This tiny village of picturesque homes and shops could be a quaint backwater somewhere in rural England or northern France. But we’re halfway around the world from them. As our tender from Seabourn Cruises’ Seabourn Encore arrived at the tiny, wooden pier of Akaroa, New Zealand, the greeting couldn’t have been heartier, no matter where in the world it was. “Welcome to Middle Earth,” a jolly fellow said as he helped us out of the tender. “Just call me Hammond.”
We’re on a day trip to some the majestic mythical settings for Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings film trilogy. Our guide, it would turn out, was part of the Oscar-winning team who had helped craft the three classic films.
Our small group boarded a bus waiting on the side of the only road out of town, as was clear from an arrow -shaped sign reading All Directions. It might just as well have read Lord of the Rings country this way, because this central part of New Zealand’s South Island has become synonymous with J.R.R Tolkein’s fantasy and its gorgeous landscapes are where the mythical Middle Earth became reality during filming of the three epic films between 2000 and 2003.
Read it all in The Cruisington Times