The Yak Shack Forum

I'm going to New Zealand for the first time in June (for uni, but going to spend an extra 10 days), and I want to do a LOTR tour or two, so...

has anyone here been on one, and can offer up recommendations?  ;D

This might be a fair place to start :)

http://www.theyakshack.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,918.0.html

Great advise Roz - by the way where is Alyssa?  I have not seen her here in a long time and as she went on one of those LOTR's New Zealand tours it sure would help Kate out.   :)  I purchased a LOTR's New Zealand tour book off ebay several years ago so I know they are out there and most likely available in bookstores in Australia.  Hope this helps.   :)  The tour book listed sites where all the filming was done, how to get there and showed photos of what it looks like.   :)  I packed this book away in storage last year so I don't have it's name for you unfortunately.   :P

I think it would be worth dropping her a PM for advice... y'know, the sort of thing you can't get from a guide book ;) secret/clever things she found etc :D

Whereabouts will you go in NZ? How would you get around? Would you already be on South Island?

Ive got the LOTR guide book; a friend bought it for me a few years ago, and it is brilliant. Unfortunately Im travelling with a non-LOTR fan (I didnt even realise they existed  :rofl:) so Im looking for a half-day guided tour. I have a whole list, but there are so many different prices, and different combinations of locations that I just dont know which to pick...


The conference Im going to is in Christchurch, so Ill be there for a week. Im going to do the Edoras tour while Im there (and before my friend arrives). Then we are going to travel to the Franz Josef glacier (and do the glacier walk  ;D), then to Queenstown for three nights (LOTR tour, canyon swing  :o etc), then Dunedin (they have a cadbury factory!) and back to christchurch before flying home...

Ill pm alyssa when i get a chance...no rush, trips not till june, but im trying to get as much booked now as possible...my first overseas trip too!

WOW! Boy, do I envy you blackcat20...just to stand where Tolkien's words came to life would send shivers through me end to end...

Please post pics when you get back...and let us all get to walk a mile or two in your shoes as you experience the sublime...ahhhhhhhh! ^-^ 0:) :o=

Ive just bought a second card for my digital camera, so I promise there will be lots of photos   ;D

:D Good. It sounds like you already have a lot packed in :rofl: - remember, just cos you are away from home it doesn't mean you don't need sleep :P

Ooh, and whilst you are at the Cadbury factory look for some Kiwi Royale.... MMmmmmmm

HERE I AM TO SAVE THE DAY....

http://www.lordoftheringstours.co.nz/trails_of_middle_earth.htm (http://www.lordoftheringstours.co.nz/trails_of_middle_earth.htm)

It departs from Queenstown (which is a great place by the way, so much fun to be had! Make sure you go to the bar thats made of ice..)

I went on this tour when I went to NZ last year. It is pretty cool, you get to see some good sites and they have replica's of the swords/helmets and you get to take photos with them. You get to see scenes mostly from TTT but there are some others thrown in as well. See where Aragorn tumbled off the cliff, the Edoras trail, the river into which Islidur fell and lost the ring, the River Anduin where they rowed down in there little boats hehe..etc etc.

I can send some pics if you like :)

It was great and the tour guide is very very knowledgable..and damn funny when he reinacts scenes!

Finally an opinion on a tour! I saw that one, it looks really good....but its not particularly cheap (ive just decided to get a new car, so on a tight budget from now on).

Would love to see your pics though!

The tours Ive found so far are:
1. Paradise Found
-Isengard, Lothlorien, Ithilien/Amon Hen and Rohan ($99, half day)

2. Trilogy trail
-River Anduin/Pillars of the king, Ford of Bruinen, Amon Hen, Ithilien ($125, 3.5hours)

3. Mountainland Rovers
-Isengard, misty mountains, Amon Hen, Lothlorien, Dunharrow, Ithilien Camp ($149, 5 hours)

4. Off Road Adventures
-option 1- White Mountains, minas tirith, pillars of kings, gladden fields, Ford of Bruinen, warg attach, exodus of edoras
-option 2- Isengard, Lothlorien, Ithilien camp, Amon Hen, misty mountains (price unknown)

5. Safari of the Rings
-option 1- Minas tirith, misty mountains, pillars of the kings, site of ilidur's fall, ford of bruinen
-option 2- isengard, ithilien, lothlorien, amon hen ($130 each)

6 The trails of middle earth (the one you mention)
- full day, over 20 locations ($290)

The problem is picking one with a good coverage of places I want to see, and not too expensive. plus im travelling with a non-fan, so i dont know how she'd feel being ditched for a whole day...id have to ask...

Opinions welcome on which tour people think looks best?  ;D

I would definitely go for the Trails of Middle Earth. I know you are on a tight budget, but if you are spending money getting there and accommodation etc, you may as well go the whole hog ;)

Otherwise, I'd just pick according to which tour had my favourite scenes. Number 3 sounds good (for me)

Looks like my friend is happy to come along on a tour, but the trails of middle earth is out of the question (not suprised, she just got married so money is tight for her too). Im going to do the edoras tour in christchurch as well, so I guess spreading the money around is a good idea. we thought we'd do a canyon swing too...

I agree number 3 looks good; ill just have to head to the pillars of the kings myself.... its a pain that all the tours have some of the things i want to see, but not all in a single tour...  :-\

Well, I'm sure that wherever you go it will be a special day and you'll have SOOOO much to share with us all :D

Honestly these two:

site of ilidur's fall, ford of bruinen

you could easily do yourself. They are both in a town called Arrowtown which is not far from Queenstown (u could prob get a taxi or bus its a small little tourist town) and if you have the guidebook then you can easily find the locations. The river is at the back of the town and its SOOO easy to spot, you can tell straight away.

I went on my tour with my friend who had only seen the first two movies (and only once) and she still loved it!!

We went to Fox Glacier (not far from Franz Josef) and it was awesome, did a helicopter ride up to the glacier and back, and walk on the glacier, its facinating, will be well worth the trek!

ahhh, good advice, thank you. We are going to have a car, so self-touring is not a problem.... and this is the same friend i dragged to the LOTR exhibition when it was in sydney so she is pretty patient...

we are going to do the franz josef glacier walk...should be fun!

Well, 2 days until this exciting adventure begins!

Im heading over to NZ on Wednesday, and going on my first LOTR tour on Friday. Im booked to go on the Edoras tour. http://www.hasslefree.co.nz/lotr.html (http://www.hasslefree.co.nz/lotr.html) Its a full day tour, and you actually get to go up onto "Edoras". We get a champagne picnic lunch up top too which is pretty awesome.

Got a conference from Sunday to Wednesday (presenting my work on Monday)....then...

Onto Franz Josef for a Glacier hike....then...

Queenstown! Doing another LOTR tour, a canyon swing, and whatever other crazy things we can fit into three days.

Last day in Dunedin (cadbury factory!!!) then back to Christchurch for a night before heading home...

I promise lots of photos!  ;D

It sounds amazing.  I hope you have a wonderful time Kate  ;D

Sounds so exciting!!!!  8) Have an amazing time!!!
LOTS of pics!!!!  ;D

Hello Kate:

I am so excited for you!   :)  I wish I was coming along on those cool trips.  If you see anything on the trips Aragorn related please take a picture of it for me.   :)  While you are up there on Edoras check to see if the beacons are burning!   ;)  Be safe and have a fun time.   :)

Apparently on the Edoras tour we get to play with replica swords, including Aragorns...so Ill do my best to get pics! Ive loaded up with two cards for my camera, so no excuses  ;D

The only downside to my trip is having to give a talk....in front of at least a hundred people  :-\

Great Kate - thanks!!   :)  When you give your talk just pretend all those 100 people are Urul-Hai and you are defending Helm's Deep!!   :)  Give'em hell!!   :)

Now I can just see Kate jumping into the audience and attempting to beat them up with a microphone! :rofl:

Have a great time Kate! Looking forward to seeing your photos!

Lol, im sure attacking the audience would go down well with the conference organisers :rofl:

If ive discovered one thing in the last 24 hours, its that this place is COLD. And im currently on the east coast of the island, the west coast is usually a couple of degrees colder!

Been on a Gondola tour up to the top of some hill with fantastic views... LOTR tour to Edoras tomorrow (all day, and they even serve hobbit beer)...then off to see cool NZ dolphins on Saturday.

Talk to you all soon!  ;D

Not sure what the conference is about Kate (genetics stuff?), but it might lighten up the conference a bit ;D I reckon if you incorporated a bit of the Leggy "slide down stairs with shield/similar improvised object" as part of your exit, you'd be erm... remembered. Particularly if you tried to beat up the audience en route >:D


Does it come in pints? ;D

Cool Kate...literally!!!  ;)


LOL!!! Now Kate is going to be giggling trying to wrap up her speach thinking
of how she's going to exit!!! :rofl: :rofl: ;)

Jo's idea is actually pretty cool!   8)  It sure would be remembered that's for sure!   :)  I will bet your trip to Edoras will also be memorable for the windy conditions there.  Let me know if that was indeed the case as every photo or movie part I have seen shows the wind blowing pretty good in that location.  Stay warm Kate!   ;)  And yes it comes in pints!!   ;D

Would you belive....not a single tiny breath of wind! (oh, and check out the shot of Eowyn standing out the front-her hair blows backwards, but the flag in front blows forwards  :P ) But yes, it does get windy up there, up to 180km/h...which is why the set had to be dismantled-it would have blown away otherwise (plus apparently the stone base was actually polystyrene...not exactly sturdy).

However, the moment Edoras (or Mount Sunday) came into view was pretty spectacular. We stopped numerous times to take photos as we got closer. And the tour I was on is the only one actually allowed to take you up onto the mountain (its on private land). Unfortunately I cant post pics yet (on a public computer with no slot for my camera card) but I will when I get home....

We drove across the fields in a 6-wheel "truck", crossing the river multiple times, then drove up the back of the mountain. What you dont realise in the movie is that there is more of the mountain behind the rocky bit that we are most familiar with. The back is how the cast/crew accessed the mountain (though they put their own road in, incl bridges over the river). Its pretty spectacular to stand exactly where Eowyn stood on the steps of the hall. Our guide had movie and set photos and showed us exactly where everything would have been, including the hall and other buildings that we see when the trio first enter.

There was slightly less snow on the mountains compared with the movie, as it was filmed late winter/early spring (around september)....

What I also didnt realise, is that the mountains behind Edoras (that we see in the film) were also used for the shots of Aragorn approaching Helms Deep on the horse (after the whole near-drowning bit).

Jo, the conference is "Evolution2007"....if you google it youll find the page. Mostly genetics related, but I guess in general anything "evolution". For me, its population genetics of barnacles  ::) Fortunately my exit will most likely be stepping away from the podium and taking a seat... :rofl:

Well, i think thats enough from me today...off to see the Hector dolphins on a nature cruise tomorrow...next LOTR tour is in a weeks time...

Catch ya all soon  :)

(oh, and I got to play with "Narsil")

Wow Kate that is amazing.  I though you were going to report windy conditions but calm weather!  It must have been so beautiful being on the spot where Eowyn was!   :)  I can't wait to see your pictures and especially the ones of you playing with "Narsil"!   ;)

Just when i thought i had everything organised down to the last detail....we got snowed in!!! So my friend and I did the glacier hike in franz josef this morning (amazing!) but now its snowing,
and the road south to queenstown is closed...and we are meant to be there tonight...we have a canyon swing booked for the morning, and a lotr tour for sunday... looks like we wont get through till tomorrow. and id like to ring about the swing to change our booking, but the pay phones here dont take coins! so im a very cold, wet-footed, unhappy girl at the moment. first time ive been snowed on though, so thats kinda cool, specially as we are only about 200m above sea level!

Just for a bit more drama, today i spun our car on an icy mountain road, and embedded its rear end in a very deep snow drift. we are all safe, including the car...more details (and lots of cool photos) to follow...internet prices here are extortionate!

LOL! That's how NZ has been stealing all your rain for the past decade or so. Nice warm wet air hitting a cold/mountainous place and swoosh all that water falls.


"Kate: Theives... theives... filthy little theives"

(Am I taking the whole LOTR thing too far?)


Gondola? You have me very confused, to me a Gondola is a small Venetian boat??

Hi Kate:

First time you got snowed on - welcome to the club!!   :)   It snows here from October until May and the snows have just melted off the mountains but it actually snows every month of the year on top of our highest mountains.   :)  You get used to it!   :)

Roz:

Gondolas and Trams are another name for cable cars.   :)  We use all those terms here.   :)

The interpretation of gondola here is like a chair lift-small capsules that you sit in that are suspended from cables and carried up a hill etc
eg...
http://www.gondola.co.nz/photo-gallery-gondola1.html (http://www.gondola.co.nz/photo-gallery-gondola1.html)

LOL, we need a language calibration conference. Here a tram is a narrow electrically powered bus/train hybrid thing :), but it definitely uses gravity to stay on the tracks rather than being suspended from a wire...

We call a gondola a cable car

Oh wow this is confusing... this is my idea of a gondola... usually they come with a singing Italian in a straw hat :rofl:

http://www.u-aizu.ac.jp/~niki/photo/images/Venice-Gondola.jpg

Thanks for filling me in Kate & Ed.

I think that the whole rail stealing thing must be attributed to Britain lately, and I can exclusively confirm that you can have too much of a good thing :( just ask Sheffield :(

Alrighty, I arrived home safely this morning, had a bit of time to chill out, and now I present to you the first batch of photos. Having trouble getting my computer to read my second memory card, so Edoras photos will be up later...

1. The gorgeous cathedral in Christchurch's Cathedral Square
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/CHCCathedral.jpg)

2. Our first day on the road (after a week in christchurch) bought about some very heavy snow...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/DSCN2720.jpg)

3.The amazing Franz Josef glacier. One of three in NZ, it is the steepest in the world, and is unique in that it decends surrounded by rainforest (!) and finishes at only 200m above sea level
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/DSCN2730.jpg)

4. My friend (front) and my self in a crevice in the glacier
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/Crevice2.jpg)

5. Gorgeous view from my hotel room in Queenstown as the sun rises. Looks just like in LOTR when the sun hits the top of the mountains
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/ViewfromQThotelroom.jpg)

6. Dan's Paddock. Where the grass (yep, under all that snow!) meets the forest is where the fellowship entered Lothlorien. The forest along this road was used for Lothlorien and Amon Hen, and is very recognisable. Our tour guide also told us that when they filmed the orcs running through the forest, they had to lay lines of string on the ground so the orcs could see where to run without bumping into trees!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/DansPaddock.jpg)

7. The Dart River; runs along the region used for Lothlorien, Amon Hen and Isengard
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/DartRiver.jpg)

8. My friend and I standing in the spot where cameras were placed to film the long shots of Isengard/The Wizards Vale. Behind us is Mt Earnslaw which doubles as Methedras
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/ViewtoIsengardMtEarnslaw.jpg)

9. A photo of some shrubbery at Closeburn. It is private property where Amon Hen was also filmed.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/CloseburnAmonHen.jpg)

10. The Kawarau river, used for the River Anduin and the Pillars of the Kings. While not taken in exactly the right spot (this is taken from the Bungy viewing platform) it is easily recognised
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/KawarauRiver.jpg)

11. View up to Deer Park Heights. Used for multiple scenes, most notibly when the Rohan refugees were fleeing (and Eowyn and Aragorn had a chat as they walked). Entry was $20 (not mentioned in the guide book!) so we didnt get up there...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/DeerParkHeights.jpg)

12. A view of the platform from which the Canyon Swing is undertaken. The canyon is 109m deep, and I jumped twice!!! (photos of my jumps to follow)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/TheCanyon.jpg)

13. Last photo for now; the Dunedin railway station. Apparently the second-most photographed building in the southern hemisphere, after the Sydney opera house...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/DSCN2851.jpg)

Update:
A panorama photo taken from the summit of "Edoras". The rock you see near the very left of the photo is approximately where the front steps of the hall would have been. The mountains in the centre are what are seen in the movie, as is the river...there is just less snow.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/ViewfromEdorasPanorama.jpg)

If anyone wants a copy of this photo IM me your email address...looks much better full-size.  ;D

WOW!
Amzing pictures, thanks for sharing :D :D

How amazing!!!  :o Soooo jealous!!!  ;)
Thank you for sharing!! Any more?  :D

What wonderful pictures. When do you start to work for the NZ tourist office? :rofl: It looks fantastic! :o

To be honest, if someone told me I had to move there, I would be straight on the plane. Its a lovely place, everyone is really friendly, and I wasnt homesick at all while I was away....

More photos!

1. Lake Emma; one of two large lakes we passed on the way to Edoras. Was such a still day that the mountains were reflected perfectly in the lake.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/LakeEmma.jpg)

2. Lake Clearwater. Same as the above, but not quite as perfectly reflected.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/LakeClearwater.jpg)

3. The first view of Edoras as you come over a hill. Perfectly described by Miranda Otto in one of the DVD extras...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/FirstViewofEdoras.jpg)

4. Closer view of Edoras; its a lot bigger than it looks in the photo!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/Edoras.jpg)

5. Closer again, standing where they had all the catering tents, trucks etc. We had to 4wd over a lot of streams to get to the back of the mountain, but during filming a road was built, with bridges over the streams. Vehicle access is at the back of the mountain, but only about half way.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/Edoras2.jpg)

6. Myself in front of the mountain.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/Edoras3.jpg)

7. On top of the mountain with a replica Narsil
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/Narsil.jpg)

8. Same again, but with Gimli's axe
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/GimlisAxe.jpg)

9. Me standing pretty much were the front steps of the Golden Hall would have been. The view behind me is what Eowyn would have seen.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/OntheStepsofEdoras.jpg)

10. The view from the top, showing the streams running by...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/ViewfromEdoras.jpg)

11. Last, the valley in the mountain in the photo was used for the long shot showing Aragorn approaching Helms Deep on the horse. Its not easy to see, but the trees to the left of the valley are clearly visible in the movie. Its just that this photo is taken from more to the left than in the film.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/DSCN2628.jpg)

Ill scan the pics of my canyon swing later  ;D

Fabulous photos Kate, thank you VERY much for sharing them!! :-*  ;D ;D ;D

WOW Kate - great pictures!   :)   8)  Thank you for sharing them!   :)  I love them all but especially the one of you on top of Edoras holding Aragorn's sword!  The views are simply stunning!  I will have to visit this place myself one day!   :)

If you do, make sure you book your tour through "hassle-free tours", as they are the only ones with permission to take you onto the mountain, as it is on private property. Well worth the trip though, to have a champagne lunch on top of edoras!

Thanks for the tip Kate!   :)  Can you send me the image of the panorama photo taken from the summit of "Edoras" you took?  My email is savage17@earthlink.net  Thanks!   :)

Me too - sounds great :D (rosalind. turner@gmail. com (take out the spaces, I'll edit Eds to put some spaces in as well!)

Just sent it to both of you! Hope you like it. Ive had a copy enlarged, and Ill get it framed at some point...when Ive actually got money again  :P

Thanks for sharing your photos Kate! I've only just got "fast" internet back so I can see them all properly!

I'm tempted to go to NZ myself for these tours as well... maybe the end of this year ;)

Thanks for the image Kate - it is a beauty!   :)  As so many of us love the Lord of the Rings we should organize a trip for Yak Shackers to meet and visit these places!   :)