Work in New Zealand

What Effect Does TV and Cinema Have on our Travel Plans?

This question was posed in a recent blog in the UK's Travel Mail amidst news that Visit Britain (Britain's national tourism promotional agency) has become an official tourism partner for the new James Bond movie Quantum of Solace (which, by the way, I can't wait to see).

With Bond being British and the films being hugely popular all over the world, Visit Britain are probably hoping that the film will inspire people to...well, visit Britain. Just like the Australian Tourist Board is hoping Baz Luhrmann's epic film 'Australia' will encourage people to come to Oz.

It is said that the success of Crocodile Dundee and Aussie soap Neighbours were 2 of the main factors that drove UK tourists to Australia in the '80s.

There's no doubt that seeing a country on the big screen definitely makes you think 'that looks nice' (The Amazing Race anyone?). But I don't think any film or TV show has actually made me plan a trip. While I happily visited the Neighbours set in Melbourne (I'm from the UK, it's expected of me!), it wasn't the reason I booked my trip here in the first place.

Then again, I haven't seen Lord of the Rings yet.

In 2007, Expedia surveyed 33,000 people in the UK about films that inspired them to start on a journey to the set locations. The top 10 were -

1. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring - New Zealand.
2. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl - St Vincent and the Grenadines
3. The Beach - Bangkok, Thailand
4. Ocean's Eleven - Las Vegas, USA
5. Breakfast at Tiffany's - NY, USA
6. The Sound of Music - Austria
7. Braveheart - Scotland, UK
8. Out Of Africa - Kenya
9. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom - India
10. The Talented Mr. Ripley ' Italy

Hmm'I'm not sure about travelling but I do feel like popcorn'