The southwest corner of the South Island is Fiordland National Park, which contains many long narrow fiords, just like in Norway. Te Anau is the central place to stay when touring in the area. We spent three days there: we went "tramping" on a small part of the Kepler Track one day, took a tour of Doubtful Sound the next, and drove up to Milford Sound and cruised around it the third.
Kepler Track
The National Park service in New Zealand maintains several "Great Walks" which take several days to complete. There are "huts" at several points along each route which have bunks and kitchens, so you don't have to carry tents or Thermarests or stoves. Reservations are required for the huts (and you can't camp elsewhere), and most of the walks are quite popular. We spent an afternoon on one small segment of the Kepler Track, near Te Anau. More pictures...
Doubtful Sound
The tour to Doubtful Sound took all day. There was a short bus ride from Te Anau to Manapouri; a boat from one end of Lake Manapouri to the other; another bus across Wilmot Pass to Doubtful Sound; the cruise through the sound to the sea; and then the whole thing in reverse. On the way back we stopped at the Manapouri Power Station. More pictures...
Milford Sound
Milford Sound is somewhat smaller than Doubtful Sound, but it's much more popular. The road from Te Anau up to Milford sound is one of the most spectacular roads I've ever driven on -- some new completely different scenery awaits around every curve. More pictures...
