Last night we visited Hobbiton. Spoiler alert: For any dear readers who wish to visit themselves someday, and want to keep everything a surprise, please stop reading now. We want you to have as lovely an experience as we did.

Still with us? We’re so excited to share our experience! For any non-Tolkien fans out there (are there any?), Hobbiton is located a farm on the east side of New Zealand’s North Island. At least, that is as close as any place on this earth. A movie scout selected this site for scenes set in Hobbiton during filming of the Lord of the Rings movies. The set designers spent a lot of time and effort (even recruiting the NZ Army to do some serious earthmoving and build a road to the site). It was all temporary, built of plaster and untreated wood, and began to fall apart as soon as the shoot was over. Nevertheless, fans of the movies (and the books) kept coming to the site, wanting to view the location where Hobbiton had briefly been made real.

When the Hobbit movies were greenlit, Peter Jackson and company needed more scenes shot in Hobbiton, and returned to the same location. Everything needed to be rebuilt, only this time they made it to last. Ever since, the Hobbiton set has been a mecca for Tolkien fans, and we knew it had to be on our itinerary.

The farm offers a number of visit options, and we chose to come in the evening with a dinner included at the Green Dragon Inn. Entering at Gandalf’s cut, we made our way past one charming hobbit hole after another. To help maintain the illusion that the hobbits are small, they are built different scales depending on whether the human actors are intended to look small (if playing hobbits) or big (if humans or wizards). Each one is unique, rendered with loving attention to detail.

Each one is unique, rendered with loving attention to detail. Usually you can tell what sort of craft is practiced by the inhabitant, whether cheesemaking, baking, or beekeeping.

We were visiting with a group of 48 people, yet it felt very intimate. Everyone here was a fan, and understood that this was a special place. Many even wore costumes, which added to the experience for everyone. People were exceptionally patient, waiting for people to finish taking pictures so that everyone could have a turn. It took quite a while to make our way through the paths of the village, and we loved every minute of it.

For the movies, all the shots in Hobbiton are external takes, and none of the doorways have anything much behind them. At least, that was the case until recently. As of last year, they have created interiors for two Hobbit holes, where visitors can go inside and poke around. The project was clearly a labor of love for the set designers and others who worked on the project. The result is both stupendous and charming: one feels that the inhabitants have just stepped out, and will be back any minute. Yet we were also invited to sit in the chairs, lie on the beds (no shoes!), and generally treat ourselves as welcome guests.

Following our visit to the Proudfoot hole, we made our way past the Mill, over the bridge, and down to the Green Dragon Inn, where we were toasted with drinks from the Southfarthing Brewery, then sat down to a lavish feast. The food was incredible and plentiful.

Following this grand meal, we rolled ourselves outside, where night had fallen and the mill and Hobbit holes were all lit up. Carrying lanterns we made our way back through the village, before saying our last goodbyes to Hobbiton.

Our visit felt magical. Beyond the beauty and cleverness of the place itself, the goodwill and camaraderie between the visitors was special. Hobbiton is a place that exists because so many people wanted it to. We are fortunate to have been able to visit, if only for an evening.