The last few days have been a bit of a whirlwind. After finishing our rafting trip, we headed into Rotorua and stayed the night there, eating at a great historic pub called the Pig & Whistle. (The pork was so, so good, but beware, the serving sizes are huge!) Cameras were left in the motorhome… so no pictures of it, sorry!

The next day (Wednesday) we had our Hobbiton tour booked in the evening. We were excited, but it was too early to check into our Airbnb so we explored some falls along the way – Okere Falls and Trout Pools. A lovely little walk (easy) with some impressive rapids and pools along the way, and a rafting trip screaming past every once in a while.

Having killed enough time, we headed to our AWESOME farmstay Airbnb. Highlights of the stay there were the dogs (so lovely) and the breakfast the next morning.

We didn’t get a photo of the breakfast Jenny (farm owner) brought over to us, but it was home cooked muffins, home made yoghurt with honey from the farm and fresh orange juice – free of charge. Amazing.

And now we get to the big part of this post. Honestly, the highlight of the trip for Kurt and a top three experience for Nicole…

Hobbiton

We opted for the evening banquet tour. Everything we had read before booking said it was a great experience, and even with those high expectations, we were still blown away.

It’s a commercial experience – you pay, you see the film set, you leave. It should feel a bit impersonal or perhaps a little fake. We were completely unprepared for how welcoming and initimate the entire experience felt. Being in the evening tour means you’re the last group through, so you get to see Hobbiton without the crowds, at a much more leisurely pace. And we took full advantage of that, enjoying the tranquility of the place, the feeling that a hobbit might run past at any moment.

Along on the tour were guides Sonny and Alice – and they were nothing short of spectacular at their jobs. Every hobbit hole had a history and a story, every corner and path was rich with tidbits of what was filmed there, and how it was crafted exactly that way because of the books, or Peter Jackson’s vision, or even to give the clever illusion of hobbit small-ness or Gandalf giant-ness.

When we completed our loop of Hobbiton, we wandered into the Green Dragon for our (surprisingly good) cider and our scrumptious, rustic meal. We ate like hobbits – so roast meats, roast veggies, gravies, breads, and finishing off with crumbles and cakes for dessert. Simple, but so well done.

After dinner, we got to enjoy sitting in the Green Dragon for a while, then we went on a walk through part of Hobbiton at night. It’s not lit, so you get little lanterns to light your way, and Sonny led the group in a really lovely moment near the Party Tree to end the experience. (I won’t ruin it, in case anyone decides to go.)

By the end, we were exhausted but so, so satisfied with the experience. There was honestly nothing they could have improved upon, and that’s a rare thing.

Even rarer, though, is that they managed to make a touristy experience feel magical, personal and comfortable at every step of the way. We’re still not entirely sure how they did it. But we highly recommend it.