English author J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit novel, which increased in popularity after the film series was produced, now has a small “facsimile” in the rolling hills of Dilijan, a resort town in Armenia.

The Gulanyan brothers, Ararat and Edgar, built the Hobbit House, a complex of guest houses in Dilijan that reminds one of the abodes of the fantasy creatures described in the book.

Some parts of the guest houses go deep in the ground. The roofs are covered with soil, grass and flowers. Ensuring comfort is one of the main purposes of the Hobbit House in Dilijan.

The brothers run two other guest houses in Dilijan, but they designed this one to attract more tourists, who now have the chance to be closer to nature.

The entire project was a family affair.

Edgar, a designer, drew the guesthouse sketches. Artavazd Gulanyan, the brothers’ father, supervised the construction carried out by with the local residents.

The guesthouse furniture was fashioned by Dilijan master craftsmen. Ararat says that it’s important for the guesthouse to also create jobs for the local residents.

Each guest house measures 20 square meters.

Edgar says there were some technical difficulties with the roofs, but in the end, they solved the problem of ensuring stability and being waterproof while also ensuring that the grass on the roofs stays green.

Ararat recalls that one of the technical challenges they solved was installing the round doors so that they are easy to open.

Although the houses seem small from the outside, in reality, the height of the ceiling is 2-2.5 meters.

 "One should provide good services so that the tourists coming to Armenia leave satisfied and advertise Armenia to their friends," says Ararat Gulanyan.

Photos by Ani Sargsyan

Top photo taken from the Hobbit House Dilijan’s Facebook page