{"id":1661,"date":"2020-02-24T01:09:57","date_gmt":"2020-02-24T08:09:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/petersontravels.com\/?p=1661"},"modified":"2024-06-14T14:57:41","modified_gmt":"2024-06-14T21:57:41","slug":"hobbiton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/petersontravels.com\/index.php\/2020\/02\/24\/hobbiton\/","title":{"rendered":"Hobbiton – A Movie Geeks Paradise"},"content":{"rendered":"

We picked up a car in Auckland, and after a couple of “non-deadly” miscues, I think I’m doing ok driving on the left.\u00a0 Stressful as hell….I bigtime need a massage right now…..but we are alive!\u00a0 The hardest part is to remember to look right at intersections, both as a driver AND as a pedestrian.\u00a0 BTW, important note, New Zealanders do NOT<\/strong> stop for pedestrians at crosswalks.\u00a0 I was lucky to not get run over today!<\/p>\n

No trip to New Zealand is complete (according to “geek code”) without a visit to the Hobbiton Movie Set.\u00a0 This is one of the main reasons we forced Kim to watch the 3 LOTR movies (although to be honest, Hobbiton is only at the beginning of the 1st movie and the end of the 3rd one). The set is pretty much in the middle of nowhere, 2 hours south of Auckland.\u00a0 Fortunately it was on the way to Rotorua, our next destination.<\/p>\n

You show up at a parking lot a couple of miles from the actual set, and board a bus which takes you the rest of the way.\u00a0 They show informative videos on the bus to keep you entertained (and keep the kids quiet, thank god).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The first spot before embarking on the walking tour is the Green Dragon.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This is the view just outside The Green Dragon.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

There are a total of 44 Hobbit Holes throughout Hobbiton.\u00a0 None of them are fully excavated as shown in the films, but have enough room inside of them to make it appear somebody is stepping into the doorway.\u00a0 They made two different sizes of Hobbit Holes, larger ones to make Hobbits look smaller, and smaller ones to make Gandalf look taller.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The set was originally created for the LOTR trilogy in 1999.\u00a0 They spent 3 months filming that series\u00a0 Much of the set was taken down after those movies, only to be reassembled with more permanence for The Hobbit movies in 2009.\u00a0 They only spent 12 days filming The Hobbit.\u00a0 That seems like a large expense for 12 days of filming, but I’m sure they realized the potential of geeks with cash and built the place to last.\u00a0 A few thousand tourists a day at $82\/person….who can argue with that!<\/p>\n

This is the most famous Hobbit Hole of all, the home of Bilbo Baggins.\u00a0 I must say there were a few people who shot at least 100 photos of the door.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 I think I shot 3 to make sure 2 looked good.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The next most famous Hobbit Hole is that of Samwise Gamgee, with an iconic scene in front of this setting near the end of Return of the King.\u00a0 The tour guide told us that the small child that runs out to greet Samwise in that scene is Sean Astin’s actual daughter, and he had no idea she would be there, so it was an authentic welcoming scene.\u00a0 Will have to go back and watch that part again.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

While we were touring the set there was an awesome thunderstorm towards the west.\u00a0 I took a shot of this tree with the dark clouds behind it.\u00a0 These trees were part of the reason Peter Jackson picked this location.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This sign let us know our tour was coming to an end, and it was time to head to the Green Dragon for a well deserved Hobbiton Ale (included with the tour).\u00a0 I have to admit the amber ale they served is so far the best beer I’ve had in New Zealand.\u00a0 There are so few amber ales these days.\u00a0 What about those of us who don’t care for hops!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Next to the watermill there was a bulletin board with various items for sale.\u00a0 Anybody need a wheel barrow?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

One last final shot of the watermill before heading in for our beer.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This is a shot of the Green Dragon from the outside.\u00a0 I just love the attention to detail.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I will say the management did a really good job of keeping the groups spread out so it never really felt too crowded.\u00a0 The group sizes were larger than I would have liked, but that’s part of being here in the high season.\u00a0 We did the lunch+tour, and while the food was ok, I would skip that part.\u00a0 They do provide an evening meal and I understand that tour is excellent, not because of the food but because you get to see the place all lit up.\u00a0 I would definitely do that if you are able!<\/p>\n

Next up, Rotorua.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We picked up a car in Auckland, and after a couple of “non-deadly” miscues, I think I’m doing ok driving on the left.\u00a0 Stressful as hell….I bigtime need a massage right now…..but we are alive!\u00a0 The hardest part is to remember to look right at intersections, both as a driver AND as a pedestrian.\u00a0 BTW, … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Hobbiton – A Movie Geeks Paradise”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[16,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1661","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-new-zealand-winter-2020","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t