Happy hobbits are set to party celebrating International Hobbit Day with a world-first event at New Zealand’s Hobbiton Movie Set. International Hobbit Day also happens to mark the birthdays of both Frodo and Bilbo Baggins, Thursday (22.09.16).
The famous Hobbiton Movie Set – in the beautiful Matamata Waikato countryside – will awake to the inaugural sunrise tour and breakfast birthday banquet in the hobbit village.
The birthday party will launch at 5.30am so guests can look forward to an exceptional other-worldly experience in the 12-acre site. Costumes are welcome and each early morning party-goer will get to carry a lantern as they follow their guide along illuminated paths while listening to fascinating stories of how the Hobbiton Movie Set was created and the making of the movies.
For those not on the spot on International Hobbit Day, the 100% Pure New Zealand Facebook Page will live-stream from Bag End Road as first light reveals the green of The Shire and the surrounding Matamata hills, one of the first places in the world to see the light of a new day.
Meanwhile, down at the bottom of the hill in the famed Green Dragon Inn, the fires will be burning to welcome party goers for the breakfast banquet feast. It’s the first time the Inn has had such an early opening and, in true hobbit tradition, there will be copious servings of delicious hobbit fare, with second helpings guaranteed – even thirds for the Peregrin Tooks of the party.
There will be music and dancing in the dining room, and – in pride of place – the proverbial birthday cake for Frodo and Bilbo styled on the cake seen in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.
To conclude this special event, the Hobbiton guide will lead the party back along the wandering paths of The Shire, across the bridge, past the mill and under the Party Tree.
For late risers, there’s one final option for International Hobbit Day - an Evening Banquet Dinner Tour that finishes with a moonlight walk through the Hobbiton Movie Set to witness the village as it gets ready for bed. Think smoke drifting from hobbit chimneys, music in the air and lanterns glowing against the darkness.
