2026 Tour Day 4: Hobbiton & Rehearsal with AYO

Kia Ora, it’s Michi!

Today marks our transition from Rotorua to Auckland. We visited Hobbiton and had lots of fun looking at the movie set drenched in the pouring rain.

We had the opportunity to walk into one of the houses, and we were impressed by the amount of detail and intricacy every part of the house had. We finished our tour with some ginger beer and a delicious dinner.

On the road to Auckland, we saw a double rainbow!

Then, we drove over to rehearse with some Auckland Youth Orchestra students. We played through Meistersinger, Romeo and Juliet, Hoedown, The Mouse & Its Shadow, and Delights and Dances.

For dinner, we got to taste Domino’s Pizza in New Zealand while meeting new friends in AYO.

New student blogs are posted every day! See what we’ve shared so far.

Follow along on Instagram and Facebook for live updates from our student social media team. We’ll also send several emails with special highlights during tour, so make sure you’re part of our mailing list!

Learn more about GTCYS’ 2026 tour to New Zealand and Australia.