Hobbit Tourism

With filming on The Hobbit confirmed to begin in March, New Zealand is preparing for another tourism boom. It is expected that Peter Jackson’s latest film creation will drive a renewed bout of Tolkien tourism. New Zealand experienced a major jump in visitor numbers following the release of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, with many tourists coming specifically to get a taste of Middle Earth. Filming of The Hobbit is planned to take place at Stone Street Studios in Wellington as well as in the village of Hobbiton — the Matamata town created for the Lord of the Rings movies. While Hobbiton will be closed to visitors for the duration of filming, visitors will still be able to visit other areas immortalised in the films including Tongariro National Park (Emyn Muil) and Mount Ruapehu (Mount Doom).