Billy Boyd: My life in travel

'New Zealand got into my bones –it's a magnificent place on so many levels'

Hobbit country: Boyd was seduced by New Zealand while filming

Billy Boyd played Pippin in 'The Lord of the Rings'. He is also frontman of the band Beecake, whose song, 'The Last Goodbye', features in 'The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies', in cinemas now

First holiday memory?

Butlins in Ayr. I remember falling in love with a girl there when I was about eight. I was on the slide and I put my hand on the handle, and the next thing, this hand came on top of it and it was her sitting next to me. I don't think I spoke to her after that, but that one touch was enough.

Favourite place in the British Isles?

Machrihanish, near Campbeltown; I like to surf. If you get a direct westerly surf, it comes right through the gap between Ireland and the west coast of Scotland and it hits Machrihanish, a beautiful white sand beach.

Best holiday?

Lately I always have holidays tied in with work, so if I'm shooting a film in Canada, the family come and we stay an extra week; it's not really a holiday for me. But a few years ago when my son was five or six, we went to a small hotel in Crete, and it was a total switch-off, no work, just sitting at the pool. We went to some water parks, and that was it. That really felt like a holiday.

Billy Boyd (AFP/Getty)

What have you learnt from your travels?

I've learnt how important it is to travel. The more you travel, the more you understand that everyone is the same.

Ideal travelling companions?

My wife and son, Ali and Jack. I would say take a child most places; it's much more fun because they see the excitement and the fun in everything.

Worst travel experience?

In Koh Samui in Thailand with Dom Monaghan, who was Merry in The Lord of the Rings. We rented a canoe and paddled to a restaurant and had an amazing meal – spicy raw prawns and things – but on the paddle back I wasn't feeling that great. That was the longest hour of my life. It gave me some idea what contractions feel like, I think. I survived, but with not much help from Dom, who was in stitches the whole way.

Beach bum, culture vulture or adrenalin junkie?

If I'm booking a holiday then I like to lie on the beach, and surf. Or I'd like to go to a nice museum in Berlin. In New Zealand, I did the jet-boat thing, which is amazing, down in Queenstown. I didn't bungee, but I watched Dom Monaghan and Orlando Bloom do it.

Holiday reading?

I've taken to a Kindle, which I never thought I would like. I used to be a book-binder before I was an actor and I still am a huge fan of the actual physical thing of a book. But travelling around, a Kindle is pretty special. I like reading eastern philosophy.

Where has seduced you?

New Zealand. It got into my bones, that country. It's a really magnificent place on so many levels; maybe we were spoiled making The Lord of the Rings because we got to see the most incredible parts. It's just such a beautiful country with so many beautiful people.

Worst hotel?

I hate to say this but I stayed in a hotel once in the north of Scotland where the people were just so unhelpful. I love Scotland; I love showing people what a great country it is. I think that was what annoyed me the most.

Best hotel?

A Scottish one as well, so there we go. Ardanaiseig, on the banks of Loch Awe, is just the most beautiful place. My wife and I got engaged there actually – I asked her to marry me on the banks of the loch, with the dog running around after a swim, stinking and wet.

Favourite walk, swim, ride or drive?

Me and Dom once drove from one film location to the next, down to the South Island in New Zealand. I've never laughed so much or seen so much beauty. In New Zealand, I mean, not in Dom Monaghan. Although he is quite handsome.

Best meal abroad?

I was working in Japan and my wife and I went to a small hotel in Kyoto. Your bed was made into a table during the day, and they ran a bath in this wooden tub, and you came out of that and they served dinner in your room. It lasted for four hours. We were there three or four nights, and I think we never once went out during the night, because of this incredible meal – fresh fish and rice, it was just absolutely amazing.

Favourite city?

Wellington. I like the unpretentiousness of it. You can walk into what looks like a small café and have one of the best meals of your life. People want to talk to you when you go in and if you want something and ask for it there's a good chance they'll make it work for you. I love that.

Where next?

I'm going to Los Angeles for the next Hobbit premiere. I love LA.