Fans of “The Lord of the Rings” movies will love being immersed in the mythical universe for a day in the Wellington region. You’ll visit a number of places that appeared in the films, including rivers, forests, and a quarry. Spend time at Wētā Workshop, where the special effects for these films, and many others, were created and brought to life. This is a must-do tour for Tolkien enthusiasts.

Admire views of Wellington from the Mount Victoria Lookout
Hotel transfers and private transport are included
Listen to live commentary on board your tour bus
Cover many sights and activities on one easy day trip

What's Included

Driver/guide
Hotel pickup and drop-off
Live commentary on board
Transport by air-conditioned minivan
GST (Goods and Services Tax)

Bottled water
Coffee and/or Tea
Gratuities
Lunch

Meeting And Pickup

You can head directly to your preferred meeting point, or request pickup.

Meeting points

Select a meeting point

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Pickup points

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Start time

Opening hours

6/1/2022 - 5/31/2023
Monday - Saturday : 08:30 AM - 05:00 PM
Sunday : 08:30 AM - 04:30 PM
6/1/2023 - 5/31/2024
Monday - Saturday : 08:30 AM - 05:00 PM
Sunday : 08:30 AM - 04:30 PM

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Pickup details

CRUISE SHIP PASSENGER BOOKINGS: Your pick-up time will be 45 minutes after the ship has docked (even if your ship has been delayed or arrives early) with 8.45am being the earliest pick-up time. For the convenience of other guests, please ensure you arrive at the tour area promptly as the tour may not wait for you. Look out for the Xplor Tours guides who will greet you. NON-CRUISE SHIP PASSENGER BOOKINGS: Pick up times may differ from tour start times if there are multiple guest pick-up locations. We will contact you in advance of your tour with your estimated pick-up time if this is the case.

What To Expect

Mount Victoria

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Mount Victoria

40 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Weta Workshop Group Space

2 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Infants must sit on laps
Service animals allowed
Near public transportation
Stroller accessible

Not wheelchair accessible
At time of booking guests must answer: "Are you a cruise ship passenger?" (Yes/No)
Most travelers can participate
At time of booking if a guest has said they are a cruise ship passenger (Yes) they must provide the following information: "Cruise ship name" (free text box)
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 17 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

Reviews

4.5

37 reviews

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

Reviews by Viator travelers.

Showing 1-10 of 37 reviews

A very enjoyable tour!

Jonathan_S, May 2023

Enjoyed the tour a lot! Our guide was very knowledgeable about the area and brought us to some gorgeous remote areas for photos. A very enjoyable outing.

Response from Host, May 2023

Thanks for your review, and glad your enjoyed your tour.

Informative and fun tour

Mira_A, May 2023

The tour was very informative and fun. Our guide had good knowledge of the movies and pictures to illustrate the scenes that were shot in the places we visited. He also took photos of us recreating some scenes. The Weta Workshop was also amazing. So great to see how they make props and costumes. Our guide was also very devoted and tried to answer all our questions. We asked a question about a Maori word and he was extremely nice and searched information about the word after our tour and messaged it to us.

Response from Host, May 2023

Fabulous to hear Mira; this is what we strive to deliver. Thanks for taking the time to leave your great review.

Tour to visualise the hard work behind the movies

Rubina_Y, May 2023

Tour guide provided elaborate description of the spots and how it was related to the movies . Tour guide showed warm welcome to us through his ritual gesture which was overwhelming for us

Response from Host, May 2023

Thanks for your review Rubina. I am guessing Lester was your guide so I know he would have looked after you all well.

Great time, loved the tour

James_T, Apr 2023

We really enjoyed seeing where and how the movie was made. Guide was very knowledgable and had lots of pictures to show us from the making of the movie showing where we were.

Response from Host, Apr 2023

Thanks for leaving your review and good to hear you enjoyed the tour.

Great day for lord of rings fans

Neil_W, Mar 2023

What a great tour Highly recommend for any lord of the rings fan The full day tour is great, get to see numerous locations of where lord of the rings was filmed Our tour guide was excellent, knew all the locations etc Was a great day

Response from Host, Apr 2023

Thanks for leaving a review Neil. It's a good tour is you are a Lord of the Rings fan, for sure.

Absolutely recommendable

Marcel_G, Mar 2023

Nice guide with very good knowledge about different places for the Making of Lord of the Rings. The Weta studios are such a nice place

Response from Host, Apr 2023

It's a good tour for LOTR folk enthusiasts. Thanks for leaving your review for us.

Movie meets nature

Karen_H, Mar 2023

We could See where all the areas were that they used in the film and how they work the area to fit the scenes, More to filming than meets the eye.

Response from Host, Mar 2023

Thanks for your review Karen. Yes, it's a very interesting tour for Lord of the Rings fans. Glad you enjoyed it.

Wonderful insight to the filming of Lord of the Rings around Wellington

Richard_P, Feb 2023

We enjoyed been shown the exact locations that filming took place and our guide was very informative about what took place. Also seeing the work Weta are doing was amazing. A great day for all.

Response from Host, Mar 2023

It's a very interesting tour, particularly as we have the exclusive filming photos to show you at each of the filming sites. Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for your review

Not able to enjoy the full excursion as listed

Steven_K, Feb 2023

Spend too much time going around hotels to pick up additional passengers, where we were already 83% full upon leaving the cruise port. With a limited time we have in our cruise window, we missed a few key photo spots, as our excursion had to be cut short.

Response from Host, Feb 2023

Thank you for your review. I find it interesting that your tour had to be cut short. This should not happen as there is plenty of time to do the tour once all passengers are collected. None of my guides has informed me that they cut their tour short. If you could let me know what day and time your tour was, I will follow up with your guide.

A Great day visiting Weta Workshop & Lord of the Rings Filming Sites

Vicki_G, Feb 2023

Pick-up from the dock was on time and well-organized. Our guide, Lester, was kind, fun, informative and enthusiastic about showing us the Lord of the Rings filming sites along with photos of scenes filmed at each location. The tour of Weta Workshop was also most interesting. Highly recommend.

Response from Host, Feb 2023

Lester is a great guide. Glad he left you with a good memory of your time in Wellington. Thanks for taking the time to leave your review.

Really fun tour

J_m, Feb 2023

Really realy fun tour. Wayne even had the movie soundtrack along with blown up screen shots of each location from the movie. Fellow tour guide Lester (native Maori) treated us to a native Haka. If you dont know anything about the movies this is a great tour. If you are a true fan, Wayne makes this a fantastic, must see tour

Response from Host, Feb 2023

Sounds like Wayne and Lester are our dynamic duo! Good to hear they provided you with a memorable tour and good experience while you were in Wellington. Thanks for such a great review for them.

All in all a good and interesting tour

David_F, Feb 2023

Fun day with a lot of scenes, but the guide didn‘t know the films very well and we spent not very long at rivendell (about 10minutes?). WETA Workshops was cool.

Response from Host, Mar 2023

Thanks for leaving your review David. I suspect it may have been the first LOTR tour for our guide. Our apologies if this affected your experience.

Great half day tour.

Dan_L, Feb 2023

The tour was changed due to our ship changing it schedule, from a full day to half day. The tour guide do the best he could do with the half day tour. We were refunded the difference quickly.

Response from Host, Mar 2023

Yes, ships changing schedules at the last minute is very challenging for both tour operators and their customers. We're so sorry you didn't have enough time on shore to do the full tour, as it is considerably more comprehensive. Glad your partial refund from us came through without a hitch.

LOTR AND Wellington

Scott_R, Feb 2023

If you are a real LOTR FAN you will want to go on this tour. Our ship was not in the port long enough to see Rivendell and the sites an hour away from Wellington but that is not the tour’s fault. The guide showed a lot of different things around Wellington in addition to the LOTR site and the WETA workshop. Overall, it was good experience

Response from Host, Feb 2023

Thanks for your review Scott. Yes, it was a shame, as the Full Day includes so much more again. Please make sure you apply for the partial refund through Viator for the remaining time that was missed, as agreed.

Wonderful guide; fun day

Mary_N, Jan 2023

We had just the right amount of time at each site, and our guide was very knowledgable about LOTR and the shooting of the scenes we saw.

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Hi Mary Thank you for your review it is really appreciated. Glad you enjoyed the tour

A Bust!

John_M, Jan 2023

1st 2 hours were fine - visited several sites where Lord of the Rings was filmed. Then we had a quick lunch, as our driver was behind - we were 20 minutes late to pick up 2 people who had signed up to the afternoon session. Then we went to a studio that had little to do with Lord of the Rings. Fairly boring - when we were ready to leave, the van wouldn’t start - we asked our driver to call us an Uber, as it was too late for the next site (Victoria Mountain). Overall, a very disappointing experience! Would not recommend this tour!

Response from Host, Mar 2023

I remember this unfortunate tour. The first little thing goes wrong, then another. Our guide did his best to retrieve the situation. Within 20 minutes we had brought another vehicle to replace the hired van with the flat battery to continue the tour, but you had already left to go back to your hotel. We are very sorry you had a disappointing experience.

Enjoyable but Dated

Eleanor_C, Jan 2023

We enjoyed the tour and the guide was great. The WETA tour was excellent. However, the second half in which some of the outdoor filming sites were visited was disappointing, simply due to the amount of time that has passed. The sites have simply changed too much. Do yourself a favor and take the half day tour and skthe second half

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Hi Eleanor Thank you for your review it is appreciated. It has been over 20 years since the movie was filmed so the locations look a little different from then but with the pictures, we have, we try and give you a feel for what was filmed in those locations

Full day LORT tour

Eva_L, Dec 2022

Guide was punctual and polite. Tour was kinda draggy and boring to us. We expected a proper coach or tour van (as published) but we had an uncomfortable and rather stuffy small car. May want to consider upgrading to an ipad to show photos or videos instead of using an old school folder. The studio was disappointing. Not alot on LOTR but on shows most pple don't know. The space at the first few stations were so cramped that it felt very uncomfortable standing so close to other people. It also really pricey with no food. Compared to the Hobbiton tour experience @ the shire, that was alot better to us and money well spent. It cheaper than this tour.

Response from Host, Dec 2022

Eva I am sorry you did not really enjoy the tour. A car is used for up to 3 people and coaches for 4 or more. We have tried to use ipads in the past but there is an issue with glare and the pictures cannot be seen very well and the folders are used as it is easier to see. We have no control over what Weta Studios provide on their tour. With the tour cost by the time you take out the Viator commission, the Weta Cave fees, GST and taxes with 3 people the company is making a small return. I can understand that Hobbiton was a better tour experience as they have actual props on site, in wellington we have to use our photos to bring the experience to life.

Fun-filled personal tour of Lord of the Rings filming sites

Stephen_L, Dec 2022

Bus driver/tour guide Grant provided us with a custom tour of several of the Lord of the Rings filming sites. Grant was extremely knowledgeable and enthusiastic in sharing with us photos taken during the filming at the many sites which we visited. He shared with us many stories about the actors and filming which made the tour especially interesting and enlightening. Booking independent land tours via Viator throughout our Australia/New Zealand cruise was easy, provided excellent value, and allowed us to tour in small groups which is preferable to the large charter buses offered by the cruise lines.

Response from Host, Dec 2022

Thank you for your review. I am glad you had an enjoyable experience with Grant

Flexible and Greay Lunch

Ong_Z, Dec 2022

Richard was a great conversationalist and kept us engaged with little facts and stories. He was really flexible too, adjusting our schedule and ensuring we had plenty of time to take photos and have a good lunch. Awesome!

Response from Host, Dec 2022

Thanks for your review it is really appreciated. Glad you had a good time.