Hobbiton Movie Set Tour, New Zealand
Hello everyone and welcome back to my blog. Todays post is all about Hobbiton, the movie set tour. Hobbiton was used for the famous film series Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.
Now I’m going to hold my hands up here, I am not a Lord of the Rings nerd. In fact I have only seen the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit once. However, Sam is a complete an utter nerd… haha sorry. That being said I find it fascinating to learn what goes into making a movie, especially set and costume design. I would one day love to explore that area a little bit more in my career.
Price
The tour itself was on the pricey side costing is $84 New Zealand Dollars each, which is roughly £42.70. By the looks of it on the website that is to increase on the 1st of April to $89. It is also unlike the Harry Potter studio tour. It is a set tour which you are taken on with a guide which has its advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages of the guided tour of HobBiton
The advantages are that you get a guide to tell you all the fascinating facts about the movies and the set. You can ask them any questions too! Being in a guided group also means that there isn’t too many people (apart from those in your group) getting in the way, so better for photo opportunities. It also stops over crowding as the set isn’t that big!
DISADVANTAGES OF THE GUIDED TOUR OF HOBBITON
The disadvantages are; you have to stay with your group. You have a certain amount of time you can be on the set for as you take a bus down into The Shire and back out again.
The tour
On the tour we got to look around all the little Hobbit holes. Did you know that they are all different in size! This is so it makes the actors look shorter or taller. So for a Hobbit you would have them walk past a really large door to make them look smaller. Similarly for a character like Gandalf you would have Ian McKellen walk past a vey small door to make him look taller. We also got to go inside the Green Dragon Inn where we got a complimentary pint of ginger beer or ale. They also sell a bit of food in the there however, you only have about 20 minutes inside.
Gift Shop
I would also mention that the gift shop wasn’t particularly great. I think the shop at Weta Workshop in Wellington was a lot better if you want your Lord of the Rings merchandise!
Summary and other posts
Overall I would say it is worth visiting Hobbiton, I mean did you even go to New Zealand if you don’t have a pic next to a Hobbit hole? Also don’t forget to check out my other posts on: Piha, Coromandel, Waitomo Caves and Auckland
Lots of love, Melissa x
Videography – Sam Gill
