Two hours south of Auckland lies one of New Zealand’s most famous attractions: Hobbiton. The filming location for The Shire in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies, Hobbiton is a must-see destination if you’re visiting the North Island. From our Airbnb, it was about an hour’s drive through narrow, winding roads, but the journey wasn’t too challenging (the car in front of us didn’t seem to have much left-hand driving practice though and moved out of the way pretty quick).
Tours are booked online, with multiple options available. We did the lunch tour combo for $158 NZD each (~$90 USD) and were happy with it. Reservations fill up fast, so you’ll want to make them as soon as you know the dates you’ll be there and even double check availability before booking flights. The “Evening Banquet Tour” is said to be the ultimate experience, but with a three-year-old in tow, we weren’t ready for the 4.5-hour commitment.
On arrival, you check in and wait for your scheduled bus ride, which takes about 10 minutes from the gift shop to the site. Once there, you stay with your tour group throughout the visit. The tour begins at the entrance to The Shire, winds its way up to Bag End, and concludes with a drink at The Green Dragon. Our lunch, included in the tour package, was hearty and fun—a chance to enjoy hobbit-style meals—but we’d still have enjoyed the experience without it.
The tour guide was great and covered a lot of information about the location and filming as we walked along. You do have to stay with your group, but there was ample time for photos along the way. We had one group inside our group that were a bit of a pain, always walking off the allowed paths, getting in the way of people’s pictures, and taking a ton of time for their own pictures, but they couldn’t put a damper on the great day.
Hobbiton is truly magical. The level of detail and meticulous upkeep is astonishing. You also get to explore the interior of one hobbit home, which is perfectly decorated and laid out. Keira had a blast running through the house, playing with hobbit kids' toys, jumping into their beds, and exploring their rooms.
The gift shop offers some great options, but I found a lot of the stuff they had was also available at the Weta Workshop in Auckland for slightly better prices. They do have some cool, unique items though, so pick up something if you like it.
I strongly recommend watching at least the first movies of both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies before visiting to refresh your memory and help you recognize iconic locations. This was one of the most memorable experiences we’ve ever had, and I’d return in a heartbeat!