Great Things to do in Te Anau, New Zealand

Te Anau is the gateway to Fiordland National Park on New Zealand’s South Island. It is a quiet little town with many adventures on its outskirts and makes a wonderful place to base for these adventures. We really enjoyed our time here and compiled a list of seven great things to do in Te Anau.

When we went

February 2025. It was the height of summer here and the weather was great – a mix of clouds and sun and temperatures in the 60s-70s.

Where we stayed

We stayed at Radfords on the Lake. All rooms face Lake Te Anau with floor-to-ceiling sliding doors with lovely lake views.

Our room was very comfortable with a kitchenette and on-site laundry facilities. It was a great place to stay for our time in Te Anau and we would absolutely stay here again!

7 Great Things to do in Te Anau

1. Drive Milford Road

The drive from Te Anau to the popular Milford Sound is along Milford Road, with many worthwhile stops along the way. When I checked in to our hotel, the proprietor shared a map, highlighting all her recommended stops from Te Anau to Milford Sound. This was very helpful as we narrowed down our stops and planned our day.

Stops along Milford Road | Te Anau, NZ

The drive on Milford Road from Te Anau to Milford Sound takes approximately two hours without stops. We played it safe, giving ourselves three hours and it worked out perfectly. We had plenty of time at the stops we planned out and arrived at Milford Sound with enough time to park and walk to the visitors center.

2. Visit Milford Sound

With its narrow fjord, tall verdant mountains, rainforest, and rushing waterfalls, Milford Sound is one of New Zealand’s top places to visit and one of its most visited sites.

Milford Sound

While cruising the Milford Sound you pass many beautiful waterfalls trickling down the majestic verdant mountains and massive cliffs jutting into the sea.

The Milford Sound cruise

Keep your eyes out for sea life as seals and penguins frequent the area. During our cruise we saw seals sunbathing on a rock.

Seals sunbathing on a rock | Milford Sound Cruise

The cruise took about three hours. We arrived back where we started and headed back to Te Anau on Milford Road.

MORE INFORMATION ON MILFORD SOUND

We have a full guide on driving Milford Road with all our stops as well as our experience cruising Milford Sound: Guide to Cruising Milford Sound + Driving Milford Road.

3. Take a Hike

We spent one morning hiking part of the Kepler Track, a popular multi-day hike in Te Anau.

The beginning of the Kepler Track | Te Anau

We planned out our hike to take us to the Brod Bay Campground, about 3.5 miles in, eat a picnic lunch, and then hike the 3.5 miles back.

Brod Bay, our picnic spot and turn around point | Te Anau

This is a great hike with minimal elevation, among the beautiful flora found in New Zealand. We kept our eyes peeled for kiwi birds that inhabit the area but didn’t see any during our day hike.

The beautiful Kepler Track | Te Anau

We enjoyed our picnic lunch at the Brod Bay Picnic area before heading back the way we came. Hiking this part of the Kepler Track was a nice, easy, and beautiful hike!

4. See a Film at the Cinema

Te Anau’s Fiordland Cinema features a daily showing of Ata Whenua – Shadlowland, a beautiful 30-minute film on New Zealand’s natural wonders.

Fiordland Cinema | Te Anau

We purchased our tickets plus a glass of New Zealand wine to accompany our movie watching experience! This was a great way to end the day after an active morning hiking.

5. Dine at Redcliff Cafe

Redcliff Cafe’s claim to fame is the fact that the Lord of the Rings crew dined here frequently during filming. The restaurant is in a quaint and unassuming house with various rooms set up as dining spaces. There is also a nice beer garden out back, where many families were hanging out. Our meal here was phenomenal! We both remarked that it was one of the best meals we have ever had.

An amazing meal at Redcliff Cafe | Te Anau

The high quality dining experience coupled with the Lord of the Rings connection definitely made the experience here memorable!

6. Visit the Glowworm Caves

Another must see site in Te Anau is the Te Anau Glowworm Caves. We booked a tour with Real NZ, located on the shores of Lake Te Anau. The tour began with a 30 minute cruise across Lake Te Anau.

Our boat to visit the glowworm caves | Te Anau

Upon arrival at the dock on the other side of the lake, we disembarked and were split into groups of 12 where our guide led us on a path to the cave entrance.

The beach we arrived on to visit the glowworm caves | Te Anau

In the cave, we walked quietly on the walkways, listening to our guide talk about the glowworms we would soon be seeing. We got on a small boat and began our journey through the cave. In the distance we could hear rushing water from waterfalls within the cave.

Looking ahead into pitch black darkness, suddenly small glowing lights came into focus. It was a surreal experience, as we got closer to the glowworms. Our guide told us that everyone’s eyes see the glow worms differently. Some people see the glowworms as white, some see blue, and some see green. For me, what looked like a sudden display of constellations were little blue lights on the cave walls and ceiling. As we completed our tour, we were all mesmerized at this amazing natural phenomenon.

We were guided out of the cave to the nature center to the back deck area where our guide talked about the flora in the area.

The Nature Center at the glowworm caves | Te Anau

I appreciated the educational aspect and how it was an immersive learning experience. We weren’t simply shown the glowworms in a quick cycle through the cave, rather the guides took their time to explain the flora and fauna of the area and answered many questions about the glowworms.

The last part of the tour was in the nature center where we could enjoy a coffee or tea while another guide took us through the life cycle of a glowworm. All in all it was a great experience and I cannot recommend it enough!

7. Enjoy Lake Te Anau

Beautiful Lake Te Anau is the backdrop for the town with the same name. As the second largest lake in New Zealand, getting on the water, whether it be a sightseeing cruise or kayaking, are great ways to experience it.

Views of Lake Te Anau | Te Anau

We crossed it on a boat on our way to the glowworm caves and the calm waters made for a nice ride.

The 5.6 mile Lakefront Track runs along Lake Te Anau’s shores, making for a nice walk along the lake. This path can hook up to the Kepler Track (shared above).

The Lakefront Track | Te Anau

Te Anau, New Zealand is such a lovely, quiet town, perfect to base in for visits to Milford Sound and Fjordland National Park. We really enjoyed our time here during our visit to the South Island of New Zealand.