Hobbits? Four Hobbits!

Yesterday was a very special day for the three of us. Yesterday we fufilled a dream that has been with us since the Fellowship of the Ring came out in 2001. We went to Hobbiton! Tours from Rotorua leave several times a day so our host dropped us off in town around 8am where we ran into a friend that we had made while we were in Auckland. His name is James, he’s 23 and from York. He happened to be going on the same tour so the four of us hopped on the bus. It’s about an hour drive from Rotorua to Matamata where Hobbiton is, and it’s full of beautiful scenery.

When we finally made it to Hobbiton our tour guide, who was a young blonde dude from Scandanavia (I’m guessing), lead us onto a winding dirt path that was surrounded by green shrubberies and grass. He stopped when we got to a place where the path is lined by two rock walls. Our tour guide told us that that was where Gandolf and Frodo first enter Hobbiton…I nearly shat my pants. I’ve never been to any type of “theme park” so this was a truly magical experience.

We continued on the path and came to a huge garden that surrounded by tiny hobbit holes. Almost everything in Hobbiton is real, minus the huge tree above Bag End, so we were thrilled to see real vegetables and greens growing in the garden. We made our way up the path that weaved through the lush greenery stopping every so often for pictures. We were allowed to go into one Hobbit hole to take a picture which was pretty exciting. The actual holes aren’t that deep, our guide said about a meter deep so that the props team could put stuff in the windows. So although they look real from the outside they are really just tiny caves on the inside.

Our group finally made it up to Bag End. This felt so unreal. I couldn’t believe that we were actually there and also that we were walking were Sir Ian McKellen and Elijah Wood had walked only a few years ago. Our tour guide took us down to the field where Bilbo’s 111th birthday party had taken place and there were several games laid out for groups to play with. James and Jonah tried out the ring toss game while our guide showed off his skills on stilts.

Our guide moved us along past Samwise Gamgee’s house and soon we came upon the Green Dragon. Here we were given a free glass of beer (a delicious stout that I drank much too fast) and we were also encouraged to put on the hobbit costumes that were hanging up in the pub. I wish we had had more time in the Green Dragon. It was a really cozy place with a lot of puffy chairs and two big roaring fires. Our guide only gave us 20 minutes which was not nearly enough.

The Green Dragon was the end of the tour so our guide walked us back to the car park where our bus was waiting. As we were walking out our guide started playing Lord of the Rings music on his phone which nearly brought me to tears. I was so sad to be leaving. I wish that our tour had been all day.

Our ride back to Rotorua was quiet and a little melancholy. I think the four of us couldn’t really process what just happened and also we wanted to stay there for much longer. I saw people working in the gardens and I was extremely jealous. I think that would be an awesome job to have. I would love to have Hobbiton be my work space.

We made it back to Rotorua and said goodbye to James. We probably won’t ever see him again as he’s leaving for Bangkok in a few days, but it was great to catch up and wish him luck on his next adventure.

At this point I honestly am not worried about what happens for the rest of our trip, even if it sucks we still went to Hobbiton and I was able to cross that off my bucket list. To anyone who is going to New Zealand you MUST go to Hobbiton, even if you’re not a huge Lord of the Rings fan it will blow your mind.

That’s all there is to say for now. I’m gonna jump in the shower and get the day’s work washed off and make some tea.

Cheers!