Hey everyone! Lauren here to tell you about our time exploring the Hobbiton movie set!
Some Background Things
Gerrod and I are both big fans of Lord of the Rings, and we were really looking forward to seeing The Shire in person. Since Hobbiton is one of the most popular Lord of the Rings filming locations to see, booking ahead is essential if you are on a timeline.
We actually originally wanted to visit Hobbiton before going to Rotorua, but Gerrod and I decided to do the Hobbiton Movie Set Tour and Meal Combo because we thought eating lunch at Hobbiton would be super cool, and it was completely sold out for several days!
We are Never Late, We Arrive Precisely When We Mean to
Hobbiton is in a town called Matamata, which according to Google is about an hour and a half drive from where we were staying south of Rotorua. Since our tour departed at 9:50, Gerrod and I woke up early to pack up and get on the road. While we were getting ready, we got into a conversation with one of our Airbnb hosts, and ended up leaving a little later than we wanted to.
According to the ticket information, we had to check into The Shire's Rest ticketing center no later than 15 minutes before the tour, and we were already pushing it. On top of that it said if you hadn't checked in at least 5 minutes before then you couldn’t go on the tour! We were going as quickly as we could to get there, but we kept getting stuck in road construction or behind a slow vehicle.
We ended up speeding a bit and arriving about 7 minutes before our tour. But Gerrod still had to find a place to park!
Crisis Averted
I hopped out and ran to the ticket office, which included getting yelled at for “not being allowed to get out here”. When I got to the check in, they said it was too late for us to go on our tour and we had to look for alternative tour options. I argued and said it was exactly 5 minutes until our tour departed. Of course they came back with the fact that both of us had to be present and since it was too late we couldn’t go on our tour! Luckily, Gerrod walked in as this was being said, and we got to go on our tour!
Getting to Hobbiton
The tour started with a bus ride from The Shire’s Rest Cafe to the Hobbiton entrance! On the bus, we watched a video with some background information on how the site ended up being used as the filming location.
According to the film, it all started in 1998, when Peter Jackson’s team of location scouts were searching for the perfect Hobbiton location. They were looking for “iconic rolling hills and lush green pastures”, and a helicopter search led them to the Alexander farm. The farm is a 1,250 acre sheep farm, but one particular area of the farm with a pine tree and small lake is what sold Peter Jackson, and is now Hobbiton!
For Lord of the Rings, 39 temporary Hobbit Holes were constructed in a 12 acre area near the lake. Since they were constructed of temporary materials, after the filming of Lord of the Rings, the set was demolished!
Luckily for us, Peter Jackson and his crew decided to make Hobbiton permanent when it came time to film The Hobbit in 2011. This time they built 44 hobbit holes of more permanent materials, and have real landscaping all around.
Walking Around The Shire
Hobbiton looks as good in person as it does in the movies. The attention to detail is incredible, with each hobbit hole having its own characteristics. They have small hobbit holes, and bigger versions, which they used for various characters depending on how tall they were supposed to be in the films. For example, Gandalf would stand next to the small ones to seem big, while the rest of the hobbits would be next to the larger hobbit holes.
We started from the lower portions of The Shire, and worked our way towards Bag End. There is only one hobbit hole you can go into, and there isn’t anything inside! At Bag End, we had time to each get our picture, before we headed back down to see the party field and some more hobbit holes, including Sam’s house!
The Green Dragon
Our tour of Hobbiton ended at the Green Dragon Inn. A drink was included in the tour, and we had the option of beer, cider, and non-alcoholic ginger beer, which were all brewed exclusively for Hobbiton. They were served in cool hobbit-like mugs from barrels behind the bar at the Green Dragon Inn. After I grabbed a cider, and Gerrod a beer, we sat down in front of the fire to enjoy our drinks and feel like real hobbits.
Lunch Time
After our drinks at the Green Dragon, we headed outside to enjoy the views near the lake. There was also a really cute cat hanging around, so of course I had to pet it!
We then headed into a tented area called the Party Marquee. It was lit up all cool, and had a yummy smelling buffet set up! There were so many choices for lunch, and Gerrod and I both loaded our plates up with almost every option. We sat next to couples from Canada and the US, and enjoyed some “small talk” while enjoying our meal!
Drive to the Next Airbnb
After lunch, we had a bus ride back to The Shire’s Rest, and the tour was over! Gerrod and I then walked around The Shire’s Rest to look at some of the souvenirs and various memorabilia that you could buy. We also decided to take advantage of the free wifi and call Gerrod’s cousin Evan since it was his birthday!
After our phone call, we headed to our next destination! We drove to a place called Turangi which is near Tongariro National Park about 2 hours south of Hobbiton!
Although I loved seeing the set, and everything was so beautiful, the tour itself was a bit scattered and rushed due to the group being very large. Our guide had good information, but sometimes talked before everyone had caught up to her. Hobbiton is fairly crowded, and definitely commercialized, but this is because it is so popular!
Until next time!
Lauren (and Gerrod)
