Doubtful Sound Wilderness Cruise from Te Anau

The day begins in Te Anau, where an air-conditioned bus takes you past meadows and forests to Lake Manapouri. There you board a modern ferry with large outdoor decks that crosses turquoise waters surrounded by beech-covered mountains. Your guide explains how glaciers carved out this lake system and points out moss-covered islets where cormorants nest.

Reaching the opposite shore, another bus takes you up the 22km Wilmot Pass Road, a secluded track that winds through tree ferns and fluorescent mosses. At the top of the pass, a lookout offers the first panoramic view of Doubtful Sound, a maze of fjords lost in mist. The brief stop allows you to photograph waterfalls and, if you're lucky, hear the song of the tui or see a kea flying overhead.

At Deep Cove, the main boat awaits you: a three-deck catamaran equipped with panoramic windows and coffee service. For almost three hours, the bow glides along arms of water surrounded by thousand-metre cliffs, where the temperate rainforest clings to the rock. The naturalist on board details the fjord's dual rainfall, a shallow layer of freshwater that floats on top of the saltwater and creates a unique ecosystem. Southern bottlenose dolphins, New Zealand fur seals and Fiordland penguins frequently show up; the crew slows down to observe them without disturbing them.

At the tip of the Tasman Sea, the captain shuts down the engines and asks for silence for a minute. The fjord becomes a natural amphitheatre where only waterfalls and the distant squawking of birds can be heard, a moment that many travellers describe as awe-inspiring. The return journey follows the same scenic route, so you'll have a second chance to photograph waterfalls such as Helena Falls in the evening light.

Disembarking at Deep Cove, the bus returns you via Wilmot Pass and the ferry crosses the lake again, with the possibility of pink reflections in the water if the weather is fine. You'll arrive in Te Anau at sunset, with the feeling that you've explored one of the most isolated and pristine corners of the planet.