We left New Plymouth for a “vacation week” to explore more of the north island. Each of us chose something we wanted to do or see in the central-east regions of Waikato and the Bay of Plenty. The highlights will be shared in the next couple of posts.

First on the list was Hobbiton or “Hobbit Town” for Kai. Yes, all 3 Hobbit movies and The Lord of the Rings series were filmed in NZ. The Hobbiton Movie Set is a huge tourist destination. It didn’t disappoint! Hobbit Holes, vegetable gardens, stocked ponds, and orchards were meticulously created for the movies. It’s a real place and I could have stayed all day. We took an early morning tour and the light was incredible.

Our tour guide let us in on movie making secrets, like how they filmed different sized actors in the same scene to make one appear dwarf size and how (and why) they built a huge fake tree leaf by leaf. A cook crafted a special 1% alcohol beer that had just the right amount of froth and just the right color so the actors and extras could drink throughout the town party 10 hour filming scene and stay sober enough to follow directions! She said the NA beer never looked authentic on camera. The entry to the Hobbit houses (holes) are shallow. All the interior scenes were filmed at a studio in Wellington. Kai was amazed at the detail of the structures and gardens, that 400-600 crew members were in the set every day, and the multiple location shoots. ” I guess I can see why their budget was $2 billion!” ( for all 3 hobbits).

See photos below, video may take few seconds to load.

We departed Hobbiton (the real town is Matamata) and drove another hour to Rotorua. This place is world renowned for thermal hot springs, mountains biking and adventure activities. Des says ” when in Rome…” so we eased into some thrill seeking. Well, not really eased but that’s the next post. Here are scenes from Rotorua’s city centre and Skyline Park. The dudes went all out on the luge. Apparently you can get air on these sleds!