If you ask me why I wanted to visit New Zealand, I wouldn't deny that it's because I want to visit the Hobbiton! Having the middle earth experience at the Shire was definitely something on the top of my to-do list. It was also the cause of the most stressful day of the trip.
So we set off to Queenstown airport early in the morning to catch a domestic flight to Auckland. It was also the first time Miss Ting had her own seat (not that she was in her own seat though). The rental car dropoff area is not connected to the airport terminal by any shelter, it's a few minutes walk so be prepared for that if you are travelling with kids and have huge luggages. Check-in for Air New Zealand was self-service, which took us a bit of time since we were not familiar with how to tag our luggages.
The domestic terminal is quite small, with a few cafes and shops.
There's a well-equipped family room on the ground floor near the car rental counters. There's a microwave, changing table, children's toys and books, etc.
Snacks on Air New Zealand
We had a good flight on Air New Zealand, and soon landed on North Island which has a totally different landscape!
We had lunch at Hayama Sushi Bar in Auckland airport, simple and delicious! Somehow Japanese food suits Miss Ting's tastebuds the best.
So the big drama began after lunch. We picked up the rental car at the airport, and the process took us some time. The service staff was not very familiar with the car and wasn't very friendly as well. I requested for a change in the carseat position and that staff wasn't very happy about it. In any case, we managed to leave at 1pm, and given that we needed to check in for the Hobbiton tour at 4.15pm (150km away), seems like I've put in enough of a buffer right? Unfortunately the highway (which consisted of 1 lane for each direction) was jammed from Auckland to Matamata!! We were crawling at 20-30km/h for the longest time! I called up Hobbiton Movie Set tour and they told me that the tickets were sold out for the day, and that I should be able to make it in time (so positive!). But we didn't!
Thankfully we were really lucky that day and we managed to get tickets for a later slot. *tears of joy* Seriously I would have been so upset if I missed the tour. And we didn't have another day to come back again since the itinerary was very full.
We waited for the shuttle bus to pick us up and arrived at the Shire shortly. It's strictly guided tours only and there are tours starting every 15mins, so you will need to follow your guide closely. It's not the relaxing kind of tour and given that there's about 20 people for each tour, everyone was in a rush to take photos at every stop. It's too much of a rush if you ask me. But still, a great experience!
Hobbit Crunch ice cream available at the main reception area
The location where they filmed Bilbo Baggins' birthday party
To the Green Dragon for a drink
There's a small playground near the huge tree used for filming Bilbo's party. Not much time for free play though.
Bilbo Baggins' house
My little hobbit. The doors were the right size for her!
Apple Cider and non-alcoholic ginger beer are available at the Green Dragon for free!!
Love the props around the movie set. Miss Ting was happy exploring as well! If only I had more time to hang around! If there's a chance to visit again, I would go for the night tour for a different experience!
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