New Zealand - Hobbiton : Down Among the Hobbits
By Richard Moore
Unless you've been hiding under a rock for the past decade or so years you must have heard of the movie trilogy The
Lord of the Rings and how it was filmed across the Tasman
Sea in New Zealand.
The Kiwis have set up a pretty big industry based on the
movies with tours to the many and varied locations at which
some of the most memorable scenes in film history were shot.
One area I've just managed to visit is just outside the central
North Island town of Matamata, now better known as Hobbiton,
and it is where many of the scenes from The Shire were filmed.
Organised tours of the set are run by Rings Scenic Tours
and leave from the Matamata Visitor Information Centre.
The tours involve a 20-minute bus ride out to the private
farm where you can not only walk among the remains of 17 hobbit
holes, but also see and touch the famed Party Tree.
Non Lord of the Rings fans may think - touch the what? -
but we'll ignore them as folk who aren't really worth bothering
with.
The Party Tree is magnificent - and huge - and for anyone
who doubts its almost perfectly symmetrical shape is real
and not computer-generated they can see for themselves that
it's genuine.
Mind you, Ian Alexander who owns the farm on which the set
was built, almost chopped it down five years ago and Rings
fans will be eternally grateful he didn't.
The guides for Rings Scenic Tour are filled with information
about how everything was set up, where the main features were
and you get a lot of background information about the negotiations
and secrecy surrounding the site and filming.
Picture boards are placed in key locations that show the
set as it was during the shoot and colour pegs mark out where
the key areas were.
They include the old arched stone bridge that crossed the
pond - only it was more an arched wood, plywood and polystyrene
block span - and where the mill, pub, stable and market sat.
In 1998 film suits bowled up to Ian Alexander's house wanting
to chat about making part of the Rings there. Silly
duffers went up during an All Blacks Test match and were told
to return when it was over.
They went back and so began lengthy talks about what was
going to happen and what would remain after the filming ended.
Of the former there was a lot, while nothing was to be left
on site after the crews departed.
So when the final scenes were finished many of the hobbit
holes were destroyed but, fortunately, the earth-moving equipment
was needed elsewhere and so some of the facades were left
standing.
In the meantime there were so many requests from people wanting
to visit Hobbiton that the Alexanders went to New Line, the
film's producers, and told them they wanted to keep the remaining
hobbit holes so tourists could see them.
Permission was given, albeit with tough conditions that banned
Rings Scenic Tour from making the site look anything like
it was during the filming.
No gardens, no hobbit-like creatures wandering around and
no actors or re-enactors livening up the place. Still, fans
don't really need that extra touristy stuff in my opinion.
Just walking around the site is a blast - particularly when
you pass by the area where Gandalf meets Frodo and the littlest
hobbits chased his fireworks-belching wagon, or you walk up
the lane to Bag End…
The tours are not cheap at $NZ50 per adult and $NZ25 for
young teens, but I think people need to put it into perspective.
This is a unique tour that really is excellent value for Lord
of the Rings and movie fans.
If you are travelling near Matamata - about two hours drive
south of Auckland, 40 minutes from both Hamilton and Tauranga
- and don't check it out you will probably be kicking yourself
for a very long time.
Departure Times:
Tours of the Hobbiton movie set depart @
09.30am
10.45am
12.00pm
01.15pm
02.30pm
03.45pm
Bookings are recommended.
Ticket Prices:
Adults $ NZ 50.00
Children 10-14 $ NZ 25.00
Children 9 and under Free (but must be accompanied by an adult).
Contact Details:
Phone: 07 888 6838
Fax: 07 888 5653
Email: info@hobbitontours.com
Links:
Rings
Scenic Tours
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