Spend the morning or afternoon visiting Middle-earth on this half-day 'The Lord of the Rings' tour from Wellington. A guide with insider knowledge entertains Frodo fans on a journey into the scenic New Zealand countryside. Get a behind-the-scenes look at LOTR movie production on a tour of Weta Studios and discover why director Peter Jackson selected this region to film the renowned trilogy along with ‘The Hobbit’ movies.

'Lord of the Rings' half-day tour from Wellington
Explore Middle-earth and see famous sights from 'The Lord of the Rings' movies
Take a behind-the-scenes tour of the Weta workshop, the studio that produced the special effects for the LOTR trilogy
Discover key LOTR-related locations such as Weta Workshop, Mount Victoria, and the Outershire

Why Travelers Choose This Tour

This half-day tour includes hotel pickup and drop-off, and lets you choose morning or afternoon departure.

What's Included

Pick up from Central Wellington or cruise terminal
Local and professional guide
Native forest walk
Weta Workshop exhibition tour

Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting points

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End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Start your half-day LOTR tour with hotel pickup in Wellington. Your guide is well-versed in 'The Lord of the Rings' and shares insider knowledge about the Wellington film industry.

Your first stop is Mt. Victoria to soak up the views of Wellington’s city center and harbor, continue into the heart of Middle-earth at the ‘Green Belt,' where you may recognize forest scenes such as ‘Get off the Road’, ‘Race to the Ferry’ and ‘Shortcut to Mushrooms.’

Next up is a tour of director Peter Jackson’s production facilities at Weta Studios, located in ‘Wellywood,’ the center of Wellington’s movie industry. With an expert guide leading the way, see the 'Windows into Workshop' exhibition, visit the Weta Cave and learn about props and make-up, before watching a short film about the extraordinary special effects featured in the movies.

Don’t miss the studio’s mini-museum and souvenir shop before concluding your tour in Wellington with drop-off at your hotel.

Embassy Theatre (Pass By)

Mount Victoria Lookout

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Mount Victoria

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Near public transportation
Infant seats available

Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
This tour is not wheelchair accessible
Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 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.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

4.5

225 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 225 reviews

Fabulous Miramar studios and movie locations

Ruth_S, Apr 2024

Fabulous tour with such detail and specificity! The whole studio complex is so understated given the immense number of successful productions emanating from it. Highly recommend!

Fantastic tour for Lord of the Rings fans.

Ivan_H, Apr 2024

Our guide was absolutely phenomenal. It was great because he was an extra in the Lord of the Rings movies (as well as many others that have been filmed in the area). He was a wealth of knowledge and a great source of behind the scenes information. I thoroughly enjoyed the tour.

Great

Frank_P, Apr 2024

Wonderful Tour with very experienced knowledgeable. Guide Weta workshop was amazing and to see the growth of these company was fantastic

Great tour

gsmacatawa, Apr 2024

Robbie, our guide, was very friendly and knowledgeable. We enjoyed hearing about his experiences as an extra on LOTR. Being an American, it was sometimes hard to understand everything he said, but we got most everything he said. I liked the walk we went on to see various shooting locations for LOTR. My husband really enjoyed the Weta tour.

Great LOTR adventure

Frank_S, Apr 2024

Robbie was an awesome tour guide.. His past experience as an extra on all of the Lord of the Ring movies as well as many others made for very interesting stories. His knowledge of the movie film sites and the whole film making process made this one of the best tours I've been on.

Fantastic tour and not to be missed!!

Margaret_Z, Mar 2024

The Driver/Guide Wywy (???) was highly knowledgeable and entertaining… his enthusiasm was infectious and obvious pride in this unique community. The WETA workshops were incredible. Loved every second… transportation prompt and excellent! Thank you!

An Excellent Adventure

Darri_G, Mar 2024

Really enjoyed this excursion. Grant, our guide, was one of the best we've had on this trip. Very knowledgeable and kind. We lagged behind several times due to a knee injury and he was very considerate to make sure we were okay and letting us catch up. Also gave us a chance to rest before moving on again. I really appreciated that. Only thing I would have changed was electing to do the full-day tour, but didn't think we had enough time to fit it in. Definitely a highlight of our trip!

Memorable experience that only Kiwis can provide, thanks for sharing it with us : )

Patrick_K, Mar 2024

We enjoyed the Weta studio tour and the workshop. Gathered a lot of information about the Kiwi movie history and how they are making such a name for themselves in the film industry. Fascinating!

The WETA surprise

Jeff_C, Mar 2024

Great tour of the WETA workshops. Had no idea New Zealand was so active in the motion picture business. Great way to see Wellington and some movie shooting locations around the city.

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Glad to hear you enjoyed your tour with us, Jeff!

Awesome

Troy_A, Mar 2024

Weta Workshop was more than I could have imagined. And our guide around Wellington was great. Really enjoyed hearing about the city and all of the behind the scenes info on LOTR

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thanks for the feedback. Glad you enjoyed your tour with us

Fun and informative tour

James_Y, Mar 2024

Enjoy the experience immensely with my daughter. The bus guides were informative and entertaining. The.WETA tour was quite surprising. They have had a big part in so many blockbusters. Quite impressive, and the work, and the attention to detail is extraordinary..

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thanks for the review!

Wonderful WETA and Wellington.

Gary_S, Mar 2024

The trip was just the right length. Our guide was very helpful. The sites were genuine and enjoyable.

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thanks for your feedback. Our half day tour is great for people with limited time in Wellington and we have our full day tour available for those with more time to explore

Amazing LOTR

Randie_C, Feb 2024

Never saw a LOTR's movie but this your was amazing!! I can't wait to get home to watch this trilogy! Nathan was so knowledgeable. I truly enjoyed this experience and would recommend to both affectionados if the films and novices.

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thanks for your review! Although we're all Lord of the Rings fans, we always want to include everyone of every interest level. So glad you enjoyed yourself!

Fun Wellington experience !

Chelsea_B, Feb 2024

Chewy was a great tour guide! Chewy gave a lot of fun facts about Wellington and lord of the rings. We enjoyed driving to mt. Victoria on the way to see some spots from the movie! Weta museum was super fascinating!

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thanks Chelsea! Chewy had to leave tourism behind during Covid but is back doing something he enjoys a lot more. Glad to know he's doing it well!

Awesome LOTRings Tour

Jojo_U, Feb 2024

Omg Chewy was sooo great and so informative totally enjoyed this tour so much to it you wil definately be amazed Wets tour is so awesome too and views are so good book it soon🤗🪶👍🏽

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thanks for your review, Jojo!

Great tour

Maria_C, Jan 2024

Our driver and tour guide was very knowledgeable of the place and of the scenes where some LTR were taken. Really enjoyed it. I will definitely rewatch the trilogy again.

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Thanks for the feedback.

LOTR comes to life again.

Debbie_A, Jan 2024

The most memorable was all of it. Nathan our guide was excellent. So glad he was leading the tour. Because we were on the cruise ship we didn’t have time for a full day and get other sights in. This was perfect and it was sad when we had to end the tour.

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Hi Debbie, i agree that Nathan guy is good. ;) Glad you enjoyed yourself.

Interesting look into how movies are made

Louis_F, Jan 2024

Enjoyed going to the WETA workshop and enjoyed seeing how special effects are made. Also, liked seeing where scenes from LOTR were filmed

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Thanks for the feedback.

Get Inspired

Carmelita_F, Jan 2024

We were fortunate to have a very passionate tour guide who made the visits to the Lord of the Rings film sites come alive. The Weta tour was filled with adventure and insight into the world behind the scenes. We were able to interact with Weta personnel and test our creative abilities.

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Hard to tell which guide you had because they are All passionate about what we do. Thanks for the feedback.

A great tour!

James_C, Jan 2024

The guides are super nice and knowledgeable and the workshop was incredible! We definitely recommend this to anyone visiting Wellington.

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Thanks for the feedback.

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