Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson is due to set the cameras rolling next month as he begins shooting The Hobbit. Once again, parts of New Zealand are set to become Middle Earth and the country is preparing for an influx of tourists. Following the 2003 release of The Return of the King, the final film in The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy, New Zealand recorded a marked increase in the number of visitors keen to see where the films were made.

Filming is set to take place once again in Hobbiton, a town near Matamata on the country’s North Island. The village has been built on a private farm and is a popular draw for visitors. Tours have been operating since 2002, but while the film crew is present, Hobbiton will be closed to the public.

However, other areas immortalised on celluloid will remain accessible including Mount Ruapehu which was transformed into Mount Doom; the Rangitata Valley’s Mount Potts and Mount Sunday which became the setting for the city of Edoras and Tongariro National Park on the North Island which was used as Mordor’s Emyn Muil.

Although the surge in numbers visiting after the trilogy hit the big screens has calmed down somewhat, Middle Earth remains one of New Zealand’s major selling points when it comes to pulling in tourists from abroad.

Tourism is the countries number one source of foreign money and accounts for $9.5 billion dollars each year. Filming of The Hobbit will begin on 21 March with British actor Martin Freeman in the title role.