How to Get the Best Hobbiton DiscountIan Brodie - Tourism New Zealand
How to Get the Best Hobbiton Discount

How to Get the Best Hobbiton Discount

Ian Brodie – Tourism New Zealand

Where to Buy Cheap Hobbiton Tour Tickets Online

Hobbiton: it’s the magical movie set that, whether you’re a fan of The Lord of the Rings or not, is oh-so-enticing to visit. “Ringers” will marvel at standing in real Middle-earth, movie buffs will learn a lot about the behind-the-scenes, while landscape-lovers will be spoiled by the rolling farmlands and quaint village. Those who are conscious about their budget, however, will want to make sure they get the best price for the experience. This guide on how to get the best Hobbiton discount will help you solve this real mystery of Middle-earth…

We’ll preface by saying that the Hobbiton Movie Set rarely does discounts. However, there are ways to be a savvier traveller by using online travel agents like Klook to get a bit of a discount and/or combine Hobbiton with a better-value experience for your money. We compare booking through the Hobbiton Movie Set and online travel agents in this guide.

How Much Does Hobbiton Cost?

The retail prices for The Hobbiton Movie Set Tour have fluctuated over the years, but to give you a ballpark figure, we’ve listed the typical Hobbiton tour prices below.

The prices for the standard Hobbiton Tour from “The Shire’s Rest” i.e. Hobbiton itself on Buckland Road near Matamata, are the following:

  • Adult – NZ$80-$100
  • Youth (9-16 years) – NZ$40-$50
  • Child (0-8 years) – Free
  • Family Pass (2 Adults and 2 Youths) – NZ$220-$240

How to Get the Best Hobbiton Discount© NZPocketGuide.com

Should You Book Your Hobbiton Tour Direct?

It’s common for tour operators to offer the best deals to customers who book direct, but, honestly, this has never been the case with Hobbiton. Hobbiton keeps their tours at a rigid price where they’ll rarely offer a discount. On the flip side, that price stays the same for booking through online travel agents, so you can simply book through your preferred booking method without having to waste time comparing prices across several websites. So what are the benefits of booking your Hobbiton ticket directly through the Hobbiton Movie Set?

The one benefit we can see is the price of the Hobbiton Movie Set Family Pass. The Family Pass is rarely available through online travel agents, which saves you over 15% off the full price if you were to pay for two adults and two youths separately.

How to Get the Best Hobbiton Discount© NZPocketGuide.com

Consider Online Travel Agents

As already mentioned, there tends to be no difference in Hobbiton ticket prices between booking directly and with online travel agents. So why do we prefer to use an online travel agent anyway?

More User-friendly

Usually, we would say that the cancellation policy tends to be better on online travel agents, but with Hobbiton having a pretty lenient cancellation policy of a full refund if cancelled more than 72 hours before the tour, cancellations are not really an issue with Hobbiton. The difference, however, is that it’s much more straightforward to cancel a tour through online travel agents – they are designed to be user-friendly. Cancelling a booking through the Hobbiton Movie Set requires some emailing back and forth.

Get Instant Confirmation

Speaking of ease, online travel agents can offer instant confirmation, so you’ll get peace of mind knowing that you have a place on the tour as soon as you book! You don’t have to wait around for a confirmation email like you do when booking directly through the Hobbiton Movie Set. This is especially a feature we like about websites like Klook.

Benefit from Loyalty Programs

Another aspect of online travel agents is that they often have some sort of loyalty program. For instance, Klook does “Klook Credits” which you can use to get a discount on your next booking. Like any loyalty program, that’s not going to save you a crazy amount, but that’s a discount you would otherwise not benefit if booking directly through the Hobbiton Movie Set. Check out the Hobbiton Movie Set Guided Tour on Klook to see their other benefits from booking this tour.

Save on Your First Purchase

Of course, online travel agents want you to purchase from them again and again and again, as we already established with the “Klook Credits”. Well, some online travel agents also offer a discount on your first booking – again, a discount you were never going to get out of the Hobbiton Movie Set. Even if you never use the online travel agent again, at least you benefited from that first discount.

Purchase Bundles and Save

Finally, online travel agents sell all sorts of travel experiences, from tours to airport transfers. With that, they have the ability to create “bundles” of experiences, which tend to work out a little cheaper than if you were to purchase separately. Browse the online travel agents’ websites and see what you find! After all, we bet Hobbiton is not the only activity you want to do in New Zealand…

How to Get the Best Hobbiton Discount© Hamilton & Waikato Tourism

Get a Hobbiton Activity Combo

After comparing booking a Hobbiton tour direct with booking through an online travel agent, we might have found ways to get a small Hobbiton discount but we can’t end this guide without mentioning Hobbiton activity combos, which we believe is the best way to get good value for money when it comes to visiting Hobbiton.

A tour of the Hobbiton Movie Set is only around two hours long, so no doubt you’ll want to fill the rest of your day with more excitement. There are all sorts of Hobbiton combos with other activities that are available on online travel agent websites, such as the Hobbiton and Waitomo Caves Tour for Auckland available on Klook. The small-group tour includes return transport to your hotel, water and snacks to keep you going, and of course, entry and guided tours at both Hobbiton and the Waitomo Glowworm Caves. Considering the ease of the experience and the fact that Klook often has discounts of around 30%, this sort of combo is one of the best ways to visit Hobbiton while stretching your dollars further.

Author

Laura S.

This article was reviewed and published by Laura, editor in chief and co-founder of NZ Pocket Guide. Since arriving solo in New Zealand over 10 years ago and with a background in journalism, her mission has been to show the world how easy (and awesome) it is to travel New Zealand. She knows Aotearoa inside-out and loves sharing tips on how best to experience New Zealand’s must-dos and hidden gems. Laura is also editor of several other South Pacific travel guides and is the co-host of NZ Pocket Guide’s live New Zealand travel Q&As on YouTube.

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