1 DAY \\ CLASSIC KAYAKING

The aim: 4 to 5 hours of kayaking on the fiord - the natural way to experience the dramatic beauty of this famous fiord - plus transport options.

No experience necessary.

OPTIONS - Scheduling and Costs:
The Milford experience is worth a full day so we give you that option - the journey there from Te Anau along the World Heritage Highway, kayaking on Milford Sound, the journey back to Te Anau. You can either spend the whole day with us (Option 1) or combine your time with us, with your own transport plans for the day (Options 2 to 5).

Our guide can meet you at your Te Anau accommodation (6.30am) or the Divide (7.45am, the Routeburn Track trail head) or Milford (8.30am, Milford Sound Lodge car park) and leave you where you wish after the day's kayaking.

Hot drinks and kayak snacks provided.

Please carefully check the EQUIPMENT section for what we provide and what you need to bring.

No rental kayaking in Milford Sound.

OPTION 1 - $155
Spend the WHOLE DAY with us from Te Anau, back to Te Anau
- we do the driving, you do the kayaking.

OPTION 2 - $145 MILFORD ONE WAY
Transport with us, either from Te Anau to Milford or from Milford to Te Anau, plus the kayaking.
Ideal option if:
i) you want to transport on to Queenstown from Milford straight after the kayaking or
ii) for those who want to cycle one way and transport with us the other - $5 extra for bike.

OPTION 3 - $125 - MILFORD KAYAKING ONLY
Meet us at Milford Sound Lodge car park at 8.30am for the day's kayaking.
Ideal option if:
i) you have your own transport or
ii) you have spent the night in Milford and want to transport on to Queenstown from Milford straight after the kayaking.

AND THE TRACK CONNECTIONS

OPTION 4 - $150/$135 THE ROUTEBURN TRACK (or Greenstone/Caples Track) and kayaking
We meet you at 7.45am at the Divide end of the Routeburn Track (you need to stay in Howden Hut the night before), kayak in Milford and take you back to Te Anau or leave you in Milford.
Or you could begin the Routeburn Track after the day's kayaking.

OPTION 5 - $145/$125 THE MILFORD TRACK and kayaking
A great option after the Milford Track - enjoy a night's recovery in Milford before kayaking with us the next day. We meet you at Milford Sound Lodge 8.30am for the day's kayaking and at the end of the day take you back to Te Anau or leave you in Milford.

For transport back to Queenstown after the kayaking, we can connect with buses/airplanes that leave Milford 3.15pm or later or with a bus that leaves Te Anau for Queenstown approximately 7.00pm.

Prices are for peak season from November to March inclusive. Ask us about shoulder season discounts during the months of April through to October inclusive.

A DESCRIPTION OF THE DAY

Stage 1: THE JOURNEY THERE...while it is still quiet
We leave Te Anau early meeting you at your accommodation or the DOC long term carpark (6.30am) - 120 kms along New Zealand's most spectacular alpine road, through the Eglinton Valley, past the Divide, into the mountains, through the Homer tunnel, down into the steep-sided Cleddau valley, with us telling the history, explaining the conservation issues, providing hot drinks and 'bikkies'.

If we can't kayak due to deteriorating weather, the kayaking is replaced by a launch cruise (or the value of the launch cruise is refunded) and we extend the nature tour home.

Stage 2: THE PREPARATION...because it makes all the difference
Meeting up with those joining us in Milford - at the Milford Sound Lodge car park at 8.30am, changing into our kayaking gear, safety briefing and setting up the kayaks.
See also EQUIPMENT and SAFETY sections.

Stage 3: THE SEA KAYAKING...up close and personal
In Milford at 8.30am, gear change, safety briefing and then weather permitting, our aim is about 4 hours spectacular kayaking beneath dramatic sheer cliffs, classic Mitre Peak, waterfalls, kayaking with friendly fur seals, often Fiordland crested penguins, sometimes playful dolphins, before heading back to Deepwater Basin about 2.30pm. For lunch we aim to stop on a beach beneath the mountains, the only group to do so. Bring your own lunch or order from us ($17).

Stage 4: THE JOURNEY HOME...after the others
A look around Milford Village, another hot drink and the journey home with scenic stops, short walks, good NZ music and some well earned rest time for you, past the Divide, back in Te Anau about 6.00pm.

A really full day!

Other possibilities:

UNIQUE COMBINATION: Sea kayak Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound
Come with us to Doubtful Sound also, for an overnight tour and receive a repeat paddler discount, being free transport to and from Milford - worth $30.

MILFORD TRACK TRANSPORT
Available out of summer season - late April to October
- we can meet you on your last day at Sandfly Point at 2.30pm with our double kayaks or our water taxi for a fun 20 minute paddle or ride down the Arthur River estuary to Milford, hot drinks and then the spectacular journey back to Te Anau with us.
(We can also organise your transport to the start of the track.)

>>Doubtful Sound 2 days
>>Doubtful Sound 3-5 days
>>Fun Combinations
>>Awesome Lakes
>>Southern Fiords