From the Movie Screen to the Tourist Map: How Films Sell Us Travel

Set-jetting, state investment in film shoots and screen illusions — how cinema creates tourist demand.

A few seconds on screen can turn a quiet town into a centre of mass tourism and make viewers book a ticket to the other end of the world right after the credits. Governments spend millions on attracting film studios, while real streets increasingly face the consequences of screen glamour.

How films shape entire itineraries, why countries compete for film crews and how dangerous sudden screen fame can be — read about it in DeTalks' article.

What set-jetting is and why cinema works better than advertising

The phenomenon of set-jetting covers trips to locations that viewers see in films or TV series. Unlike traditional travel advertising, a film doesn't convince you to visit a particular place outright.

A film shows a location within the context of a story a person forms an emotional bond with. The viewer perceives landscapes, architecture or hotels not as objects from an advertising catalogue, but as part of the characters' world.

As a result, there arises a desire to step inside a familiar story for a while. This is how screen stories directly influence the choice of destinations for future trips.

Dubrovnik and “Game of Thrones”

The “Game of Thrones” series depicts dynasties fighting for power, while Dubrovnik's architecture serves as the scenery for King's Landing — the capital of the fictional state.

According to an academic study of tourism demand in Croatia, episodes featuring Dubrovnik generated about 5000 additional tourist overnight stays per month — about 59000 per year. Indeed, the series helped attract tourists during periods when traditional demand is usually lower.

Sicily and “The White Lotus”

The second season of the satirical drama “The White Lotus” revolves around the intrigues of wealthy guests at a luxury resort, making the Sicilian landscapes and hotel life the key backdrop of the plot.

After the series premiered, the San Domenico Palace hotel in Taormina filled all of its rooms six months in advance, while local establishments recorded record growth in visitor numbers.

When a travel platform published a listing for renting the villa from the series, online demand for accommodation bookings in Sicily grew by 2000% in a single week.

Yorkshire and the screen adaptation of “Wuthering Heights”

The screen adaptation of the novel “Wuthering Heights” shows the story of the characters' relationships against the backdrop of the Yorkshire moors, where the terrain acts as the main scenery. After the film's release, the Yorkshire region of the UK found itself in the spotlight of travellers.

During the first six weeks after the release, search interest in the region grew by 60%. The company recorded a similar trend in Canada as well: after the premiere of the series "Heated Rivalry", interest in the Muskoka region grew by 110%.

Wuthering Heights: From Emily Brontë's Novel to the 2026 Film Adaptation

What we know about the new Wuthering Heights adaptation, critics' reactions, the novel's history, and the question of its relevance today. Read more in DeTalks' article.

“The Hobbit” and New Zealand's state strategies

Cinema's influence on the tourism industry is not limited to what happens after a film's release. For many countries, attracting film production has become a separate part of economic and tourism strategy.

For instance, after the success of “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit”, New Zealand began actively leveraging its cinematic recognisability in tourism marketing. A government programme provides for a 20% rebate of qualifying expenditure for international film productions, and, under certain conditions, an additional 5%.

The consequences of this strategy can be seen in the example of Hobbiton — a tourist complex near Matamata created on the filming locations of “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit”. The location didn't disappear once production wrapped, but turned into a permanent tourist attraction with tours and themed routes.

When the on-screen picture meets reality

Yet there is a distance between the image on screen and the real place. Cinema uses editing, lighting, special effects and separate filming locations, creating a cohesive fictional space.

For example, the series “Emily in Paris” portrays the French capital as an idealised space with cosy cafés and picturesque streets. The real Paris, however, also has traffic jams, queues and high prices.

At the same time, some travellers come not to experience the city's everyday life, but to recreate scenes from the screen. Moreover, fan posts on social media often mistakenly attribute filming to locations that never appeared in the series at all.

The flip side of popularity: when tourists become too many

At first glance, popularity after a film's release seems like an outright win for local businesses. But for small towns and areas with fragile infrastructure, a sudden influx of tourists can become a serious challenge.

So, for example, in Dubrovnik the popularity of “Game of Thrones” coincided with an already existing tourist flow, putting an excessive load on the city. In response to these problems, the local authorities launched the Respect the City programme aimed at managing tourist flows and protecting the historic centre.

So the question is not whether cities should capitalise on film popularity, but how to do it responsibly. The success of film-induced tourism depends not only on the film's popularity, but also on the marketing strategy and the active work of local organisations.