¡HOBBITON!

One does not simply walk into Hobbiton.  But it is a quest worth undertaking, nevertheless.  Getting there is a process.  For one thing the visitor should book ahead.  Now I thought I had blown it by not booking soon enough.  Nope. All the visitors traveling by bus, traveled as I did.  There is no less complicated way unless you want to book a Very Expensive private tour--and the trip is expensive enough without that.
You can go from Auckland, and many of my fellow travelers did, but they had to change buses in Hamilton. They had to get up early for a long bus ride. I spent the morning leisurely, and I explored the town before hopping aboard.  After about an hours ride through pretty, green countryside with rolling hills and farmland one arrives in Matamata.  The bus station itself is done up like a hobbit hole! It's so cute.
Then one transfers to the Hobbiton shuttle after receiving the tickets from the desk inside.  One reason the entrance fee is so steep is that there is a mandatory guided tour.  The visitor cannot just go wandering. Our tour guide was a cute Glaswegian named Michael.
It's a beautiful site and well-worth seeing.  A lot of people in our group had not in fact seen the movies or read the books!  For those of us who are real Tolkien geeks, the experience is magical.  This is Hobbiton.  You are in the Shire!  There are narrow clay paths winding around the site taking the group past a variety of Hobbit holes--all with their unique personality.  Photos are encouraged.  I took about a zillion of them.  Kind fellow tourees took a couple of me posing with a Hobbit hole.
There are ducks in the pond, and because of the vegetable and flower gardens, butterflies flit and bees hum.  It's just delightful.  But wear stout shoes when you come.
The commentary explains the history of the site and the construction and points out significant details. The details!  The people who designed and built these sets were obsessive!  They hoped their work would appear for a few seconds in the film and contribute to the sense of reality that Peter Jackson hoped to create.
The day was hot and muggy, but we all had fun on the tour which then finished up at the Green Dragon pub.  A drink is included in the price of admission--and most welcome it is by that time.  I honored my Anglo-Norman heritage and had some cool, refreshing cider.
The shop is a let down however.
Then we were bussed back to Matamata.  This is where things began to fall apart.  There was a long layover until the bus for Hamilton came, and Matamata is pleasant enough but on a muggy afternoon after one has walked down the main street and back again and strolled under some oak trees--well, that's it.  To make things worse there was an accident on the highway from Rotorua, and our bus was more than a half hour late.  Those poor saps needing to return to Auckland would miss their connection.   Because of the delay, I think the bus driver was stressed.  She was very unpleasant as a result.  The first New Zealander I've encountered who has been less than gracious.
So I got home late, wilted and hungry, but didn't Bilbo, Frodo, Merry, Pippin, and Sam suffer worse?