers.
The Lake Gunn Nature Walk is a delightful short walk, a lovely stroll through the Fiordland rainforest.
It’s much further out of the way, but I also loved walking in to see the Hidden Falls. I spent the night at Hidden Falls hut, and made this a little overnight trek, but you could do it as a day walk if you’re up for something a little longer, and further away from crowds.
An overnight cruise on Doubtful Sound
You probably won’t see a single other boat while in Doubtful
The Navigator is a gorgeous ship with an old world feel
An overnight trip on Doubtful Sound is one of the most spectacular things you can do anywhere in the South Island, or the whole of New Zealand.
Like Milford, Doubtful Sound is actually a fjord. Its Maori name is better – Patea, which loosely means ‘place of silence.’ It isn’t completely silent there; it’s only devoid of human-made noise, aside from the occasional boat motors. But even those go quiet from time to time.
My most treasured memory of Doubtful Sound was on the second day of the overnight cruise, when the captain powered down the engines and asked everyone on board to stand still, to resist the urge to click a camera shutter, to not even whisper. For 10 minutes, the boat drifted in the still water and all we could hear was the sound of waterfalls making their way down the rock cliff faces, and birds singing their songs freely, joyously, across the water.
Reaching 40 kilometres (25 miles) from the head of the fiord to the Tasman Sea, Doubtful is three times the length and 10 times the area of Milford. It’s also much less visited, which makes it – at least to me – a more beautiful experience.
Visiting Doubtful Sound was one of those experiences that make me fall in love with travelling all over again — where I felt those moments of “oh, this is why.” This is why I save money, take time off work, sleep in dorm rooms far from the comfort of my own home.
Views in every direction on the cruise in doubtful sound
The overnight trip on Doubtful Sound includes snacks, meals, kayaking, and swimming, as well as commentary from an enthusiastic nature guide.
There are currently three operators offering overnight trips on Doubtful Sound. RealNZ is the largest company, with the biggest boat (although I would argue it’s also the most visually striking boat).
Which one you go with might depend on availability; these trips are very popular, and very limited in capacity, so the high season (late December to late February) books out months in advance.
Hiking near Te Anau
A kea spotted on the Kepler Track
It takes an impressive amount of planning to get hut bookings on any of the three Great Walks that depart from Te Anau. As in, sit online at the exact date and time the bookings open and smash keys until you have dates locked in, kind of planning.
These are probably the three most popular Great Walks, which are themselves the top 11 trails in the country.
Which means Te Anau puts you right in the middle of the creme de la creme of New Zealand hiking.
If you’re not that organised (hello, me neither!) or you just don’t have 3-5 days to spare for a multi day hike, or you don’t have any gear, or sleeping in a room with 50 odd strangers sounds like hell to you, you might be happy to know you can do sections of these trails as day walks.
The Milford Sound track:
Take a water taxi from Te Anau Downs, hike to Clinton hut and back (3.5 hours return) and catch the water taxi back again.
The Kepler track:
Take a water taxi across the Brod Bay, hike up to Luxmore hut for the epic views, then walk down and catch the taxi back.
You can also walk from the Control Gates up to Luxmore, you will just be adding an extra 1.5 hours to your trip each way.
The Routeburn track:
Drive or catch a shuttle to the Divide, and from there you can walk up to Key Summit, Earland Falls, or even Lake Mackenzie if you’re game for a longer walk.
For more information on track transport for these day walks, check out Fiordland Outdoors.
Recover from hiking at Wildwood Sauna
Having only opened in 2026, Wildwood is brand new and very on trend – saunas have been popping up alongside lakes and coastlines around New Zealand. This one is run by my friend Johanna; if you want to soothe aching muscles after a day of hiking, or simply warm up from the Fiordland cold, this is a lovely little locally owned business to support.
Two Wee Bookshops
The thing I loved most in Te Anau (aside from all the hikes nearby) was visiting the Two Week Bookshops in Manapouri.
Manapouri is a gorgeous lake 20 minutes from Te Anau. There’s not much there — a small village on the lake, with some walking trails and lovely views.
And Ruth Shaw’s fabulous little bookshops.
The Two Wee Bookshops are so sweet, with a carefully curated selection of books. Including, Ruth’s own memoir; The Bookseller At The End Of The World.
I loved this book, and think it’s a great souvenir to take home with you. Pick up a copy from the bookshop, and there’s a good chance Ruth herself will have signed it.
I read my copy while driving around the South Island and was inspired by her story. It’s a good one.
Where to eat in Te Anau
Milford Road Merchant
📍225 Milford Road, Te Anau 9600
A small general store run by a Te Anau local, stop here to queue alongside locals for excellent coffee, great pies, and an impressive selection of art – including nearly a whole wall of Milford Sound inspired scenes.
Miles Better Pies
One of the better places to grab a snack in town, this hole in the wall is your chance to try a famous New Zealand pie.
Te Anau itineraries
You can easily add Te Anau into these itineraries:
Thank you for reading
All words (and typos and other errors) are my own, based on my own travels.
During my time on the road, I’ve found many wonderful places — galleries, restaurants, viewpoints and more. I’m sure you’ll find others. If there’s somewhere you think I should know about, contact me at hello@petrinadarrah.com, so I can share with other travellers in future work.
If you’re disappointed with one of my recommendations, I’d love to know that too; places change, or close, so I appreciate updated information.
Thank you for supporting my work – you being here lets me keep doing what I love to do, which is explore New Zealand and share it with others. So a heartfelt thanks for reading.
AUTHOR BIO
I’m a freelance travel writer from New Zealand with bylines in National Geographic Travel, Conde Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure and more.
I’ve travelled up and down beautiful Aotearoa and I love sharing my recommendations for the best places to visit in New Zealand.
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