Before Rotorua, there was the Lord of the Rings

So of course, we had to visit the place where The Lord Of The Rings was filmed.

We drove to the town called Matamata which was conveniently on the way to our next stop.

We only spent enough hours to discover the tour was during limited hours and WAY TOO EXPENSIVE. Unfortunately, the movie was filmed on private property and the lucky owners now charge an arm a leg and more limbs to take a bus tour. We skipped that jazz with lack of funds and immensely appreciated the town itself. After taking the photo next to the Hobbiton sign in the center of town we took off to take photos of more green rolling hills, cows, sheep and more green.

This town was another breath-taking stop for just a stopover into another town.

New Zealand has not let me down.