Have you ever been to Middle Earth? The fictional world created by J. R. R. Tolkien exists within the pages of his books but can also be visited on a trip to New Zealand. The country was the exclusive set for the shootings of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies and features several amazing places that can be visited by tourists that love the series.

All six movies on the franchise were shot in New Zealand thanks to all the unique visuals the landscape of the country offers. In order to depict the locations of Middle Earth, the shooting staff had to find a truly new place to work. Places all around New Zealand were used, including some that can be visited until nowadays.

The North Island was the chosen location to serve as the Shire, home of the hobbits. With beautiful green valleys, the perfect location found by the team to serve as the home of the peaceful race of the hobbits. Over there, were built the unique little houses with round doors where Bilbo, Frodo and other hobbits live. The village was torn down after the shooting of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but was rebuilt for The Hobbit. And it remains open for visitation until this day! The Shire is located in the Matamata region, a 2 hour car ride away from Auckland.

The mystical home of the elves, Rivendell, is actually a beautiful park named Kaitoke Regional Park. Whoever visits it can find many traces of Rivendell with the help of informative signs. The greatest advantage to this tour is the location: it’s on the same region as Wellington, the country’s capital.

Most of the takes that show Middle Earth in a panorama were shot in the Southern Lakes region of New Zealand. Actually, that’s also the place where the iconic Argonath’s scenes were shot: but don’t think it can be seen there, the statues were built using computer-generated graphics.

Whoever visits New Zealand can dive in on a whole new universe with a faithful experience in Middle Earth. What place do you want to see first?