What is Valinor, Frodo and Gandalf’s destination at the end of ‘The Lord of The Rings’

‘The Lord of the Rings’ never goes out of style. The work of J.R.R. Tolkien is revered by millions of people around the world with the film trilogy by Peter Jackson managing to make his universe reach millions of new fans. There are many confirmed productions set in Middle Earth already on their way, like ‘The Rings of Power’ series, the animated film ‘The War of the Rohirrim’ or the film about Gollum that will feature Peter Jackson as producer and Andy Serkis as director. Many places of enormous mysticism have passed before our eyes, but one of the most magical is undoubtedly Valinor, the place for which Frodo Baggins departs at the end of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and that we could also see in the first season of ‘The Rings of Power’.

What is Valinor? It is the kingdom founded by the Valar (a type of ainur, the first living beings that Ilúvatar created, spiritual beings of great power among which is Melkor, the great dark enemy of the world) in Aman(one of the main continents of Arda, the world in which almost all of Tolkien’s works take place), also known as the Undying Lands because only immortal souls are allowed to reside in them, with some exceptions such as Frodo and Bilbo Baggins, bearers of the One Ring; or Gimli accompanying his great friend Legolas to these lands.

The enormous mystique of Valinor

Valinor was founded on the continent of Aman after the destruction of Almaren at the hands of Melkor. For a time it was possible to reach Aman by ship from Middle-earth, crossing the Great Sea, but the rebellion in Numenor of King Ar-Phârazon caused Valinor and the lands of Aman to be separated from the circles of the Earth, becoming only reachable for elves. In the films we see that at the end of the Third Age, Frodo and Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf, Elrond, and Galadriel left Middle-earth to live indefinitely in Tol Eressëa, very close to Valinor. Sometime later they would leave definitively for Valinor, a place where Samwise Gamgee, Legolas, and Gimli would also arrive, who would have the honor of being the only dwarf to set foot on this mystical and immortal land.

The Undying Lands are a place of rest for anyone who ends up in them, but they do not allow mortals to live forever, so both Bilbo, Frodo, Gimli, and Sam would end up dying in a place that very few mortals have known.