Comments on: New Zealand expects Hobbity visitors…

By: Heather

Heather — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 15:57:00 +0000

I’ll be there (again! for the 4th time!) in 2013. I’m Canadian and I feel like New Zealand is my second home. Can’t wait to go back again.

By: Aston

Aston — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 08:42:00 +0000

It is true that I would love to go to NZ more than ever because of the movies. But apart from the movies, NZ is well known to be one of the most beautiful places on earth.

It’s a shame I live so far from NZ (Netherlands). But I’m sure there will be a day that I will visit it, also because my father was born there en lived there when he was a baby.

By: Brian Boru

Brian Boru — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 04:07:00 +0000

Tourism NZ is limiting itself by only using the Hobbit films as part of its marketing campaign, which I assume is part of their agenda to promote NZ as Middle-earth. If it promoted the term ‘Middle-earth’ in relationship to being the translation of the Old English, Middle English and Old Norse spelling of these words as Tolkien knew it to be from teaching the medieval programme at Oxford University, which he says in his letters is the origin of his idea for Middle-earth then there is potential for business in NZ during the time that the films are released and beyond under this concept that does not have to involve paying Warners Bros any fees and whatever the Saul Zaentz Company et al may demand. This could mean more money stays in NZ rather than just going off-shore to some overseas interests. If these businesses use the terms in Tolkien’s legendariam in their original sense from OE, ME and ON and in translation from dictionares that existed before the books were even pubished and don’t reference the books and the movies but perhaps promote that these make up the studies that medievalists such as Tolkien and his tutor NZer Kenneth Sisam taught then the leverege could extend beyond paying fees and whatever to the likes of Warner Bros, Saul Zaentz et al. Of course more of us would know about these things if they were taught in our education institutions.

By: George Booth

George Booth — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 19:25:00 +0000

Im not sure if I could ever leave England for good, but certainly in the future a second home in NZ would be a strong possibility, purely because of the beautiful vista’s and to see how many places I could recognize from the movies and production videos

By: Kiwi

Kiwi — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 19:07:00 +0000

I was working at an engineering firm in Auckland a few years ago with a colleague from Florida. He came down with his wife to live in New Zealand for 2 years entirely because of the Lord of the Rings. They spent their vacations traversing the country and exploring film locations, as well as different adventure sports and concerts!