Just curious - Hobbiton/LOTR on New Zealand ABD?

[luvavacation]

New Zealand is a dream for me. My husband is finally starting to seriously consider it.

We have done one ABD before, the Danube cruise. My husband really liked that, so New Zealand with ABD is a strong possibility, though the price is OMG staggering!

Still, the itinerary and activities look fantastic, and I have started pricing things out on my own and not seeing huge differences in pricing with other tour groups, either, of similar quality.

The one thing though that I can not find on the ABD itinerary (Adult Escape) is Hobbiton/LOTR excursions. Does ABD not include these stops?

My family are huge LOTR fans, and if I get to New Zealand, I am going to go see Hobbiton, but adding more cost onto an ABD trip is somewhat daunting and I may need to consider other tour companies if ABD does not include this excursion.

Am I just not seeing the description in the itinerary? Or is ABD not doing anything LOTR related?

 

[sayhello]

You are not missing it in the descriptions. We've had this discussion elsewhere on this board, and the guess was made that ABD really can't (or at least won't) include LOTR-specific activities because Disney does not own the rights to LOTR. That may not be the reason, but it seems likely to be at least part of it.

I did the New Zealand ABD this past March, and it IS a fabulous itinerary! I had a friend who grew up in New Zealand look at it, and she agreed it hit the highlights, and included a lot of out-of-the-way places that not most tours go to. There *was* a jeep tour in Glenorchy where they mentioned some of the places we were going past that were LOTR filming sites, but that was the extent of the LOTR references. And that jeep tour is not a part of the itinerary any more (their jeeps really weren't set up to sight-see as they drove, just for getting from spot to spot). There's no jeep tour for the 2023 itinerary, and the 2024 itinerary has a new one that I'm just not familiar with.

So the answer is yes, ABD is not doing anything LOTR related. If you want to explore LOTR-connected sites while you are in New Zealand, you are going to have to do that on your own. I went to Hobbiton on one of my pre-days, and it was TOTALLY worth it!! Such an amazing, fun day! (Plus the extra, added benefit of an entire history lesson on New Zealand and some of it's politics from our Kiwi van driver on the way there and back again!) Others did LOTR-themed tours that showed off other filming sites.

So if your main reason to go to New Zealand is as a LOTR tour, ABD is not the one for you. But if you want to see a great deal of this gorgeous country, experience some great insights into the culture of New Zealand, visit some amazing sites, and fall in love with the people and the country of New Zealand, then this trip is for you. Yes, it's more than pricey. But I felt it was totally worth it!

I'm in the process of posting my trip report for the New Zealand ABD:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/t...-abd-march-13-24-2023-updated-9-3-23.3915080/

Also, there are two other wonderful reports out there:

One by @Grifdog22 & @Mathmagicland :
https://www.disboards.com/threads/new-zealand-october-november-2022-trip-report.3901397/

and one by @Eastridge :
https://www.disboards.com/threads/new-zealand-dec-25-2022-report.3906877/

Note that there are some minor changes to the 2023 itinerary from the 2022 version, and a couple of larger changes to the 2024 itinerary. Be sure and note which Season the trip you are looking at is from, because the early 2024 dates (through March 2024) are actually considered part of the 2023 Season.

Let me know if you have ANY more questions! I'd be happy to answer, as I'm sure the others who have been on this amazing trip will be, also.

Sayhello

 

[luvavacation]

Thank you, Sayhello! That was very helpful!

I am putting together some talking points with which to approach my husband as I talk up New Zealand, and I am bummed that Hobbiton/LOTR is not a part of the ABD tour. I had hoped there were new rumours of it being included for 2024, but I suppose there aren't.

We really liked the ABD Danube cruise experience, hence the expectation of an amazing ABD New Zealand, but I may have to search around now for other tours that do include a LOTR experience and see how they compare. This is a lot of money to spend for 2 people, so I want to be sure it will be totally "worth it" for a once in a lifetime trip to New Zealand, and that starts by making sure our must-sees are a part of that big expense.

 

[Mathmagicland]

If you want an itinerary that focuses on LOTR sites, check out this company. I don’t know anything about them but they have tours of various sites, lengths, and islands depending on what you might want to see.

https://www.redcarpet-tours.com/lotr-tours/14-day-lord-of-the-rings-tour


I echo everything @sayhello said about the NZ AbD, it is fabulous! My guess on why Disney does not include Hobbiton is that not everyone is a major fan, and it would take something else away like the glow worm caves. While grifdog22 and I did the Hobbiton tour before the AbD, a couple of folks on our tour caught a Hobbiton tour out of Rotorua by missing the zip lining activity one afternoon. It is a shorter bus ride from there.

Happy planning!

 

[Karin1984]

I have been looking at the Red Carpet tours for years. They look amazing.

I used to have a colleague who has done the 14 day one multiple times. Huge LOTR fan. She always came back with lots of stories.

 

[JulesR1212]

How comfortable would you be renting a car and driving? Matamata is about a 2 hour drive one way from Auckland. If you did ABD you could always fly in a day or two early and visit Hobbiton on your own. Hobbiton provides their own guides so you'd just need to get there. I highly recommend an evening banquet tour.

If self driving is not an option this page could help: https://www.hobbitontours.com/plan-visit/transfers/

I've done a Red Carpet Tour. If you are in the market to do an exclusively LOTR tour, they are the absolute best. They have exclusive rights to many locations (hiking to the top of Edoras) and often have special guests that were involved in production.

 

[luvavacation]

Oh thank you all for the options!

I will explore it all and see what we feel will suit us best.

I really love all this planning!

 

[JulesR1212]

Oh thank you all for the options!

I will explore it all and see what we feel will suit us best.

I really love all this planning!

The planning is so fun!

Whatever you chose to do, New Zealand is a beautiful country. You will have an incredible time.