Being an outdoor, living Movie Set, the Shire™ is constantly changing and evolving as the seasons and the weather changes. The Waikato region where Hobbiton is located tends to have warm, humid summers and mild winters, with an average annual temperature of 14°C / 57.2°F.

Summer

December - February

Summer is the most popular month to visit Hobbiton Movie Set as this is when more people are travelling around with their families, friends and loved ones. The Movie Set can get very hot particularly in mid-late January and early February, with February typically the warmest month of the year with an average maximum temperature of 24°C. We recommend high UV rating sunscreen, a sun hat and to cover up during your tour as the sun can be harsh at this time of year and there is little shelter on the Set.

The Movie Set is beautiful at this time with summer flowers in bloom, bees buzzing and butterflies flitting between the colourful gardens of the Hobbit Holes. As a certified butterfly habitat, we plant with the intention to attract and nurture butterfly life on the Movie Set with the most common sighted variety being the Monarch butterfly.

The hillsides on the surrounding farmland are drier over Summer as rainfall is less, however our gardening team works hard to preserve the lush greenery on the Movie Set throughout the year.

Autumn

March – May

Orange, red and yellow tones quickly scatter across the Movie Set as Autumn sets in. Leaves change and eventually start to fall, giving a gradual wash of autumnal colour as we get closer to Winter.

Keen photographers will love the early-to-mid Autumn colours, and the contrast they offer to the bright tones of the gardens and hobbit hole doors.

The tall poplar trees along the lakefront are some of the first trees to show the seasons changing, with their warm toned leaves framing one of the most popular outlooks on our tours.

In Autumn each year, our gardeners harvest the season’s pumpkin crop and often display these on the Party Field for our guests to enjoy.

Winter

June – August

As the temperature drops, so do many of the leaves on the trees across the Shire. The Waikato region is prone to low fog, misty mornings and chilly frosts, which can make the Shire particularly beautiful. A clear, crisp winter morning at Hobbiton can be very picturesque - make the first footsteps the morning dew on a morning tour, while the winter sun sparkles over the Shire, and when it’s time to warm up, head for the roaring fires of the Green Dragon Inn for a pie and an ale.

Rain fall is more likely in Winter but our tours will run anyway. We provide large, sturdy umbrellas for our guests to stay dry for their tour. We recommend checking the forecast before your tour and wearing closed in footwear and a waterproof outer layer if you we visiting in Winter as the weather can be unpredictable at times.

Spring

September - November

New life is everywhere in the Shire in Springtime as the charming bluebells and daffodils wake up after a chilly Winter, and the orchards start to blossom. The Hobbiton gardens are at their most colourful at this time of year and the weather a little more mild.

Keep an eye on the green rolling hills surrounding the Shire, as the playful and adorable spring lambs are born and scatter the hillsides.

International Hobbit Day also falls in Spring, on 22 September each year. Our largest event of the year, it is a celebration of Hobbits, while also marking the birthdays of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins.