New Zealand’s Great Walks are a bucket list item for many, but they don’t come cheap. The cost of hiking the Milford Track can be especially high because of how rural and in-demand it is. It’s known as one of the most beautiful hikes in the world! If you can afford it, it’s definitely worth it. Bookings for the summer season typically sell out in minutes, so if you’re lucky enough to secure a spot, it’s helpful to be prepared for all the associated costs.
All prices are listed in NZD.
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Huts cost of hiking the Milford Track
In 2022/23, the cost of one night in a shared dorm was $78 for locals, and $110 for internationals.
So 3 nights comes to $234pp if you live in New Zealand, or $330pp if you’re visiting from overseas.
The walk takes four days, and there are no cheaper alternatives like camp sites. There is a more bougie and expensive alternative with more amenities if you want to join the Ultimate Hikers group, and this costs a mere $2,500 and $4,000 per person. The price includes transport, meals, and lodges with way more amenities than the regular huts, but it’s still extreme.
Unfortunately, the bookings are very limited so there’s no guarantee you’ll get one on the dates you want. (Or at all!)
The website actually crashed this year because so many people tried to reserve their spot as soon as the booking site opened.
Your best bet is to have your browser open and ready to go as soon as the booking portal opens, usually sometime in June or July. I went as a group of 6 and securing a booking for all of us was particularly challenging. 3 of us all tried to book as soon as the page opened, and only 1 of us was successful! So it’s helpful to be flexible and set up several tabs with different date selections so you can test the availability of each before every spot gets snapped up.
The whole DOC website is still down right now, so it’s a bit of a mess. I’ll come back to update this once they get their sh*t together.
Transport cost of hiking the Milford Track
We were just focused on getting a booking and hadn’t considered the other factors that determine the total cost of hiking the Milford Track, so it was a bit of a shock to the ol’ wallet. There are only a couple of options and no real or convenient way to book each stage of the transport on your own. To ensure your trip there and back is seamless, you could do what we did and book with Fiordland Outdoors, or check out another option like Tracknet or Klook.
Consider whether you plan to stay in Queenstown or Te Anau and be sure to double check exactly what each transport company offers. For example, that link above for Klook may look a lot cheaper than the others, but it only includes the boats. You still have to get to Te Anau Downs and back from Milford Sound. Very sneaky. Even if you can drive yourself to Te Anau Downs, how will you get back to your car from Milford? These are important considerations.
I genuinely recommend Fiordland Outdoors.
They took care of our bus and boat transfers on both sides of the track for $328 pp. The team was super friendly, the trip was seamless, and they’re not even paying me to say this 🙂
Flights contribute to the cost of hiking the Milford Track
You’ll need flights unless you live in Queenstown or Wanaka or something, and if you do, I’m jealous. But for the purpose of this article, I’ll assume we’re all coming from further away.
You can sometimes find $99 one-way domestic flights to Queenstown with Air New Zealand or on Grab a Seat. Keep in mind that $99 doesn’t include a checked bag, seat selection, yada yada, so it’ll be more than that.
Our return trip cost $276 pp, but we had enough AirPoints to cover both of us, so this part of the journey was actually free!
The cost of accommodation before and after the track
We were lucky to have a free spot to stay with friends in Queenstown which cut down on our costs, so that was a blessing. If you’ve been to Queenstown before, I’d suggest staying in Te Anau because it’s much closer to the track, cheaper overall, and actually pretty cute! But if you’ve never been to Queenstown, it’s kind of a must, so definitely be sure to incorporate at least a few days into your itinerary before or after you do the Great Walk.
You may think this sounds lame, but the TSS Earnslaw cruise in Queenstown is genuinely so cute. Highly recommend.
It’s hard to estimate this accurately, but I’d say the cost of one night in an Airbnb in Queenstown is around $200, while Te Anau is slightly cheaper at $150. You might also consider a hostel dorm to keep costs down because the total cost of hiking the Milford Track adds up pretty quickly.
Assuming you’ll have more than just your hiking clothes and backpack, you’ll probably want to leave your bags somewhere. To avoid spending $800 on 4 nights in an Airbnb you won’t even be using most of the time, you could leave your bags with a service like Mind My Bag. At the time of writing, it looks like it’d be $50 to store bags for 4 nights. I’ve never done this, but this would be a much cheaper option.
You could also stay at a hostel for about $120/night, and many will hold your bag while you’re away for like 5 bucks a day. Or maybe even free!
Total Cost of Hiking the Milford Track
Ok with everything now under consideration, here are two options that show the total cost of hiking the Milford Track.
Best Case Scenario
- Huts at the local rate: $78 x 3 = $234
- Fiordland Outdoors Transport Car Relocation (Cheapest option): $150
- Domestic return flights (1 piece of checked baggage, seat selection): $275
- Half the cost of 1 night of accom in Te Anau on either side of the hike: $75 x 2 = $150
- Baggage storage while on the trail: $50
Worst Case Scenario
- Huts at the international rate: $110 x 3 = $330
- Fiordland Outdoors transport from Queenstown: $328
- Domestic return flights (1 piece checked baggage, seat selection): $275
- 5 nights of accom in Queenstown (bags stored here): $200 x 5 = $1,000
Total $859 per person
Assuming you share the cost of accommodation with one friend.
Total: $1,933 per person
Assuming you’re travelling from another country, alone, and pay for the whole accommodation.
There’s also the cost of food and hiking gear, but that’s sooooo subjective and depends on too many factors for me to consider on your behalf. Do your own math for once, yeesh.
The Milford Track is sold out for 2023/24, but you can always plan for next year, or check out the other Great Walks!
The Department of Conservation (DOC) outlines all the booking dates here.
Things to do in Milford Sound before/after the hike
Milford Sound isn’t exactly easy to get to, and it’s known as the 8th Wonder of the World. (Well, one of many…) So you should totally make the most of your time by fitting in some activities before or after your hike! Sure, these add on adventures will add to the total cost of hiking the Milford Track, but YOLO.
We booked this incredible cruise through the sounds on Get Your Guide. The major key is that it included access to an underwater observatory where we could see rare black coral and all the fish that call Milford Sound home. The natural mix of fresh and ocean water brings a unique collect of sea life to the yard.
If the weather looks nice enough, you could also book a cruise that includes both the underwater observatory and kayaking, which would be absolutely unreal. I wish I’d known this was a thing when I was there.