Hobbiton Movie Set Tour – Is It Worth It?
When we started out as full time travelers, we knew we wanted to travel as far away from our home in New York City as possible and after thirty plus hours of travel we found ourselves in Australia and New Zealand. We were excited for both destinations, but Auckland, New Zealand was the location we knew the least about, but left us the most satisfied after visiting.
Steve was most excited to visit New Zealand’s north island for the chance to visit the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings Movie Set. The Hobbiton set was constructed permanently for the Hobbit trilogy and can be visited by fans of the books and movies throughout the year. It is located on the Alexander Farm which is approximately two hours south of Auckland. Tickets to visit the movie set are $84 NZD per person, roughly $54 USD if booking directly through the website.
Thankfully a friend introduced us to a phone application called Klook and we purchased the tickets through it to bring our ticket price down to $47 USD each. We rented a car for a day from Drive NZ, a local rental company, for $76 NZD (approximately $49 USD) to get there and back. While that seems expensive, tours from Auckland start around $140 USD per person, Auckland unfortunately could be on the pricey side for certain things.
Overall, if you’re a fan of the books and movies, it is well worth the visit! The tour does an amazing job of bringing the movie set to real life and Steve definitely left satisfied. The nice thing is that your entrance ticket includes one free drink at the Green Dragon Inn, the Shire’s pub. If you are going to visit during New Zealand’s summer time the Inn provides a nice escape from the sun along with that cool drink to end your tour on a high note.
Other possible day trips include visiting Maori villages in Rotorua, which is one hour from the Hobbiton movie set by car. A day time visit being more cost efficient starting at $56 NZD per person. You can also hop on a ferry from Auckland and head to Waiheke Island which is very well known for having some of New Zealand’s best wineries.