The fictional, yet globally famous, village of Hobbiton and the Waitomo Caves rank among the most popular sites of interest in New Zealand. On this tour, visit both sites in one day—see the home of Bilbo Baggins and explore Waitomo’s subterranean caverns—and enjoy personal attention from your guide on this limited to 15 people.

Visit Hobbiton and the Waitomo Caves from Auckland
Hit two of the North Island’s most famous attractions in one day
Limited to 15 people
Hassle-free round-trip travel from central Auckland

What's Included

Small Group and Fully Guided Tour
Bottled water
Snacks
Entry Tickets

Gratuities
Souvenir photos (available to purchase)
Lunch - opportunities to purchase along the way.

Meeting and Pickup

You can head directly to the meeting point, or request pickup

Meeting point

SkyCity Hotel Auckland
72 Victoria Street West, Auckland CBD, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
Please pick this location if your hotel is not on our list. We do not pick up from your hotel if it is not listed

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Start time

06:00 AM

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Pickup details

Pickups are from the below hotels only. If your hotel is not listed, please select your closest alternative and meet us there. If you are not sure where your closest alternative is, please contact us in advance so that we can advise you. If you have not yet booked a hotel then please select the Sky City hotel as your pickup location. You can update this once your hotel is booked by contacting us or amending your pickup directly through Viator. Note: our pickups begin 20 mins before tour start time so please check your confirmation for the exact pickup time from your chosen location as these will vary. Park Hyatt 05:40 AM Sofitel Viaduct Harbour 05:40 AM Hilton Hotel 05:40 AM M Social 05:45 AM Movenpick Hotel 05: 45 AM Adina Apartment Hotel 05:45 AM Copthorne Auckland City 05:45 AM Nesuto Stadium Hotel and Apartments 05:45 AM Pullman Auckland 05:45 AM SO/Auckland 05:45 AM JW Marriott Auckland City 05:50 AM Heritage Auckland 05:50 AM Ibis Budget Auckland Central (Pick up also for CityLife, Barclay Suites, Holiday Inn Express) 05:50 AM Crowne Plaza 05:55 AM Rydges Hotel 05:55 AM The Grand By SkyCity 05:55 AM SkyCity Hotel 05:55 AM Four Points by Sheraton 05:55 AM Grand Millennium Auckland 06:00 AM Mercure Hotel 06:00 AM Kiwi International Hotel 06:00 AM VR Auckland City, 188 Hobson Street 06:00 AM Cordis Auckland 06:05 AM Sebel Auckland Manukau 06:15 AM Passengers that miss their pick up will be required to meet the tour at the tour's first stop at their own expense to continue on the tour. No refunds will be given to late or no show passengers.

What To Expect

Auckland Central (Pass By)

Waikato Region (Pass By)

Hobbiton Movie Set

2 hours • Admission Ticket Included

Karapiro

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Otorohanga (Pass By)

Waitomo Big Bird & Miniature Animal Petting Farm

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Waitomo Glowworm Caves

1 hour • Admission Ticket Included

Auckland

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking, unless booked within 11 hours of travel. In this case confirmation will be received as soon as possible, subject to availability
Not wheelchair accessible
Children must be accompanied by an adult.
Minimum drinking age is 18 years.
Stroller accessible
Minimum numbers apply. There is a possibility of cancellation after confirmation if there are not enough passengers to meet requirements. In the event of this occurring, you will be offered an alternative or full refund.
A moderate amount of walking is involved.
Near public transportation

Due to uneven surfaces, this tour is not recommended for those with walking disabilities or using a wheelchair.
Infant seats available
Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately.
Children 7 years old and under are required to travel in a child safety car seat. If you don't have a car seat one can be provided, please contact us at least 24 hours in advance to arrange this.
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 16 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Featured review

Andra_B

We absolutely loved this tour! Hobbiton is amazing! I thought it would be just a Hollywood gimmicky kind of place but I would go there for a retreat if that would be possible. The caves were amazing. Truly something that we've never seen before. Our tour guide, Cam, was great! Very friendly, knowledgeable and on time. Would def recommend this tour to anyone that wants to make some good memories :) Although the time you're in the bus is quite long for 1 day, it's def worth it!

Reviews

5.0

682 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

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Showing 1-10 of 682 reviews

Great tour

Emerlito_I, Apr 2024

This is such a great tour. Greg our tour guide was so wonderful and even took us to a few more spots where we could take pictures. Highly recommended!

Waldemar_M, Apr 2024

Nice ride. Nice scenery. Never watched the movies. The caves are beautiful. Keep in mind there are a lot of tourists groups doing the tour.

Escape to Middleearth!

Linda_M, Apr 2024

We really enjoyed Don's stories and his singing. He is an excellent tour guide. He provided snacks and water and was very thoughtful with breaks for the restroom. It was a wonderful day.

Great day

Marlise_Z, Apr 2024

We loved Hobbiton. It was so beautiful and well done. The glow worm caves were beautiful as well. Transportation was comfortable and Matt was fun. It was a long day, but definitely worth it.

Worth the long day!

Catharine_H, Apr 2024

Anne was an excellent guide. I learnt more from her on the history of NZ than I did 4 hours at the museum! We were picked up on time and although it was a long day it was so worth it. We ended up going to Waitomo Caves first for some reason but this worked out better as it rained in the morning and we were in the caves so by the time we got to Hobbiton it was lovely and sunny. The glow worms were great - I had a low expectations but so worth the trip. Hobbiton was a real surprise- so lovely and we got to go into one of the homes and the attention to detail was incredible. My husband hadn’t seen LOTR and he was also Impressed with the tour so again well worth it.

Amazing Trip overall!

Praisye_E, Apr 2024

Our tour guide/driver Ann was amazing! She is very knowledgeable, friendly and has a great driving skill! We had a great day! Thank you Ann!

So happy these two spots

MELBA_D, Apr 2024

Waitomo cave is amazing and a must see. Hobbiton is awesome, what a stunning view. Our driver guide Husef was cool, knowledgeable and very informative about New Zealand. Thanks a lot Husef😄

Hobbiton was very...

Dale_P, Mar 2024

Hobbiton was very enjoyable even though we had never seen lord of the Rings. Was a little disappointed in the glow worms

Just have to do it

Asen_M, Mar 2024

Definetely worth it! For me this is the best thing that you can do in Auckland area, dont underestimate the caves, its shorter as a time but its lovely.

It is truly the best tour I had in New Zealand

Catherine_H, Mar 2024

Both the Hobbiton & Waitomo Caves are so unforgettable. I felt truly privileged to witness both. Suzanne who was our tour guide was very informative and brought up the major scenes of the movie that showcases each of the Hobbit dwellings we walked by. She also took a photos of us in front of the famously known hobbit house referred to as Bilbo's home including the opportunity to go inside and tour the entire home. What fun!. The Waitomo Cave is a must see. The tour is immensely informative and the glowworms and Waitomo Caves are impressive. I especially liked the experience of viewing the glowworms from the small boat.

A great day

Ravi_S, Mar 2024

The Hobbiton and Waitomo Caves were both excellent experiences. The day involved a lot of time on the road but our guide, Don, made it a very nice experience with his commentary, stories, and songs!

Great experience, short...

NANCY_C, Mar 2024

Great experience, short boat ride but interesting to see the caves & glow worms up close! Note, no photography allowed.

Incredible experience!

KrizzaMarie_V, Mar 2024

I had an amazing experience overall. Our tour guide, John, was extremely knowledgeable and made sure our trip was engaging.

Great experience!

Ulyana_M, Mar 2024

Great experience! Tour was on time, the driver/tour guide was very pleasant and took good care of entire group.

The whole Hobbiton...

Pamela_A, Mar 2024

The whole Hobbiton experience and the glowworm caves were amazing. A long but very enjoyable day. All the guides were good especially our driver guide Allessander.

Going in the hobbit hole...

Jordan_G, Mar 2024

Going in the hobbit hole was a nerds dream come true, and the boat ride in the cave was breathtaking. Both tour guides were fun and informative, as was the bus driver for the experience.

Enjoyed Both Attractions

Laura_F, Feb 2024

Having just a limited time in Auckland, we were thrilled to be able to visit Hobbiton and the Waitomo glow worm Caves in one day. Along the drive our driver, Grant, spoke a bit of NZ history as well as gave insightful information about areas we traveled. It was a wonderful experience.

Easy way to fit a bunch in one day!

Michelle_C, Feb 2024

Great day! Organized, easy, fun! Malcolm our driver guide was awesome, so friendly and knowledgeable. The guides at Hobbiton and the caves were great as well. We booked this as our second full (and final) day in Auckland before heading down to the south island. It was so nice to just relax and be taken around rather than attempting this ourselves, highly recommend.

Hobbiton and Waitomo

Sunil_J, Feb 2024

A memorable experience. And our guide Alexander added that extra bit to ensure the day was made so much more interesting with his humorous and witty entertaining comments.

Fantasy to Nature

Matt_Y, Feb 2024

What an awesome trip. Alexandro was the best. He was funny and full of information. No words to explain how cool Hobbiton is and how beautiful the Waitomo caves. It was a very long day but worth every minute. Our driver made plenty of rest stops and our group was anazing to spend 12 hour with. This tour is a MUST!!!

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