When looking into things to do in this area of New Zealand Milford Sound (which is actually a fjord) continuously came up as the can’t miss activity. Because you have to drive around mountains to get there it is about a 4 hour drive each way. You can take a bus trip, drive yourself, go by plane or helicopter.
The idea of being trapped on a but for 8 hours of the day did not seem fun at all. Driving would allow us to see a lot of great scenery but would end up with us driving in the dark on unfamiliar curvy roads. There don’t seem to be as many street lights here. We though about a helicopter but lately we’ve seen a lot of news stories of tourist helicopter crashes. So we opted for the plane. It’s interesting to see how time has changed our risk threshold.
We researched the companies and found that Air Milford had a 100% safety record. We then booked a package that would have us fly to Milford Sound on a Cessna, go on a 2 hour cruise and then fly back.
We drove to the airport early in the morning and checked in for our flight. The plane would hold 11 people plus the pilot. Unfortunately the weather was changing at Milford Sound and they said we would have time for the flight and to land for pictures but not go on the cruise. They gave us the choice of getting a refund, rebooking for another day or go on the flight with a brief landing for pictures.
We decided to go on the flight. It turned out that this is one time where it pays to be heavier. They put the kids and smaller people in the back of the plane so Kuah and I got front row seating. The views were amazing. It was also scary because at times it looked like we were about to crash into a mountain.
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- View from the Plane
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- View from the Plan
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- Milford Sound from Plane
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- Our Plane
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- Milford Sound
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- Milford Sound
The pilots said that the plane ride is better than the boat ride for seeing Milford Sound and Kuah agreed. I was a bit disappointed not to go on the cruise but still had a great day. We were lucky to get the plane ride in. Now I can say I’ve seen fjord. When we got back to Queensland it was pretty chilly outside which made it the perfect time to warm up with Thai curry.
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