Fiordland & Milford Sound Lord Of The Rings Locations (2025)

If you are keen to check out Fiordland for the Milford Sound Lord Of The Rings locations, you have come to the right place. Read on to find out all you need to know about visiting, such as what spots these are, how to get there, and more.

If you are a fan of Peter Jackson films, you will know how much New Zealand landscapes are featured. Many people venture to Fiordland, and more specifically, Milford Sound, to find Lord Of The Rings shooting locations.

The movie franchise entices thousands of people each year to check these landscapes out with their own eyes.

Well, I have explored this beautiful piece of the country a few different times and love spotting these recognisable spots.

However, where exactly can you find the Fiordland and Milford Sound Lord Of The Rings locations, and do they actually look like they do in the movies?

Well, let’s get into that and more with our ultimate guide to the Lord Of The Rings filming locations in Fiordland and Milford Sound, including South Rivendell, the Anduin River, and the Dead Marshes.

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Fiordland National Park Lord Of The Rings Filming Locations

Okay, now time to actually get into specifics since that’s been cleared up.

Fiordland National Park was a standout option for Middle Earth with stunning landscapes of local fjords, jaw-dropping peaks, and dewy forests.

Specific locations in the film shot in Fiordland are:

• South Rivendell
• Anduin River
• Dead Marshes
• Fangorn Forest

Snowdon Forest / Fangorn Forest

Snowdon Forest, aka Fangorn Forest, was the perfect choice to bring to life the land of the Ents.

The trees and the dense underbrush gave the perfect ominous feeling, ultimately providing the perfect backdrop for Fangorn Forest.

Scenes filmed here include:

• Gandalf whistling for his horse, Shadowfax
• When Aragorn, Legolas & Gimli track Merry and Pippin entering the forest​
• Merry & Pippin meeting Treebeard (the leader of the Ents)
• Gandalf’s transforming into Gandalf the White

Co-ordinates: You’ll find Fangorn Forest at 45 21.087’S 167 54.477’E.

How To Get There: Simply follow Mavora Lakes Road.

Mavora Lakes / Edge Of Fangorn Forest

Now that we are on the subject of Fangorn Forest, we better mention Mavora Lakes as well, the filming location for the fringe of Fangorn Forest.

This spectacular region is also a part of the Te Wāhipounamu World Heritage site and has two lovely lakes, North Mavora and South Mavora.

You will see these scenes filmed here:

• When Aragorn, Legolas, & Gimli track the captured hobbits (Merry and Pippin) to the edge of Fangorn Forest​.
• When they follow the hobbits’ trail and find Gandalf the White

In the movies, the line between Fangorn Forest was a dark, mysterious line and was well represented in the dense woods and rough country of Mavora Lakes.

They were also a great setting for the other significant scenes along the Anduin River and Nen Hithoel​​.

Co-ordinates: You can find the Edge of Fangorn Forest at 45 19.968’S 168 10.404’E.

How To Get There: Mavora Lakes Road.

Lake Manapouri / South of Rivendell

Next up is Lake Manapouri, which served as the backdrop for the South of Rivendell.

This lake has some amazing mountain ranges and forest around it, and is a perfect illustration of a number of scenes where the Fellowship are first shown setting off south from Rivendell.

The region’s beauty and tranquility really show what the elven retreat at Rivendell was like.

The Norwest Lakes are where they filmed the Fellowship’s trip after they left Rivendell. This is just a super short distance from Lake Manapouri.

Exact Location: 45.5187° S, 167.4959° E.

Best Way To Visit: To get to the exact filming location, it’s a tough walk. An easy option is to visit the town of Manapouri on the lake’s edge.

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Waiau River / Anduin River

Next up, we have the Waiau River, which perfectly acted as the real life Anduin River in LOTR.

Now, do you remember those pretty epic aerial shots of the Fellowship paddling down the Anduin? Well, that was filmed right here on the Waiau!

The river’s bends and turns were just what they needed for those scenes where the Fellowship travels through the steep, tree-covered areas.

Want to see it yourself? It’s pretty easy to get to if you’re driving, simply head down State Highway 95 to Rainbow Reach Road.

If you’re keen to discover the area on foot, you can head out on the Kelper Track from here. Being one of New Zealand’s Great Walks, it has pretty epic landscapes.

Co-ordinates: 45 29.755’S 167 40.159’E.

How To Get There: Rainbow Reach Road off SH95.

The Kepler Mire / The Dead Marshes

Finally, we have the Kepler Mire in Fiordland, which you might recognize.

This swamp (also called Dismal Swamp) was the ideal spot for when Gollum guides Frodo and Sam through the marshes on their way to Mordor.

They picked the Kepler Mire because of its special string bog look. It freezes and thaws over and over, which makes for a spooky place. They rebuilt some scenes in a studio to make things easier.

But those wide shots of the marsh’s strange and scary vibe? Those were all filmed at Kepler Mire.

You can see Kepler Mire from Mount York Road. It has a great view of the huge wetlands. Just so you know, you can’t actually get to the swamp itself.

Co-ordinates: 45 29.567’S 167 41.897’E.

How To Get There: Simply follow the main Manapouri / Te Anau Highway until the turn off.

Best Way To See The LOTR Filming Locations

Sweet, so we’ve gone through all the different filming locations around the National Park, now it’s time to get out there and see them.

However, I understand if you’ve no idea how to actually do this. Especially so if you aren’t from here and don’t know the first thing about navigating the roads.

Should You Use Queenstown or Te Anau as a Base?

So you’ll have two different options for exploring Fiordland National Park. These are either Queenstown or Te Anau.

Queenstown

First, we’ll start with Queenstown, which is a beautiful spot, and dare I say it, one of the most popular tourist towns in the country. However, this is for good reason, with incredible landscapes, plenty of activities, and in a good location to explore the surrounding areas.

Now it will be a bit of a hike out to Fiordland National Park from Queenstown, so if you are thinking of this best to spend a couple of days away.

The road into Milford Sound is absolutely epic, and mixing this with some pretty awesome shooting locations makes for an awesome weekend away.

If you aren’t keen on driving yourself, luckily enough, there is the option of a tour with Trails of Middle Earth, which, as the name suggests, offers the most authentic LOTR tours in the region.

Decked out with reproduced weapons and costumes, you will be transported into the films in front of the epic shooting locations. It’s a special experience for anyone with a deep love of the trilogy.

Tours operate 3 days a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays and cost $165.00.

Perhaps the Milford Sound Lord of the Rings locations aren’t enough for you, and now you want more. No biggie, you’ll have plenty more LOTR things to do.

From Queenstown, you will also have the option of taking a LOTR tour to nearby Arrowtown or Glenorchy for some more filming spots. The Arrowtown tour costs $170.00, and the tour to Glenorchy is $124.00 per person.

Te Anau

Secondly, you’ll have the option of basing yourself in Te Anau and exploring the filming locations from there. It is a lot closer than Queenstown is, however, the one downside is that you can’t book a tour from here.

This means the only option you will have is driving yourself. Luckily enough, roads down in Southland are pretty damn decent, especially compared to the rest of the country, cause we have to keep those international visitors happy.

The one thing to keep in mind will be the weather.

Weather conditions here can change fast at the blink of an eye, wind and rain can and will quickly roll in on a beautiful sunny day. Of course, this will add to the moody atmosphere, but are you comfortable driving in those conditions?

If driving does happen to be a concern of yours, definitely just book a tour from Queenstown. It will be a long day, but it’ll be worth it.

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Wrap Up: All You Need To Know Fiordland & Milford Sound Lord Of The Rings Locations

Whooo, so you have now found out all the different filming locations dotted around Milford Sound, opp I mean FIORDLAND. So now it’s time to get out there.

No matter whether you decide to book a tour, or simply drive it yourself, you will have no problem accessing these awesome spots and living your best LOTR best life!