Half Day Arrowtown And Gibbston Lord Of The Rings Film Locations

Loved this tour. We got to know many behind the scenes stories of filmmaking. Also all visited locations were amazing.

Loved this tour. We got to know many behind the scenes stories of filmmaking. Also all visited locations were amazing.

Great experience, good tour guide - Eby. Would love to come here again with family

Eby was a fantastic guide. Lots of fun and very informative.

Eby (Sméagol) was an excellent and knowledgeable guide. Very friendly, we thought he was very humorous. He made the trip very enjoyable and we felt looked after. Very glad we came along.

The sites, information shared and wealth of knowledge was amazing! Thank you to our guide Ben. If you are a LOTR fan this is a must!

If you are interested in the Hobbit and the Trilogy, this is the tour for you. Eby was amazing and knowledgeable.

Fantastic tour! Eby, our guide, was super passionate and incredibly knowledgeable about the locations and Lord of the Rings. Remarkable, actually, the stories he told and the background to the Lord of the Rings filming project and story. It felt like being guided by a knowledgable friend. Highly recommended! Thanks!

Great to drive around and see so many lotr filming locations. Benji was a great guide and knew so much about the films/books/production, I learned so many new things! Loved the props and dressing up. And the views were great too.

Really enjoyed this tour. Our tour guide Eby was super friendly and knowledgeable and had a good sense of humour, and tailored the tour so we could get the most out of our time. Good for people really into the movies, lots of interesting background into the making of the films. Stunning views of the area surrounding Queenstown

Definitely well worth it if you love Lord of The Rings! Our Guide Eby was excellent, very knowledgeable and fun. I would not hesitate to book one of the other tours.

We had a fantastic morning on the half-day tour! It was awesome to see some of the locations from the films without having to go too far from Queenstown or spend an entire day of our trip away from the family. Our guide Eby (Smeagol) was so wonderful - friendly, enthusiastic, and super knowledgeable. We will definitely be booking another tour with Southern Trails next time we are in the area!

Eby is a fantastic guide leading us to several filming spots of the triology. I would recommend this tour to LOTR fans/nerds

We had so much fun on this tour. Eby was very knowledgeable and friendly. Half day was a good length, there was a good amount of stops, convenient pick up. Was fun to get photos and videos with the props. Eby did a great job making it a memorable experience for us. Thank you!

Interesting tour and excellent coverage of LOTR and also part of city and town tour. The guide person Eby is wonderful and awesome. I hghly recommend this tour and company!

Small group tour of LoTR sites near Queenstown. 7 in the group, the van could have taken a few more. Tour guide Eby was knowledgeable, friendly, and energetic. He adapted to the group and the weather. We saw sites from the LOTR movies and learned back story on the making of the movies. All very interesting. My wife is not a LoTR fan, but very much loved the landscapes and the stories of movie making. At one point replica props from the movies where brought on - fun to see as where original scripts.

I was a last minute member of the group tour. It was replacement for another activity, and I signed up for the scenic views. Havenot watched the movies or read the books, but still, I loved the trip. Additional to the stunning post snowfall afternoon, our guide Eby was excellent! He made the tour fun even for me, as did all of our co travellers. I'd definitely recommend you taking this tour. LofTR fans or not, you can surely do this trip if your guide is one like Eby along with fun co travellers!

Absolutely amazing experience. Even as a big Lord of the Rings fan, there were stories and insight into the making of the movies I had never heard before. Eby was awesome and knowledgeable. Would recommend to everyone

Our guide Eby was awesome! Lots of behind the scenes stories and very enthusiastic. I highly recommend this tour!

Eby was the best tour guide. I highly recommend it. Thank you for sharing all the stories

Bengy was an excellent guide. Very informative and entertaining

Eby was a fantastic and very knowledgeable tour guide, very enjoyable!

Ebi did a good job. He worked hard to accommodate all his guests and see to their comfort definitely book this if you are a LOTR fan.

I have always liked eBay but I liked Eby (our guide) more. Everything went smooth, they picked us up on time. Explained from the start about everything not just lord of the rings. It was immersive and comforting. Eby was funny and interesting. Would recommend 10/10.

My partner and I both highly recommend this tour- one of the best we’ve ever done! Our guide Benji, was absolutely fantastic and made sure both of us, with different levels of knowledge had an amazing time! Benji really knows his stuff and his passion and energy is infectious. His LOTR quiz kept my partner on his toes, plus he shared with us lots about the geography of Queenstown. Although we’ve visited many times before, we now have an even deeper appreciation and awe of the town, and surrounds. Expect fun quiz questions and riddles, visit filming locations from the movies, accompanied by scripts, costumes and so many weapons. Stunning photos and opportunity to reenact some scenes if you want to. The vibes were high and the scenery majestic- we both give it a 10/10! Thank you Benji!!

Great experience. Eby was an excellent guide!

Amazing tour guide! Husband came along to support me and ended up having just as much fun as i did. 100% recommend :)

As a Lord of the rings fan this tour was so much fun and I would definitely recommend booking!! Eby was a fantastic tour guide and gave us all the filming and location information in full detail.

Bengy is my guide. He’s very informative about Tolkien’s world

Gorgeous views of all of Queenstown and some nice hidden gems throughout with good info (not just of LOTR) and a brilliant guide. Couldn’t recommend highly enough. Really enjoyed it - thanks Eby!

One of the best tours we've done. Absolutely stunning views throughout and so much insight into the making of the Lord of the Rings. Our guide was Eby, and he was fantastic, he was welcoming, engaging, enthusiastic and clearly loved both his job and Middle Earth and very genuinely came across as enjoying getting to share it with others. Would highly recommend this tour for all fans of LoTR, but also for people who want to see some of the beautiful scenery around Queenstown. We would absolutely do this tour again.

Eby was a fantastic knowledgeable guide and we had an amazing time visiting the locations and trying out all the props. Great atmosphere and value for money. Would highly recommended doing this tour!

Amazing morning with Benji exploring Middle Earth! Trivia, cosplay and lots of photos and laughs along the way!! What better way to nerd out and spend a morning!

Just finished a tour with Eby and he was great! Warm, friendly, passionate and incredibly knowledgeable. Was a wonderful experience and the kids really enjoyed chatting and quizzing Eby too!

Great guide!. Know a LOTR very well. Great scene from LOTR.

We actually did two tours through these guys. We were so impressed with the first one, that we booked the second half day tour to end our trip on. We were on the fence initially, as we like Lord of the Rings, but aren't really die-hard fans, but thought that the scenery you get to see would make it worth it anyway - and we weren't wrong! Both tours were through amazing New Zealand scenery and we really enjoyed spending 30 minutes in Arrowtown, learning about the gold rush and doing some shopping. However, the Lord of the Rings locations, information, cool facts, and especially using the capes and swords for pictures, just blew us away! These were the highlights of our trip, hands down. Would recommend anyone travelling to NZ, to hook up with this company - you won't be disappointed!

Our guide, Evy, was amazing and explained everything so well. We visited all the possible LOTR filming locations and had a great time. The tour included a lovely hot drink for breakfast in Arrowtown, where we had 25 minutes to explore the charming town and see the Lord of the Rings spots. We also visited Gibbston Valley and a beautiful nearby lake where we got to dress up with movie props and accessories. Highly recommend!

Numerous film locations and photogenic spots. A great way to see Queenstown and surrounding area regardless of your love of LOTR. Photoshoot with the weapons at the end was a highlight. Loved it!

Brilliant. So much fun! We went as a family group and had a great experience

Perfect for Lord of the Rings enthusiasts: half day trip so you can fit in other activities, hitting several locations from the movies, with a guide who knows absolutely everything about the movies and books. Our guide, Benji, was a fount of information and very friendly (and so helpful with taking pictures for solo travellers!).

As an LOTR fan, this tour was such a great experience. Not only were the locations stunning but having an entertaining and knowledgeable guide in Eby elevated the experience. Even my 8 year old who’s not a fan of LOTR thoroughly enjoyed the tour. Especially the part where we all got to take photos and videos in our LOTR costumes with the LOTR props.

Great day!! Eby was a wonderful guide and we got some great photo and videos! Thank you and we will see you again when we return

My 23 year old son and I joined for the tour and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was in Queenstown in early 2025, and I actually attended with the same company then too. I joined again for a second time, knowing that my son - an avid Lord of the Rings fan - would likely enjoy it too. There were other alternatives that we could have used, but we both agreed that this itinerary sounded like a better fit for us. We would classify ourselves as big fans of the movies, and we have both read some of the Tolkien books. So, not novice, nor bleeding edge. However the tour is geared for people at any level of interest. I have now toured with both Ian and Shane from Southern Trails, and I can honestly say that you are in excellent hands with either guide. They offer the same itinerary and both share fun stories and anecdotes along the way. The stops to see the sights from the movies were all very memorable, and the staging done to recreate the specific scenes from the movie further supported the presentation. We actually also visited Hobbiton on the trip, and I think both of us actually enjoyed this excursion more. I highly recommend this tour.

It was an amazing day from start to finish!! Guide was Ian and the pick up was punctual, small crowd size so it was easy to chat to everyone. Hopped on the van to various LOTR filming locations and Ian was funny yet informative, with many different fun facts of LOTR production. Scenery was amazing, with at least six different beautiful locations. The best part of the interaction with replicas of the weapons, it was epic!! Overall it was a 10/10 experience and we would highly recommend any LOTR fan to join it and support Southern Trails!!

Excellent tour by our host Ben, amazing scenery, friendly, knowledgeable and excellent driver, we had a lot of fun

Eby is a very awesome LOTR tour guide!! Had great fun

if you’re a lotr fan then you don’t want to miss this tour. Eby was great and kept us all immersed with the views, stories, & pictures.

We had a fantastic time on our Middle Earth tour. Eby was our guide, and he took great care of us. He was very personable, knowledgeable, and all around fun to spend time with. The tour was a great balance of beautiful New Zealand scenery and awesome nerdy LOTR behind the scenes insights. We loved getting to see so many filming locations without having to drive far in between.

Benny was on form - lucky to have whole van to ourselves Even though it was raining - we made the best of it. Was thoroughly enjoyable