Fiordland Cruises, Southern Secret

We did an overnight cruise on Southern Secret during March 2023. We were fortunate to have fantastic weather, a great skipper and crew in Adam & James as well as great company on board the vessel. The crayfish and bluecod were very obliging with good numbers coming on board. We had a little trepidation before booking around being stuck on a boat with people we would not get on with and potential for the weather to be wet, as per Fiordlands reputation. The other people on the boat were great and the weather was fantastic.James did a brilliant job of keeping us well fed. We are pleased we did this trip and highly recommend it to anyone contemplating doing an overnight cruise in Fiordland.

This is a wonderful overnight cruise, the best thing we did in a 5 week tour of the South Island. David and Jenny, the couple who skippered, fished, cooked for and generally looked after us, were excellent in all ways. Welcoming, communicative, helpful and intuitive, they made what is probably always a great trip into a marvellous and memorable experience.The cabins are comfortable, the ship is warm and comfortable inside, and has lots of big windows and plenty of space outside to watch the amazing landscape slip by. The food Jenny produced in the small but well equipped galley was delicious, varied and thoroughly enjoyed by all 10 passengers.

We had an amazing time! Great crew and and amazing place! Clint, Jenny & David we’re amazing! The entire tip from pick up; boat over and Southern Secret herald were excellent. Highly recommend - you’ll have Doubtful Sound to yourselves. It’s an amazing place that feels otherworldly. I’ve never eaten so much Crayfish and Jenny was super skilled and superhuman!

Probably one of the most enjoyable experiences ever. A total of 10 guests 3 crew, skipper Chris, cook James and his son Jack on a lovely comfortable cruiser. Spectacular scenery, excellent guide / local history information, plenty of activity including kayaking and fishing. Wonderful encounter with a huge pod of dolphins. Great mix of guests from Oz, Uk, Holland and NZ. My wife celebrated her birthday the night we were on board and the team kindly provided a fabulous chocolate birthday cake for the whole boat to share. Food was excellent. Cabin was cosy. Nothing was too much trouble. I’m sure we will be revisiting and we will make sure any of our friends visiting NZ work this cruise into their itinerary. Thank you!!

Loved everything about this. We did the 2 nights which was fantastic, with both days being quite different. The skipper and first mate, Dave and Jen, were absolutely fantastic and looked after us all incredibly. Breathtaking scenery, we dived and swarm from the boat, we kayaked, we relaxed and just enjoyed the amazing experience. Great to have a small group to chat with and get to know over the couple of days.

Just spent two nights aboard this very comfortable boat. What an amazing experience, especially for our Singapore family who loved the fishing and then eating the catch (superbly cooked by Jenny )each night. We saw seals, penguins, dolphins and even an octopus naughtily eating one of our lobsters in a pot. A really great experience in beautiful peaceful surroundings. Can thoroughly recommend. Thank you Jenny and David for working so hard to make it so special for my husband's belated family 80th celebration.

I'd give this 10 stars if possible. One of the best experiences I've had whilst traveling. Jenny and David were SUPREME hosts and extremely knowledgeable of the area and super helpful. The food was DELICIOUS. That sauce that Jenny makes with the Crayfish is sublime !We had a great mix of people on our cruise as well.Our cabin was very comfortable.Kayaking, Fishing, Bottle Nosed Dolphins, Seals and Albatross...even Shark catching !It all happened. Thoroughly recommend. Breathtaking views EVERYWHERE.Oh .... and you'll see HEAPS of stars if you get a clear night.

Super one day and one night trip on the Southern Secret. We were lucky enough to have Adam & James looking after us and they were superb hosts. The lunch, dinner and breakfast were excellent with plenty of great freshly caught and cooked food.This isn’t the most luxurious of boats I’ve been on, but every en suite room was supplied with lovely bedding and was very clean. The bed itself was surprisingly comfy.Despite quite a lot of rain - which was great for the waterfalls, we managed to get some great fishing in between downpours.Would highly recommend one night on Southern Secret if you’re looking to get away from the crowds and enjoy some like minded company on the beautiful Doubtful Sound. We chose this over Milford Sound despite it being a little harder to get to as it’s much, much quieter than Milford Sound. Many thanks

A highlight of our NZ trip. Captain and crew were super friendly, trip was relaxing and beautiful at the same time. We saw a huge pod of endangered dolphins swimming alongside us and had a nice time kayaking in the sound completely by ourselves, no other boat in sight.Also the food was fantastic with self-caught rock lobsters and fish!However, don't skip Milford Sound for this and do both trips instead! The drive to Milford Sound over the mountains is really spectacular, with tons of photo stops and great hikes on the way. Doubtful Sound is nice but can't compare.Do Milford in a day from Te Anau and - if vacation budget allows - add Doubtful Sound with Southern Secret as an overnight

The Southern Secret cruise was a real highlight of our South Island holiday. Can’t recommend it highly enough. The boat was spacious and warm. We lived in luxury! Special thanks to the crew, Adam and James. With their relaxed and friendly manner they made the cruise truly memorable. Adam took us up super close to waterfalls, stopped for a fish, a kayak, and a swim. And James, your food was fabulous.