Lord of the Rings Scenic Half Day Tour from Queenstown

Overview

Available languages

Chinese

English

4 hours 30 minutes

Mobile ticket

Take a journey with us deep into Middle Earth and explore unique Lord of the Rings filming locations from Queenstown to Glenorchy and Mt Aspiring World Heritage N.P.

Feel the trilogy come to life as you visit the breathtaking and magical landscape that inspired Peter Jackson’s film locations for The Lord of the Rings movies.

We are the only company with EXCLUSIVE ACCESS to the filming locations on Arcadia Station, where scenes from the Hobbit & Wolverine were filmed.

Travel in small groups with local guides who have a real passion and knowledge of the area. Take in the diverse landscape of ancient beech forest, braided rivers and glacier carved valleys.

Explore the unique flora and fauna and get up close to the New Zealand animals and birdlife.

We are a Local family owned & operated tour company that offer the real experience. Operating since 2005!

We are one of the few companies that hold Department of Conservation Concessionaire permits to access Mt Aspiring National park.

Additional Info

Public transportation options are available nearby

Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness

This tour is not suitable for children under 5 years of age.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

What‘s Included

Exclusive access to the Arcadia Station Filming locations in the Paradise valley!

Optional Lord of the Rings costumes/ replica swords

A light morning or afternoon tea , with cake, biscuits and hot tea & coffee

Professional, friendly & local guides

Live Commentary

Umbrellas provided

Coffee and/or Tea

What To Expect

Glenorchy-Queenstown Road

Tour as our guest from Queenstown on one of the Top 10 scenic drives in the world up the Glenorchcy road to visit epic scenery and Lord Of The Rings filming locations.

40 minutes • Admission Not Applicable

Bennets Bluff Lookout

The most scenic lookout in New Zealand

10 minutes • Admission Not Applicable

Options

Morning Tour

Afternoon Tour

Reviews

4.93

1,193 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

1132

Awesome tour - a must do if you love the LOTR movies
Adventure67744708379,
Nov 29, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
The tour was amazing! Our guide was friendly and she provided a lot of interesting information about the movies, the actors and fun facts along the way. The scenery was awesome and we were lucky to have very good weather. We also enjoy chatting with other LOTR fans. All in all a very worthwhile trip! Highly recommend for all LOTR fans.
Amazing trip
300denisseh,
Nov 28, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
This tour was incredible! We’re from Ecuador 🇪🇨 and we absolutely loved it. We highly recommend this trip — you’ll enjoy stunning landscapes and learn awesome facts about The Lord of the Rings!”
The Best Available LOTR Scenic Tour in Queenstown!
B146IYbillyc,
Nov 28, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
I went on this tour while in Queenstown and it was definitely one of the highlights of our trip! Tristan, our guide, definitely knew his stuff and was very informative and pleasant to hang out with and chat over the course of the tour. If you are looking to book a LOTR themed tour around Queenstown, I highly recommend booking through this company, Pure Glenorchy, because they are a small company and a delight to work with. They have exclusive access to a few specific viewpoints along the route in this area and each stop on the tour was amazing. Even if you are not very familiar with the films, this is a great option to get around and see some cool sights in town & around Lake Wakatipu. Seeing pictures online does not do this scenery justice, see it with your own eyes this way.
LOTR half day tour
J9602KBcraigs,
Nov 28, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
My wife and I took Pure Glenorchy's half day (4.5 hours) Scenic Lord of the Rings Tour in mid-November 2025. We thoroughly enjoyed the tour and our driver/tour guide, Amy, did a wonderful job. She was friendly, gave good commentary and knew the Queenstown area well. She provided insights into the making of the LOTR movies and some tidbits of information on the movies themselves. The drive to Glenorchy is beautiful and worthwhile even if you're not a LOTR fan. The tour also traveled back roads to stop at the site of the Isengard set which was a real plus for us. Fortunately, we had a bright, sunny day for the tour. If it's raining, which happens a lot, the experience wouldn't have been as enjoyable.
Definitely worth it
matthewkV9991ZH,
Nov 28, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Excellent presentation, beautiful scenery, genuinely informative. It was a very well organised and enjoyable tour.
Amazing
Caleb S,
Nov 27, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00
I enjoyed this tour immensely. My tour guide, Amy, was very nice and knowledgeable. The views were breathtaking and I loved every second.
Lord of the Rings Afternoon Tour
collins a,
Nov 25, 2025
- Review from Viator
4.00
Amy our guide was very knowledable about the area. For fans of the movies, it was cool actually visiting the areas where the movies were filmed. She would show us pictures of the filmed locales to compare with the area we actually visited. The half day was a good duration and we chose the afternoon vs. morning session. It was a moderately physical hike which was good for someone who isn't into tough hikes. It was fun donning some of the film's costumes. Recommend this tour.
Fantastic!
359lores,
Nov 25, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Tristan was an awesome guide! We really enjoyed the whole tour. Very cool to see all the places where they filmed for LOTR and The Hobbit. If we ever come back to NZ, we will do the whole day tour ;) Thanks so much!!
Excellent tour and guide. 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Odyssey48557597520,
Nov 25, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Fantastic tour. Solly was an excellent guide. Really well spoken and friendly. Was really cool to see several filming locations from LoTR and The Hobbit. I highly recommend this tour to everyone! 5 stars!!
Was fun and worth it!
Meander15095324443,
Nov 24, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
I booked a full-day tour of Middle Earth, and the second half was with Pure Glenorchy. The guide was super nice and gave us lots of interesting information about the films and background. The group size was small (~10 people), which I really appreciated. All in all, I definitely enjoyed it.