The contest will decide 75 lucky winners who can each take a friend to New Zealand flying with Air New Zealand, the airline to Middle-earth.
New Zealand is about to become the talk of fantasy enthusiasts around the world, with the call going out globally to find fans keen to take an ultimate Middle-earth journey to New Zealand.
Gearing up for the December 17, 2014, release of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, Tourism New Zealand and Air New Zealand, in conjunction with New Line Cinema, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures, announced The Hobbit Fan Fellowship Contest before 6,500 fans at Comic-Con International, an entertainment and comic convention in San Diego.
The contest will decide 75 lucky winners who can each take a friend to New Zealand flying with Air New Zealand, the airline to Middle-earth.
The first two winners have already been picked from the crowd at Comic-Con following the announcement.
They will spend a week journeying to famous filming locations and tourist hotspots throughout New Zealand, culminating in the ultimate experience for every Hobbit fan – a private screening of the final film with Sir Peter Jackson himself.
Travelling alongside the fans will be international travel media from Tourism New Zealand’s key visitor markets, who will document the winners amazing journeys through New Zealand.
Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive Kevin Bowler says Tourism New Zealand is incredibly excited to be involved in the competition. For the past two years and two films, Tourism New Zealand has been working to maximise the international attention New Zealand draws from its starring role in The Hobbit Trilogy and convert that into travel.
“We’ve had some great successes to date and over the coming months will continue to show how the fantasy of Middle-earth can become reality in the form of a New Zealand holiday. We want to ensure New Zealand’s association as the home of Middle-earth lives on long past the release of the final film.“
The first two winners were chosen from the Comic-Con crowd – Kris McMeans, 25, from Austin, Texas and Morgan Burgener, 18, from San Diego, California.
McMeans, who was in line overnight to get into the Hall H panel, said she has wanted to go to New Zealand for years. “This is going to be one of the most amazing experiences of my life. Ever since I was 12 years old I wanted to go to Middle-earth, and now New Zealand has become Middle-earth. Thanks to Peter Jackson bringing the books to life, now we can travel Middle-earth.“
Photo caption: Sir Peter Jackson announcing The Hobbit Fan Fellowship Contest at Comic Con International panel in San Diego
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