New Zealand Rookie

Well, Rotorua was one of the NYT's "52 places to go in 2018"...

With only 8-10 days, you should probably confine your visit to the North Island, where Hobbiton is located.

https://www.newzealand.com/us/feature/the-lord-of-the-rings-trilogy-filming-locations/

You can explore that same website for golf courses and other things to do and see. Wellington is supposed to be lovely, with nice gardens, but we did not see it as our 17-days were all spent on the South Island.

It is a lovely country to visit, with a warm welcome no great scenery. Driving on the left was not as difficult as it might be in the U.K. Or Ireland, where roads rend to be narrower. And where the road does narrow to one lane, as it does on some rural bridges, there is a clear indication on the pavement as to which car has the right of way.

New Zealand is fabulous. One of the most beautiful countries in the world, and the Kiwis are a friendly and generous lot. With your very limited time, limit yourself to the North Island. If Hobbiton and golf are prime goals, then you'll likely be flying into Aukland. I'd suggest at least 2-3 days there. Lots of golf courses. Hobbiton can be done as a day trip ( we're huge LOTR fans, and totally geeked out over it.). Then depending on your interests, explore the areas around Lake Taupo and Rotorua, OR drive to Wellington. It's a really nice city ( and you can do a tour of the Weta Works studio). If you drive all that way, consider a multicity ticket, flying home from there.

One word about their highways- they are generally in good condition, but you'll only see multilane divided highways (like your interstates or freeways) close to the largest cities. Elsewhere, even their main highways will be 2 lane, and paved shoulders will be very narrow to non existant. And because of the geography, the roads are very twisty turny. I think they must have a law making it illegal to have a straight road greater than half a kilomere. Lol. Speed limits are necessarily lower -as low as 30kph on some mountain turns. Only morons or the suicidal speed in NZ. Plan accordingly when planning your itinerary. It will take longer than you think to get from place to place. But the scenery makes it all completely worthwhile.

I used this website a lot when we were planning our trip:. https://www.newzealand.com/ca/

And used the Lonely Planet NZ guidebook as well
Have a wonderful trip!

I agree that with such a short time available to you that sticking to the North island is the way to go. Would suggest looking at several travel guides for NZ (our personal favorite is the DK Eyewitness Guide) and study up on the different areas - all of which are beautiful. It's a matter of priorities.
If LOTR film sets are your thing then you might splurge a bit and purchase one of the many guides to LOTR film locations ... which are scattered all over both islands. Several on the North island are embedded within some very pretty parks and make for a great day out hiking to some of the various overlooks.
Wellington is a pretty city and is home to Peter Jackson's film studio - am pretty sure they offer tours which might be of interest to you and your family. .

Of course you can visit a film set, but the real splendour is in the South Island. This blog details the very route that I would recommend.

Ten days round trip from Christchurch.
https://inspiredadventures.com.au/blog/ten-days-in-new-zealands-south-island/

I live in New Zealand so probably have more knowledge of the place than I can fit in one post but.....

I take it you’re a big LOTR fan? As otherwise, Hobbiton wouldn’t be a huge draw card for me at all..... Matamata (where Hobbiton is) is pretty boring.

Rotorua is lovely. I highly recommend a soak in the hot pools - usually I go to a creek in the backroads (look up Kerosene Creek, or Hot & Cold Water Creek) which are free but I understand most tourists prefer the convenience of the Polynesian Spa or similar. Also it can be worth visiting the buried village or the Tamaki village and seeing some Maori culture, eat some hangi or watch them do a haka..... if you’re into nature or hiking I totally recommend the Blue Lake and Redwood Forest in Rotorua, also you can hire mountain bikes at the Redwood Forest for about Nz$30 which is really, really good fun. Or go white water rafting down the Kaituna River - for a total thrill!!

Also the Waitomo Caves is only about an hour drive from Rotorua. You can do a tour to see the glow worms - or, you can do what I prefer and go black water rafting (floating along in the dark, with torches, in individual inflatable rubber tubes) - so much fun, and when you turn off your torch there’s all the glow worms above you!!

It’s a shame you’re not going to the South Island as really, that’s our most beautiful scenery (and if you’re s big LOTR fan, that’s where they filmed all the really beautiful stuff - Hobbiton is literally just the “shire”). . Even a few days in Queenstown is soooooooo worth it, please please please reconsider!!!! Honestly I can’t quite say how much I love the South Island, when I’ve been there just driving around and the number of times I’d just want to cry from the beauty of it all!!! And around the Mt Cook region - the snow-topped mountains, the bluest lakes you’ve ever seen, you HAVE to see it to believe it!

Re the North island,.... There’s not really a lot worth seeing in Auckland, to be honest. It’s our biggest city, and I live here myself, but I wouldn’t want to stay here long. Take a day trip to Waiheke Island while you’re here - is the best thing to do in Auckland - then spend an afternoon at the beach on Waiheke and visit one of the vineyards. You can either catch a car ferry from Half Moon Bay, or the foot ferry from Auckland CBD. The car ferry is ridiculously expensive tbh so I’d recommend using the foot ferry (which also runs more frequently) and then catching a bus once you’re over there.

Do not get talked into visiting the Sky Tower, it’s a waste of money and the Sky City casino is yuk, filled with derelicts and just dirty and gross. I don’t know why some people think it’s a must-see cos I work in the CBD and even so, I avoid that part of town.

Pass on Wellington - it’s a waste of time and the weather is terrible. Even if it’s our “capital” , nothing worth seeing or doing.

The Coromandel Peninsula is absolutely beautiful - well worth a visit if you love beaches. Otherwise, Mount Maunganui is just a bit further down the coast, and is just literally miles of beautiful sandy white beaches with sparkling clean swimmable surf. Also, it’s less than an hour drive from Rotorua so quite easy to fit in if you’re already going that way!!

I really hope you do like NZ, as you can probably tell I really do love my country but I don’t think the cities are much worth seeing, it’s the outdoors that make NZ special. We honestly are so blessed with so much natural beauty, much if it is completely free to enjoy - the beaches, the bush walks, the lakes and mountains. But it is kinda big so you will need your own car to get around, but it’s so worth it!!