New Zealand’s Surging “Frodo Economy”

Travel Blog  •  Jim Benning  •  10.24.03 | 8:56 PM ET

Today’s Los Angeles Times features a fascinating front-page story about the tourists flocking to New Zealand to see where “Lord of the Rings” was filmed—a phenomenon locals have come to call the “Frodo economy” after the trilogy’s hero. The article features the story of the Alexanders and their lush sheep farm where part of the trilogy was shot. When film fans, including a German tourist dressed as Frodo, began making pilgrimages to the farm, the Alexanders decided to start a small company to organize the visits. “When they started in December, they expected to welcome about two dozen tourists a month,” according to the article. “Instead, more than 12,000 visitors have discovered the farm over the last 11 months and happily have paid $30 each to visit it. Without buying a single ad, the family’s tiny tourism business has pulled in nearly $350,000 from Tolkien fans — a sum more than 20 times the average annual income here.”  Registration required to access article.



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