Kensington is marking the 25th anniversary of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring with a new itinerary built around the New Zealand locations that appeared in the trilogy. New Zealand’s Big Screen Landscapes runs 12 days and moves from the North Island’s hills to the glacial peaks of the South Island, stopping in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown.
“New Zealand has a way of making people feel as though they have stepped into another world, and that is exactly what this journey delivers,” said Helen Giontsis, President of Kensington, in a press statement. “The landscapes that captivated audiences on screen are even more extraordinary in person, and our guides bring both the scenery and the stories behind it to life. For anyone who has ever wanted to experience these places firsthand, there has never been a better time to go.”
Kensington’s Middle-Earth Adventure
The itinerary combines New Zealand’s scenery with the film locations that have drawn visitors to the country for a generation. Travelers tour the Hobbiton Movie Set, described as the largest outdoor film set in the world and the only Lord of the Rings set still standing in New Zealand. A guide leads the group through the 12-acre set and explains how the location was built and filmed.
In Wellington, a specialist guide points out Middle-Earth locations, including the gardens used as Isengard and the banks along the River Anduin, before the group visits the Weta Workshop. The trip also includes a stop at Mount Sunday, the high-country peak used as Edoras, the capital of Rohan.
Travelers ride the TranzAlpine train through the Canterbury Plains and river gorges to Arthur’s Pass, with a stop among the limestone formations at Castle Hill. In Queenstown, the group flies with the pilot who worked as principal aerial pilot on the original trilogy, landing on a glacier near the peaks used for the Misty Mountains.
Of note: The first 40 people to book New Zealand’s Big Screen Landscapes can also buy tickets to Hobbiton Movie Set’s The Lord of the Rings 25th Anniversary Celebration, set for Friday, Dec. 4, 2026. The event includes a guided tour followed by a festival at The Green Dragon Inn, with Hobbit-style food and entertainment.
For more information, visit kensingtontours.com.
