Travel
‘Set-jetting’: travel in the footsteps of your favourite movies and shows
With The White Lotus back on screens this week, expect tourism to Koh Samui to explode. What’s behind this phenomenon and how can you get in on the fun?
By Carolyn Tate
You may have heard about the ‘The White Lotus effect’: with tourism to the Sicilian town of Taormina going through the roof thanks to the world switching onto season 2 of the Netflix show, and falling in love with the Italian beach resort lifestyle (presumably sans the mysterious murders and dodgy behaviour of many of the characters).
And while The White Lotus (season 3 – set in Koh Samui, Thailand – dropped this week on Binge) has coined the concept of ‘set-jetting’ – the practice of visiting destinations we’ve seen on TV or in the movies – it’s actually been around for quite some time now.
Popular movies or TV shows can increase tourism to an area by an average of 31%, providing a boost for the local economy and employment, and changing the way we all holiday.
The Lord of the Rings trilogy made New Zealand so popular as a tourist destination, a new town of Hobbiton was built to give visitors somewhere movie-related to visit. In fact, ‘Tolkien tourism’ is credited with boosting international visitors to New Zealand by 40% between 2000 and 2006.
Tourism to Maya Bay on Phi Phi Le Island in Thailand went through the roof after the Leonardo di Caprio movie The Beach showed us how beautiful those Thai beaches were. And the Greek island of Skopelos became the object of much affection after Meryl Streep sang her way around the whitewashed buildings and azure waters in Mamma Mia!.
Fans of Game of Thrones, the epic HBO series that took the world by storm, made up 1 in 6 visitors to Northern Ireland in 2018, and a million tourists visiting Dubrovnik in Croatia in 2019 alone were there because of the show as well.
And perhaps some of the earliest examples of set-jetting holidays are tourists visiting Salzburg as a result of The Sound of Music, Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles from Rebel Without a Cause, and Martha’s Vineyard from Jaws (although there probably aren’t many brave enough to go for a swim).
The allure of set-jetting
What is it about these TV and movie locations that makes us want to ditch other plans and visit a world that may only vaguely resemble what we’ve seen on screen? Perhaps there’s just something about a narrative and visual storytelling that brings us in, making us feel like we understand or belong, even without ever setting foot in the place before.
Whether we want to be part of a world where families sing together against picturesque rolling Austrian hills, like in the Sound of Music, or we want to embrace that ultra-luxurious lifestyle that the cashed up tourists enjoy in The White Lotus, movies make it far easier to picture ourselves in these places than if we’d just thumbed through a tourism brochure.
And sometimes we feel like we are contributing to something important. After Gorillas in the Mist was released in cinemas, tourism to Botswana was given a boost and the plight of the endangered gorillas became front and centre. Visitors to the area felt they could help by donating to the cause and boosting local employment.
The downside set-jetting
As with any favourite tourist destination, sometimes we can love a place too much. Eventually Maya Bay, the setting for The Beach, was forced to close to tourists for a year and a half, after 5,000 tourists a day led to litter, boats and sunscreen destroying over 80% of the coral in the area. It was a tough call for Thai authorities to close the operation down, after the area’s economy had become highly reliant on the tourist dollar.
In Dubrovnik, the Game of Thrones effect has meant that traditional restaurants and shops have closed down after gentrification has set in and tourist shops thrived in their place. This sort of ‘love’ can irreversibly change a city until it’s no longer recognisable as the place everyone wanted to visit.
Experts say the key is responsible management of these types of locations. Maya Beach, for example, now has a raft of new rules in place, allowing only 375 visitors at a time, and requiring boats to dock in a specific area behind the bay.
The best set-jetting options today
The best type of set-jetting holiday embraces the best of the film or TV links and gives you a taste of what you came for, as well as showing you the local culture and lifestyle – all in a sustainable way.
Some of the most popular set-jetting holidays in the world that you might like to try include:
● Venice Beach, California - Barbie
● Glasgow, Scotland - Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
● New York, New York - Sex and the City
● Paris, France - Emily in Paris
● Oxford, England - Harry Potter
● Kualoa Ranch, Hawaii - Jurassic Park
● Wadi Rum, Jordan - Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
● Iguazu Falls, Argentina - Black Panther
● Snoqualmie, Washington - Twin Peaks
● Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda - Gorillas in the Mist
● Singapore - Crazy Rich Asians
● Queenstown, New Zealand - Lord of the Rings
● Venice, Italy - A Haunting in Venice
● Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania - Groundhog Day (visit on 2 February to enjoy the full spectacle of the groundhog).
Feature image: Courtesy of HBO/The White Lotus
More movie and travel love: