Wellington's Original LOTR Experience - includes Weta and Lunch
Description
Enjoy a full day, all-inclusive adventure in Wellington, the home of middle-Earth. Visit some amazing locations from the Lord of the Rings movies, enjoy a delicious lunch and visit the famous Weta Workshop, where the films were created. We are Wellington's original Lord of the Rings tour and have been operating since 2002. Formerly Rover Rings Tours [before Covid], Welly Rings Tours is proud to show you Wellington as Middle-earth. Our fans-turned-guides will share with you fascinating stories of the making of these movies that you likely won't hear anywhere else - mainly because some of our guides were actually there!
Tour Options
Itinerary
Delve into the heart of Wellywood and visit the Weta Workshop, a physical effects workshop who created all the props, armour, weapons, costumes, miniatures and prosthetics for the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies. Learn the secrets of movie magic on a behind-the-scenes tour by a Weta employee, who will explain the creative process behind bringing these films to life. You'll also have chance to take photos with various characters and weapons, as well as treating yourself to a souvenir or two, if desired.
Enjoy a stunning panoramic view of the harbour and city from the Mt Victoria lookout. Your guide will talk about the landmarks you can see from the top and help you take photos. Mt Victoria is always on the list of things to do in Wellington, so we thought we'd save you the trouble of walking up the hill to get there!
Drive past the Embassy Theatre that was used to host two world premieres of the Middle-earth movies - The Return of the King and An Unexpected Journey. Your guide will share stories and pictures of how Wellington was transformed literally into the middle of Middle-earth.
Descend into the forested slopes of the nearby Outer Shire, where our expert guides will explain the process of film making and entertain you with stories of how the Lord of the Rings movies were brought to life. You will follow in the footsteps of Frodo and the Hobbits as they began their quest to destroy the One Ring. You will see the "shortcut to mushrooms", "get off the road" and hide from the Black Riders before fleeing to the Buckleberry Ferry. You will have the chance to recreate some of the most famous scenes from The Fellowship of the Ring and make your social media streams go crazy!
Enjoy a feast fit for a Hobbit to recharge your batteries for more film locations in the afternoon
See a section of the Great River Anduin as the Fellowship make their way to Parth Galen
Harcourt Park aka The Gardens of Isengard. Here you will see how this normal, everyday park was transformed into the scenes where Gandalf rode to Saruman seeking council and the wizards walked through the gardens discussing their situation. This is also where the orcs began felling the trees once it was revealed Saruman had turned to the dark side...
Kaitoke Regional Park, a stunning, thousand year old, temperate rain forest. This was used as the location for the beautiful Rivendell, the last homely house east of the sea. Here you will immerse yourself in the magical setting and learn how the area was transformed into Elrond's house, Frodo's bedroom and the bridge where Arwen and Aragorn share a kiss. You can release your inner Elf and snap a photo reenacting a famous Legolas image and then recreate the scene where Frodo leads the newly formed Fellowship towards Mordor by posing in front of the Rivendell gate tower which is the only Lord of the Rings replica structure in the whole of New Zealand outside of Hobbiton. You will also see a scene from the Fords of Isen, where Eomund was found by Eomer at the start of The Two Towers, and have a chance to cross a swing bridge and visit a giant 800-year-old native Rimu tree and learn something of New Zealand's flora and fauna.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
Be aware that pick up may be arranged up to 15mins before or after the scheduled departure time. This will be communicated to you 24-48 hours before your tour. For anyone arriving by cruise ship, we can pick-up and drop-off directly from the port. Please select Cruise Ship Port when booking and advise your ship name. Please be ready at the main entrance of your hotel unless otherwise informed - some hotel pick ups will involve meeting a few meters away so we can stop safely. Please note that we can't pick up from every hotel or AirBnBs around the suburbs. If your hotel is not listed, enter your own pick up location and we will contact you to advise the best place to meet. If you are staying outside Wellington City and plan to drive into town, we recommend parking on Barnett Street next to Te Papa Museum.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Not recommended for participants with walkers or limited mobility
- Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
Reviews(598)
If you’re a Lord of the Rings fan and coming to NZ, I would go to Wellington just to do this!! The weta workshop was amazing and then visiting all of the locations around Wellington where LOTR was shot was breathtaking. Our guide Sarah was so knowledgeable of not just LOTR but also Wellington and all of the surrounding areas. She brought props for photo opportunities at filming locations as well as snacks and drinks for everyone along the way. Truely an unforgettable experience and I can’t recommend this enough.
I enjoyed my tour around Weta Workshop. The weather was rainy, but it was still good to look around filming locations for The Lord of the Rings.
Such a fun day out!! Our guide (Natalie(?) was incredibly knowledgeable and fantastic at getting loads of photos to capture the day- super helpful for solo travellers such as myself!
It was Natalie that took you out. She is such a delight to be around isn't she ;) Thanks for the feedback.
We're big LotR fans, but it's worth mentioning there were people on this trip who'd never seen the movies or read the books (not sure how that's possible, but it happened), who also had a great time on this movie. "Frenchie", our guide, was an extra on the film, playing "around twenty elves, and a black rider in one scene", to hear him tell it, and the behind-the-scenes stories and lore alone were worth the price of the tour. Add to that the official locations, and the tour and history of Weta, and it was a day to remember.
We designed the tour to satisfy any LOTR fan but keeping in mind we still get a lot of people who haven't seen the movies or just bits of them so the tour is packed with lots of stories and scenery that are interesting for anyone. Thanks for the feedback.
This tour was simply phenomenal! Talk about hitting all of the most important parts of Wellington in a day! We visited so many film sites and learned so many cool Lord of the Rings facts that we had never heard of despite being die hard Lord of the Rings fans. The tour guide also provided costumes and props to make our experience extra fun. WETA workshop was a beauty in and of itself. You cannot take photos on the first half of the tour, but Saurons armor was probably the most incredible work of art I’ve seen and I was so happy to view it up close and take in every detail. The lunch that we stopped at was also spectacular and was off of a very cute Lord of the Rings menu. It was one of the best dining places we’ve done in New Zealand so far. The Legolas Lembas Bread option was particularly a favorite among my family.
I have spent 20 years refining this tour ;) Glad it meet your expectations. As many of us worked on the films we have stories and information that you just can't find anywhere else. LOTR is such a great vehicle to show off the beautiful region we live in. We try to make the included lunch a feature as a fellowship needs its fuel when adventuring. Thanks for the feedback.
The tour was so worth it. Wellington’s weather was not playing nicely, but Marc was an exceptional tour guide who shared interesting stories and experiences while showing us film locations. It is a tour I would happily do again!
The record is coming back to do the tour 3 times!!! Marc knows his stuff and is a great host. Thanks for the feedback.
Marc was amazing. Very knowledgeable, funny and a great guide to spend the day with. Our son simply loves Marc, and even though we have been travelling for over six months, been on over 150 tours, Marc is in his top three.... Thank you, Marc, for an amazing day
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We're thrilled to hear that you and your family had such a great day in our tour. Knowing that Marc ranks among your top guides after more than 150 tours, is truly humbling. We are lucky to have a lot of amazing guides. We'll be sure to pass on your kind words to Marc. Thank you for choosing to explore Middle-earth with us, and we hope to welcome you back to Wellington for another adventure someday! Ngā mihi, The Wellington Rings Tours Team
Unmissable for any LOTR fan!!! Robbie is one of the best storytellers that I have ever met - his extensive participation as an extra in the LOTR trilogy made him an absolute insider… Do not hesitate to book this tour! The connection that you’ll experience to actual filming locations (where your imagination takes over and transports you back to the movies) is astounding!! Highly, highly recommended - the 8 hours passed by in the blink of an eye.
Thank you Philip so much for your fantastic review! We're delighted to hear that you enjoyed your day exploring Middle-earth with Robbie. His firsthand experience on the films and passion for storytelling truly make the locations come alive. It's wonderful to know that the tour helped transport you back into the world of The Lord of the Rings. Thank you for your recommendation, and we hope to welcome you back to Wellington one day. Ngā mihi, The Wellington Rings Tours Team
This tour was excellent. There were multiple locations used around Wellington, and we visited them all. From some of the River Anduin scenes, to where the Hobbits tumbled down the side of the hill as they are escaping Farmer Maggot. Even the spot where they hid under the tree from the black rider, though this tree was just a prop in the film you can still see where they hid. This was just in the morning. Then to top it off we drove past Stone Street Studios (where the looked to be setting up for the Hunt for Gollum) which was cool and then onto Weta Workshop to see all the props and how they were made for the films even getting the chance to pick up some swords and dress up. And it was interesting to see some of the other projects that Weta have worked on, not just Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit Lunch was included and afterwards, we visited the Forrest where Rivindell was filmed, took pictures and got to dress up and get some great photos. We also got to drive past the quarry where Helms Deep and Minas Tirith were built however since this is a working quarry there is no public access. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and interesting and even had some behind the scenes stories as she worked on the Lord of the Rings films. Overall an excellent day
Thank you Naila for taking the time to share your experience! We're so pleased you enjoyed discovering the filming locations around Wellington and getting a glimpse behind the scenes of the movies. From iconic scenes at Mont Victoria to Wētā Workshop and Rivendell.... It sounds like you made the most of the day. We'll be sure to pass your kind words on to your guide. One of the things that makes our tours special is that many of our guides were directly involved in the films, whether as extras, in production, or helping create the magic behind the scenes. Thank you for choosing to explore Middle-earth with us, and we hope to see you again on a future adventure. Ngā mihi, The Wellington Rings Tours Team
Jacks enthusiasm and knowledge really made this tour special! Thanks so much for taking me around Wellington and sharing all the info on the LotR sights. I would recommend this tour to anyone, was a lot of fun!
Thank you Brody for your kind review! We're thrilled to hear you had such a great time with Jack. His passion for The Lord of the Rings and wealth of knowledge help bring the stories and filming locations to life, making every tour a unique experience. Thank you for recommending us, and we hope to see you back in Middle-earth again someday! Ngā mihi, The Wellington Rings Tours Team
