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Movie tours in NZ take you onto the film sets and locations behind Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit and Narnia. Walk through Hobbiton, go behind the scenes at Weta Workshop, or tour the filming locations around Wellington and Queenstown. Book one for yourself, or give it as a gift.
New Zealand's landscapes and film studios have been on screen for decades, and you can visit both. These movie tours cover the Hobbiton Movie Set, the Weta Workshop studios in Wellington and Auckland, and the Lord of the Rings filming locations around Wellington and Queenstown. Here's where to start.
The Hobbiton Movie Set day tour includes admission and a 2.5 hour guided tour of the 12 acre set, with a complimentary drink at the Green Dragon Inn. It runs every day except Christmas Day, and needs a minimum of four people. See all Hobbiton tours and things to do in Auckland.
In Wellington, the Weta Workshop experience tour is a 90 minute guided walk through the studio's props and effects. It suits all ages, transport isn't included, and photography is strictly prohibited in the tour spaces. In Auckland, Weta Unleashed is 90 minutes through three movie projects in horror, fantasy and sci-fi genres, and infants aged four and under are free.
To make something yourself, the special effects workshop is 60 minutes creating prosthetic effects, and the world building workshop is for ages 12 and up, with a creation to take home. Both end with a Certificate of Creativity. See arts and entertainment.
Wellington is the heart of the films, and there are tours for every amount of time. The four hour Lord of the Rings and Weta Workshop tour visits filming locations and the views from Mount Victoria. The half day tour visits the Outer Shire and the "Window into the Workshop" exhibition, and the full day tour adds more locations. Both need a minimum of two people per booking.
For the full experience, the immersive filming location tour is 6.5 hours, with the Embassy Theatre, Mount Victoria and a behind the scenes look at Weta Workshop. The full day tour with lunch is about eight hours and includes a café lunch. Some of the locations are down steep, unsealed tracks, so they're not suited to wheelchairs or mobility scooters. See things to do in Wellington.
The Lord of the Rings 4WD tour of the Wakatipu Basin is four hours along Skippers Canyon Road to Lighthouse Rock, with a river crossing and gold panning in the Arrow River. The Glenorchy tour visits locations from The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Narnia, with replica props to dress up in and Paradise Forest, the Forest of Middle-earth. The Glenorchy and Paradise explorer tour follows the Queenstown to Glenorchy road to Paradise Valley.
For a history tour of the same country, the Gold Rush tour of Skippers Canyon and the Shotover River is three to four hours in a luxury 4WD, with up to 11 guests. By air, the Mt Earnslaw helicopter flight passes country used in the films. See things to do in Queenstown and helicopter flights in Queenstown.
Browse tours and attractions, major attractions, city and scenic tours, Māori culture experiences and photography, or plan by region with the North Island, the South Island and things to do in New Zealand. Buying a gift? Try gifts for him, gifts for her, gifts for families, gifts for kids, gift ideas for groups and birthday gifts.
It depends on your time. The four hour tour with Weta Workshop is the shortest, the half day tour visits the Outer Shire, and the full day tours run from 6.5 hours to about eight hours with more locations. Check each product page for ages and accessibility.
Yes. The Hobbiton Movie Set day tour departs from Auckland and includes admission, a 2.5 hour guided tour and a drink at the Green Dragon Inn. It needs at least four people to run.
Photography is strictly prohibited in the tour spaces on the Wellington Weta Workshop tour. Check each product page for the rules on the tour you choose.
RedBalloon vouchers are valid for five years from purchase, so they can book when it suits them.