18 Lord of the Rings (LOTR) Film Sites on New Zealand North Island
Port Waikato – Weathertop
The longest river in New Zealand is the Waikato River at 425 kilometres, and Port Waikato is wherever the river reaches the sea. The Lord of the Rings Weathertop Hollow was filmed at the rock development.
Kiwis visit this coastal city for the seashores, surfing, and contemporary seafood. The seashore is also call Sunset Seaside where you get to see the most breathtaking sun-setting demonstrate in New Zealand.
Matamata – Hobbiton
Matamata is a smaller rural town known for their Thoroughbred horse breeding and teaching. Now, it is more referred to as the Hobbiton, many thanks to Lord of the Rings movie.
As the precise movie website is located on private land, no individual visits are authorized. To get to Hobbiton, you will will need to go for a guided tour. Registration can be finished at Matamata I-Internet site.
Tongariro Nationwide Park – Mordor
This is the to start with National Park in New Zealand, and fourth in the entire world. It is also a World Heritage spot with crucial inbound links to Maori cultural and spiritual associations, as very well as its volcanic features.
Tongariro Alpine Crossing is the most well-liked one particular-working day tramp in New Zealand. This route is a portion of the Tongariro Northern Circuit, one of the 9 Terrific Walks in New Zealand. This crossing usually takes about 7 hours of constant going for walks and necessitates a excellent physical fitness level.
Whakapapa Ski Field – Mordor and Emyn Muil
Whakapapa and Turoa make the largest ski resort in New Zealand through wintertime. But during other seasons, Mount Ruapehu is just an place entire of mountainous volcanic rocks, with minimal exercise.
The alpine temperature circumstances are unpredictable and changeable around the day. Even if you are going in the center of summertime working day, you can however locate un-melted snow all over the location.
Ohakune – Ithilien and Mordor
Ohakune has wealthy volcanic soil, which allows the declare to the largest carrot generation in New Zealand. Try spotting the Huge Carrot close to city you will appear so tiny beside it!
Ithilien is situated at Turoa Ski Field Street aka Ohakune Mountain Highway Scenic Generate. To get to the movie web-site, you will require to journey as significantly as the Mangawhero Falls.
Rangitikei River Gorge – River Anduin
The river begins from the Kaimanawa Ranges (southeast of Lake Taupo), flows through Central Plateau and out at South Taranaki Bight at Tangimoana, 40 kilometres southeast of Wanganui.
Steep vertical cliffs, deep canyons boulders and historical shellfish make a one of a kind location for experience pursuits. The earth-famed attraction, Gravity Canyon, is situated here.
Waitarere Forest – Trollshaw Forest and Osgiliath Wood
The Waitarere Forest is at the south of Foxton on the Kapiti Coast. This is a person of the lesser-identified forest observe and not so popular for travellers. If you want to go in, do deliver adequate food stuff, h2o and a GPS together.
Kapiti Coastline, on the other hand, is a popular holiday getaway web site for numerous Kiwis. It is about an hour from Wellington town, and you can get stunning sea sights, superb sunsets, with an untouched indigenous forest and dramatic landscapes.
Otaki and Otaki Gorge – Leaving the Shire
I had the impression I went someplace in Otaki the moment for a camp. It was an outdoorsy camp and they advisable not to deliver valuables. There is no reception for any cellular cell phone possibly.
There are many tracks that go from Otaki Gorge Road down to the gorge. Nonetheless, the precise spots employed to clearly show the Hobbits leaving the Shire in The Fellowship of the Ring are not accessible by public.
Paraparaumu – Pelennor Fields
It is a tiny suburban city around Wellington. The Maori name parapara implies food items scrapes, and umu is an earth oven. It almost certainly refers to the arrival of a war celebration and located only number of scrapes of food stuff in abandoned earth ovens.
The shut up pictures for Struggle of the Pelennor Fields in Lord of the Rings were being filmed at Queen Elizabeth Park around Paraparaumu and the paddocks around MacKays Crossing. You can also test out the Wellington Tramway Museum right here on weekends.
Mt Victoria – ‘Get off the road’ and ‘Escape from the Nazgul’
Go up Mount Victoria (Mt Vic for quick) to get an fantastic check out of the city, Cook dinner Straits and harbour. It is rather a lengthy uphill wander. Test Metlink bus #20 on weekdays if you do not travel and seriously want to examine out the check out.
I consider I went up the moment or two times by motor vehicle, enjoyed the see and wind even though I was there, but not a lot impact of it now. You can also pass through Mount Victoria Tunnel when travelling between metropolis centre and airport.
Mt Victoria and Lyall Bay – Dunharrow
If my memory is appropriate, this was a single of the internet sites I went to on Wellington Rover Excursions. Considering the fact that I are not able to even recall the specific scenes from Lord of the Rings, I never have significantly impression of this spot.
The close-up photographs for Dunharrow were being filmed at this location when the vast shots were filmed in the South Island. Movie outcomes have a way of merging the different scenes with each other seamlessly!
Fernside – Lothlorien and Gladden Fields
Fernside’s gardens was proven all-around 1870 and attributed to English designer Gertrude Jekyll. The peaceful and tranquil gardens and the guy-created lake suited the portrayal of LOTR Lothlorien – dwelling of the Elves – perfectly.
Do be aware that this internet site at South Wairarapa is not open up for informal visits. You will have to have to go for their organised back garden tours to get in.
Putangirua Pinnacles – Dimholt Highway
The special aspect of Putangirua Pinnacles is the ‘badlands erosion’. It is a stunning landscape shaped around time as streambed uncovered levels of gravel to rain and floods. The rocks that are much more resistant formed the pinnacles.
Check out out the viewing platform in close proximity to the base of the pinnacles. The top rated bush wander observe to the viewing system previously mentioned the Pinnacles formations has already been shut for basic safety factors.
Kaitoke Regional Park – Rivendell
Between all the movie web-sites in North Island, this is my favourite. Possibly I seriously like the fantasy Rivendell. Someway, Kaitoke Regional Park has the ethereal seem, not positive if it is since this place was utilized as Rivendell.
The park is found at the foothills of Tararua Ranges, with lots of mature native trees this kind of as beech, rata, and rimu. Best issue about this put, the “magical tranquillity” remained virtually the very same for centuries.
Harcourt Park – Isengard Gardens and Orc Tree
Other than the lovely park, the unique feature of Harcourt Park is that it showcases an example of the Wellington Fault – one of the 4 main energetic fault strains functioning as a result of the Wellington Region.
The Wellington Fault final ruptured about 200-450 several years back, with repeating intervals each 500-1000 yrs, and moves 4-6metres every single time. Also, vertical floor motion will cause variance in terrace heights.
Hutt River – River Anduin and Rohan River
The scenes are filmed in a number of sites alongside Hutt River, with the important place involving Moonshine and Totara Park. Wellington Fault activity in the previous 2 million decades weakened the bedrock and formed the river floodplain.
A way to comply with the river is to stroll all or aspect of the Hutt River Trail. Small stroll will be accessible by way of Moonshine Bridge to the bank of Totara Park. Extended stroll (~24km) will be from Petone in the direction of Upper Hutt.
Fort Dorset – Bree
Bree is filmed at an previous army base in the suburb of Seatoun. Very little is remaining from the set and this area is also not accessible by community. The closest check out is from the finish of Burnham Road and walk all around the seashore.
Dry Creek Quarry – Helm’s Deep and Minas Tirith
Dry Creek Quarry is situated on the Western Hutt Highway to Haywards Hill Road. Do observe that the set has been taken off and the quarry is now operational once more. Of course, it is not available by general public also.
