November 18, 2025 • 18 mins
Pippa Hudson speaks to Iga Motylska, a national tourist guide, travel advisor, guidebook author and the editor of eagerjourneys.com, about set jetting, where you visit the locations where movies were shot.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
This is Keith Talk Talk, and it is time to
wander the world. And we're having so much fun today
because we're talking about traveling to destinations that you've seen
in a movie or perhaps a television show, that have
made you go, I want to go there, partly because
it might look beautiful. Maybe you just loved the whole
feeling of a show and wanted to feel like you
(00:23):
were immersed in that world.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
The term for it, I love this.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
Rather than jet setting, we're talking about set jetting, jetting
between movie sets. Get it, planning a holiday specifically in
order to visit one of those beautiful locations. A couple
more of your comments already in on the places you've
been inspired to go to by movies, Elsa saying ASISI,
I was obsessed with the movie Brother Son and Sister
Moon back in the early seventies when I was eighteen.
(00:51):
For Janis, it was Sri Lanka, not inspired by a movie,
but by watching the cricket on TV. She said it
was my most memorable holiday and absolute surfa paradise. I'd
love to hear from more of you about the trips
you've undertaken, particularly because of a film. We've already had
Mama Mia, taking people to Greece under the Tuscan sun, eat, pray, love,
sending people to India, Salzburg and the sound of music.
(01:13):
I bet our guest is going to add a couple
of current favorites to the list. It's a huge pleasure
to welcome back to studio Ega Mortilska, who is a
National Tourist Guide, travel Advisor, guidebook author and the editor
of Eager Journeys dot com. It's great to have you
with us again.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
Welcome back, absolutely, thank you Papa and absolute pleasure TV
here so excited about today's topic as well.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
Such a fun topic set jetting. I mean, I love
that phrase, It's clever. How do you understand that phrase though?
Speaker 2 (01:40):
What does it mean to you?
Speaker 3 (01:41):
I think it's exactly how you encapsulated it in your intro.
It's that fans want to feel close to the stories,
to the places, to the characters that they've grown to love,
and so they want to stand where Denari stood at
King's Landing. They want to sit at that iconic cafe
in montmart In, Paris, you know, surrounded by that whimsical
(02:03):
atmosphere of Amelie. They want to spot the facade of
the Friends Building, which is one of my favorites and
very much village in New York. They want to stroll
through Hobbiton, you know, so they want to be surrounded
and immersed by all of those different destinations, and so
essentially it creates that sort of emotional connection between the
(02:23):
viewer and the characters and the story, that whole narrative.
And of course we've seen in recent years how Instagram
and TikTok and social media in general has fueled this trend,
and so very often posting a photo at a very
recognizable film location is sort of like a badge of
honor for fans, and of course streaming services you know,
(02:44):
have helped with that as well. As you mentioned, they're
exposing us to all of these destinations we might not
have thought about traveling to in the past, and so
of course it's sparking these new sort of travel desires
amongst us.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Yeah, so a couple of red flags here.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
One is the fact that not all of these locations
are actually where they appear to be on film. And
I'm saying this thinking the other night I was alone
at home, randomly flicking through channels, and up came Cocktail
and I thought, absolutely, I'm gonna watch that again, and
I enjoyed it every bit as much as I did
as a teenager. But I looked at the famous scene
of Tom Cruise and Elizabeth Schuker vorting in the waterfall,
(03:20):
and I thought, I bet that waterfalls not even engine Maker.
It's probably filmed in some way, like upper reaches of
New York State or something like that. So it's a
problem one. Not everywhere is filmed where it's actually located.
Problem two is a more serious one, eger and that's
that some of the places are doc tourism spots, if
(03:40):
we can call it that. There are places that are
associated with a lot of historical pain and are not
necessarily it's not sensitive to go and hey, I'm here
for the Instagram selfie. Do you want to share a
couple of examples of that version with us?
Speaker 3 (03:54):
Yes, yes, absolutely, And you're absolutely right. For shows like
Marcos for example, or Chernobyl, you know, these locations are
tied to real life tragedies and very like sensitive historical events.
You know, other examples that we may have seen or
read about is that Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. There's
obviously the killing fields of Cambodia that I visited as
(04:16):
well when I was there a few years ago. And
in South Africa we've obviously got Robin Island, and so
these destinations are linked to a very poignant, difficult past
in history for people and generations that have come since then,
and so I think it's very important to visit these
sites to learn from the history, not just to go
to see the destinations, but to honor the victims, to
(04:40):
reflect on the events, and to do so mindfully, I think,
rather than just you know, using it as a backdrop
for a casual photo you're going to post on social media.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
I think the worst example all of that, and I
remember the Auschwitz Museum actually having to step into So please,
would people stop taking selfies on the train tracks leading
into Aschwitz?
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Absolutely the time have we really.
Speaker 1 (05:00):
Got there that people think that's okay, Yes, you're missing
the point of going there in the first Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
And that's something that's really close to my heart because
I was born in Poland, so I have been to
Auschwitetz a number of times and I'm very grateful that
these establishments and museums, for example, are making those notes
to people. But it's sad to see that people sometimes
get caught up in that, so I think it's very
important to be mindful about that. And something else that
(05:26):
I would say is to obviously avoid any kind of
disrespectful behavior, anything that might be seen as yeah, disrespectful, so.
Speaker 2 (05:36):
Climbing appropriate, yah, yeah, climbing.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
Monuments, or being very loud and boisterous. And I think
something else that I would highly recommend is to do
tours that focus on education and that are guided by
victims or past victims or families of victims, because in
a way, you allow them to tell their story, You
are allowed to hear their side, their perspective beyond maybe
(05:59):
what you might have seen on the big screen. And again,
I think it allows them to sort of live within
that narrative and to retell that story from their own perspective.
So I think something important to be mindful of.
Speaker 1 (06:12):
Thanks for that, we went quite dark quite quickly, so
let's maybe circle back to the lighter side of this conversation.
But I think it was important to just get that
out the way and be mindful of the sites you're
going to that they're not just a movie set. In
many cases, absolutely some of them are just a movie set,
and I mean, this is one of the things we
need to talk about.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Some of them are CGI.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
If not completely CGI created, then certainly have been touched
up and brushed up, yes, with the help of computers.
Is that something to consider as well? That you're planning
your amazing trip to whatever site it may be, and
you get there, like, but it doesn't look anything like
it was on the movie.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Right, and you might say, hang on a minute. Expectation
versus reality very very different. And so as you mentioned,
many of these breathtaking scenes, you know, have been enhanced
by CGI or special effects. Perhaps they've been decorated with
custom built prop, or they've been filmed on custom built
sets and we only see a small little section of that.
(07:08):
You know, many of these sets no longer exist or
have been dismantled entirely. So what appears to be a
vast ancient city, for example, might only be a small
little section that's been digitally altered post production, and you know,
to give us that sense of awe and scale. So
I think it's important to temper your heart, especially if
you have high expectations, and also to remember that many
(07:31):
of these scenes might have been filmed on private property
where you might not have access, so you might need
a specific permit. And also to keep in mind that
perhaps maybe they might have been filmed during a specific season,
maybe when the spring blossoms, you know, are in full bloom,
and now you're coming and visiting in winter when the
(07:51):
trees are bare, and so it can have a completely
different kind of ambiance and look and feel. So I
think that's important. And something to keep in mind is
that after the crew has packed up, everyday life continues,
and so you might have windswept garbage, you might have graffiti.
You might have for example, and you pop up shop
or a cafe that's come up there. And very often
(08:14):
these destinations are very aware of the industry and the
economics behind it, that it draws large crowds and they
want to try and sustain that verse similitude. But sometimes
it's just another neighborhood where you and me live, and
so I think it's important to be mindful of that,
like when you go there as well, just to remember that.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
I'm thinking of the blue door in the Hugh Grant
notting Hill, notting Hill, Thank you that that morgeous movie,
and I remember reading how many people were crawling to
that scene to try and guess their selfie outside the
blue door, and how intrusive it was for the neighbors,
for whom it was just another block in their neighborhood
that they walk past every day. So point taken, I
(08:52):
just want to say, in case anybody's come in midway
to this conversation, that our guest in studio is Igo Matilska,
national tourist guide and travel writer as well as the
editor of Eager journeys dot com, talking about this idea
of set jetting, planning your trip to go and experience
a movie or television location of a show or film
that you've really loved. And we've had some lovely ideas
(09:14):
coming in from listeners who've already made this kind of
of sort of pilgrimage almost to a film set. I'm
going to put in my two cents worth. Earlier this year,
I went to Edinburgh. I didn't go to Edinburgh specifically
because of Harry Potter, but I knew that the city
had huge associations and that series is very, very dear
to my heart. So what I did was I said,
aside it, Dan, I said, right, I'm giving myself permission
(09:35):
to waste an entire day scarring through the sites.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
Associated with Harry Potter.
Speaker 1 (09:40):
So it was going to the little desk at the
window where Joanne Jak Rowling wrote the book, which has
been moved because the original location burnt down, but it's
the original desk. It was visiting the graveyard where the
tombstones gave the inspiration for many of the names, and
it was finding the Potter.
Speaker 2 (09:56):
Grave and the scrim Grave, et cetera.
Speaker 1 (09:59):
I just I spent it in higher afternoon there and
that these locations are scattered all around, and I found
when I was researching, I wanted to do it myself,
but there were lots and lots of organized tours Eiger
that I could have joined how I wanted to. And
in fact, on the afternoon I was in the Grayfriars
Kirkyard looking around. There must have been at least four
tour groups going past, and only one of them I
(10:20):
heard mentioning the actual history of what is a significant
churchyard under which thousands of people are buried.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
The rest of them were all there for the Harry
Potter fans. I found it very very interesting.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
So that's an example of a fairly recent one, I'm
sure you've got much more current ones to share with us.
Do you want to give us some ideas of where
people are going right now?
Speaker 3 (10:39):
Sure? Absolutely. I just want to say that I did
exactly the same thing. I went to Oxford to the
Budlian Library. You know, one of my best friends recently
sent me a photograph from King's Cross Station with platform
nine and three quarters. You know, you've got these beautiful
landscapes and views of like Millennium Bridge as well and
(11:00):
Glenfordic Viaduct where the train goes across. Yes, so same same,
I did that too. Something that's close to my heart
as well is the Witcher in Poland is Genet's Castle,
and of course it's a medieval castle in southern Poland,
so really close to where I was born, and it
(11:20):
makes part of the scenic Eagles Nest Trail. And it's
wonderful because you've got sixty odd castles that are located
along this track and various like forts and so on
as well, so like you can really go and see
the crumbling walls, you can visit the towers, the courtyards,
and obviously it's this beautiful haunting backdrop that you can
(11:43):
see and so The entire route is actually one hundred
and sixty three kilometers. It's started with fourteenth century fortifications,
it stretches all the way to crackof crack Out, and
there are twenty five different castles along this way. And
exactly what you said, Pippa is to avoid over tourism
is not to solely just go for the destination and
(12:06):
for the film sets, but to go and visit places nearby,
in and around the surrounds. I think that's also something
that's quite nice, because then you're also tempering your expectations
in terms of not solely going to go see that,
but having a much bigger, wider sort of experience as well.
Speaker 1 (12:23):
Okay, somebody's asking, did I go to diagon Alley?
Speaker 2 (12:26):
Yes? I did.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
Victoria Street is the actual street name, but it's cobbled
and it's full of those little colorful stores that were
the inspiration for diagon Ally and Harry Potter. So yes, absolutely,
and I have that selfie. I will concede to it. Okay,
So if you're a fan of the Witcher, lovely suggestions
there about heading to Poland. You mentioned nar course earlier,
and as you said, this is one you've got to
approach with some degree of care, because we're talking here
(12:49):
about drug trafficking and an industry that has brought misery
to millions. But at the same time, I'm seeing on
a lot of my traveler groups huge interest in visiting
Columbia and Bogata and Madela.
Speaker 3 (12:59):
And yes, exactly, and so in Medane you see people
going and visiting public Escobar's grave. It's located in Monte
Sacro Cemetery. They also visit the neighborhood that is named
after him, And again that's a little bit controversial because
some residents, you know, show loyalty to him because he
was very philanthropic. He did try to uplift people, and
(13:21):
he did do good for the communities in some way. Obviously,
obviously he had his own sort of ideals around that
and so on. But it's just a tangible reminder of
the influence and the complex sort of socioeconomic dynamics of
the time. And of course there are giant, larger than
life murals there as well, depicting him and in honor
(13:42):
of him. There's also La Catedra, which he built himself
as his luxurious prison. So it's located in the mountains
near Medeene and only parts of the original structure remain,
but it's been repurposed into a monastery and a homeless shelter,
which is very fascinating.
Speaker 2 (13:59):
That is kind of spiritual scrubbing of this, yes, totally.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
And then you can go and explore Park Bolivard by yourself,
and of course that's the central park in the Dein
You've got lots of various public, beautiful spaces that you
can visit there as well. In Bogota you've got La
canderl Candelaria, sorry about my pronunciation, and of course it's
a very colorful and atmospheric area that's you know, very
(14:25):
often seen in these establishing shots. I would also recommend
the National Museum Moselle Nacional. And of course there are,
as you mentioned, many different tours, and I think going
on a tour where the locals can give you those
insights beyond which you can just read on the internet,
I think can give it so much more color and
sort of bring.
Speaker 2 (14:45):
It to life. Yeah, lovely one from Pierre.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
New Zealand and tourism had such a boom off the
back of Lord of the Rings. Pierre says, amongst the others,
we've been. What remains close to our heart was New
Zealand and going to the site where most of The
Lord of the Rings was for on my bucket list,
Pire on my travel bucket list.
Speaker 2 (15:02):
If only it wor's so very very far away from
South Africa.
Speaker 1 (15:06):
With one eye on the clock, we can't not reflect
on k dramas having their moment, and I'm sure that
the tourist moment comes with.
Speaker 3 (15:13):
It, Yes, certainly. So. I lived in South care from
twenty ten until twenty eleven, and I love the fact
that I visited these places because, like before, they became
so famous in popular culture, and so I would mention
that sort of for example, Mangong Market, various soul neighborhoods
where we used to go party or dine have become
(15:35):
so popular. Gun Nam is one. We know that from
gun Nam styles as well, Young Dong Hong Day and
Young g Citizens Forestation of course, and in general you
just see them so often when you're looking at various
series beyond just squid games. And what's really interesting about
(15:56):
being able to travel in South Korea to go visit
them is that have created their own maps, so you
can go online and find these maps they'll give you
advice on where to go, which subway station to get
out of, where to walk, how many steps, when to
turn left and right. So people are very much involved
in that as well.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
And I'm so great sharing that totally and again that
feeling part of a community of fans. I love that
now quickly, quickly an honorable mention for the White Lotus
because I would imagine that right now, places that are
going through a bit of a dip in tourism are
probably writing to the White Lotus creators saying, please put
your next season where we are, because it's had that
spin off effect for so many destinations, most recently Sicily though.
Speaker 3 (16:36):
Yes absolutely, and Thailand as well. And of course, I
mean I was thinking about that, and I know that
some tourism destinations and tourism boards are actually reaching out
and collaborating with producers and various writers and directors and
everything to say, hey, do you want to come to
a site inspection. Let's do a little bit of a recue.
(16:56):
We can show you, you know, what you can see,
what you can portray. So very often there are these
sort of hand in hand collaborations as you mentioned.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
And literally offering rebates if you come and shoot hears
as well. So absolutely watch the space. I believe the
next White Lotus is going to the French riviewer, so
can you just imagine. But definitely one to think about there.
I mean, we've spoken about the need to be sensitive,
We've spoken about the need to manage expectations in terms
of what is real, what is not real. What would
(17:25):
be your recommendation or the best place to start researching at?
Just inclosing ego, if somebody really has their heart set
on doing a Harry Potter holiday or a place that's
going to take them to a sound of music location.
I mean there's a lot of information online. Any tips
or cautions.
Speaker 3 (17:41):
Yes, I would say certainly, have a look at tourism boards.
They're very often capitalizing on that and they want to
minimize over tourism. They want to just sort of manage
the expectations of local communities. I would say that's really great.
Have a look at various blog posts these days. Guidebooks
are also including like little sections you know about movie
(18:01):
tidbits and all of that. So I would say that,
and then just like one final thing I think to
keep in mind is just being mindful of local communities,
and so you know, remembering that the sudden influx can
put a strain on local infrastructure, It increases prices for residents,
it creates gentrification very often. It can also lead to
(18:22):
like environmental damage if it's not managed sustainably. So I
think try to support local businesses, local tour guides, and
then just also be aware of your footprint and just
suspend your disbelief a little bit sometimes and remember that
perhaps the versimilitude of the movie might be slightly different,
and just to embrace it in the magic.
Speaker 1 (18:41):
Absolutely, it's been wonderful having you with us again. Thank
you so much. With lots of food for thought, Ego
motil Sca. You can read more on Eager journeys dot com.
She's also a National tourist Guide, travel advisor, and guidebook writer.
This is Keith Talk Talk, and it is time to
wander the world. And we're having so much fun today
because we're talking about traveling to destinations that you've seen
in a movie or perhaps a television show, that have
made you go, I want to go there, partly because
it might look beautiful. Maybe you just loved the whole
feeling of a show and wanted to feel like you
(00:23):
were immersed in that world.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
The term for it, I love this.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
Rather than jet setting, we're talking about set jetting, jetting
between movie sets. Get it, planning a holiday specifically in
order to visit one of those beautiful locations. A couple
more of your comments already in on the places you've
been inspired to go to by movies, Elsa saying ASISI,
I was obsessed with the movie Brother Son and Sister
Moon back in the early seventies when I was eighteen.
(00:51):
For Janis, it was Sri Lanka, not inspired by a movie,
but by watching the cricket on TV. She said it
was my most memorable holiday and absolute surfa paradise. I'd
love to hear from more of you about the trips
you've undertaken, particularly because of a film. We've already had
Mama Mia, taking people to Greece under the Tuscan sun, eat, pray, love,
sending people to India, Salzburg and the sound of music.
(01:13):
I bet our guest is going to add a couple
of current favorites to the list. It's a huge pleasure
to welcome back to studio Ega Mortilska, who is a
National Tourist Guide, travel Advisor, guidebook author and the editor
of Eager Journeys dot com. It's great to have you
with us again.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
Welcome back, absolutely, thank you Papa and absolute pleasure TV
here so excited about today's topic as well.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
Such a fun topic set jetting. I mean, I love
that phrase, It's clever. How do you understand that phrase though?
Speaker 2 (01:40):
What does it mean to you?
Speaker 3 (01:41):
I think it's exactly how you encapsulated it in your intro.
It's that fans want to feel close to the stories,
to the places, to the characters that they've grown to love,
and so they want to stand where Denari stood at
King's Landing. They want to sit at that iconic cafe
in montmart In, Paris, you know, surrounded by that whimsical
(02:03):
atmosphere of Amelie. They want to spot the facade of
the Friends Building, which is one of my favorites and
very much village in New York. They want to stroll
through Hobbiton, you know, so they want to be surrounded
and immersed by all of those different destinations, and so
essentially it creates that sort of emotional connection between the
(02:23):
viewer and the characters and the story, that whole narrative.
And of course we've seen in recent years how Instagram
and TikTok and social media in general has fueled this trend,
and so very often posting a photo at a very
recognizable film location is sort of like a badge of
honor for fans, and of course streaming services you know,
(02:44):
have helped with that as well. As you mentioned, they're
exposing us to all of these destinations we might not
have thought about traveling to in the past, and so
of course it's sparking these new sort of travel desires
amongst us.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Yeah, so a couple of red flags here.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
One is the fact that not all of these locations
are actually where they appear to be on film. And
I'm saying this thinking the other night I was alone
at home, randomly flicking through channels, and up came Cocktail
and I thought, absolutely, I'm gonna watch that again, and
I enjoyed it every bit as much as I did
as a teenager. But I looked at the famous scene
of Tom Cruise and Elizabeth Schuker vorting in the waterfall,
(03:20):
and I thought, I bet that waterfalls not even engine Maker.
It's probably filmed in some way, like upper reaches of
New York State or something like that. So it's a
problem one. Not everywhere is filmed where it's actually located.
Problem two is a more serious one, eger and that's
that some of the places are doc tourism spots, if
(03:40):
we can call it that. There are places that are
associated with a lot of historical pain and are not
necessarily it's not sensitive to go and hey, I'm here
for the Instagram selfie. Do you want to share a
couple of examples of that version with us?
Speaker 3 (03:54):
Yes, yes, absolutely, And you're absolutely right. For shows like
Marcos for example, or Chernobyl, you know, these locations are
tied to real life tragedies and very like sensitive historical events.
You know, other examples that we may have seen or
read about is that Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. There's
obviously the killing fields of Cambodia that I visited as
(04:16):
well when I was there a few years ago. And
in South Africa we've obviously got Robin Island, and so
these destinations are linked to a very poignant, difficult past
in history for people and generations that have come since then,
and so I think it's very important to visit these
sites to learn from the history, not just to go
to see the destinations, but to honor the victims, to
(04:40):
reflect on the events, and to do so mindfully, I think,
rather than just you know, using it as a backdrop
for a casual photo you're going to post on social media.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
I think the worst example all of that, and I
remember the Auschwitz Museum actually having to step into So please,
would people stop taking selfies on the train tracks leading
into Aschwitz?
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Absolutely the time have we really.
Speaker 1 (05:00):
Got there that people think that's okay, Yes, you're missing
the point of going there in the first Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
And that's something that's really close to my heart because
I was born in Poland, so I have been to
Auschwitetz a number of times and I'm very grateful that
these establishments and museums, for example, are making those notes
to people. But it's sad to see that people sometimes
get caught up in that, so I think it's very
important to be mindful about that. And something else that
(05:26):
I would say is to obviously avoid any kind of
disrespectful behavior, anything that might be seen as yeah, disrespectful, so.
Speaker 2 (05:36):
Climbing appropriate, yah, yeah, climbing.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
Monuments, or being very loud and boisterous. And I think
something else that I would highly recommend is to do
tours that focus on education and that are guided by
victims or past victims or families of victims, because in
a way, you allow them to tell their story, You
are allowed to hear their side, their perspective beyond maybe
(05:59):
what you might have seen on the big screen. And again,
I think it allows them to sort of live within
that narrative and to retell that story from their own perspective.
So I think something important to be mindful of.
Speaker 1 (06:12):
Thanks for that, we went quite dark quite quickly, so
let's maybe circle back to the lighter side of this conversation.
But I think it was important to just get that
out the way and be mindful of the sites you're
going to that they're not just a movie set. In
many cases, absolutely some of them are just a movie set,
and I mean, this is one of the things we
need to talk about.
Speaker 2 (06:29):
Some of them are CGI.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
If not completely CGI created, then certainly have been touched
up and brushed up, yes, with the help of computers.
Is that something to consider as well? That you're planning
your amazing trip to whatever site it may be, and
you get there, like, but it doesn't look anything like
it was on the movie.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Right, and you might say, hang on a minute. Expectation
versus reality very very different. And so as you mentioned,
many of these breathtaking scenes, you know, have been enhanced
by CGI or special effects. Perhaps they've been decorated with
custom built prop, or they've been filmed on custom built
sets and we only see a small little section of that.
(07:08):
You know, many of these sets no longer exist or
have been dismantled entirely. So what appears to be a
vast ancient city, for example, might only be a small
little section that's been digitally altered post production, and you know,
to give us that sense of awe and scale. So
I think it's important to temper your heart, especially if
you have high expectations, and also to remember that many
(07:31):
of these scenes might have been filmed on private property
where you might not have access, so you might need
a specific permit. And also to keep in mind that
perhaps maybe they might have been filmed during a specific season,
maybe when the spring blossoms, you know, are in full bloom,
and now you're coming and visiting in winter when the
(07:51):
trees are bare, and so it can have a completely
different kind of ambiance and look and feel. So I
think that's important. And something to keep in mind is
that after the crew has packed up, everyday life continues,
and so you might have windswept garbage, you might have graffiti.
You might have for example, and you pop up shop
or a cafe that's come up there. And very often
(08:14):
these destinations are very aware of the industry and the
economics behind it, that it draws large crowds and they
want to try and sustain that verse similitude. But sometimes
it's just another neighborhood where you and me live, and
so I think it's important to be mindful of that,
like when you go there as well, just to remember that.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
I'm thinking of the blue door in the Hugh Grant
notting Hill, notting Hill, Thank you that that morgeous movie,
and I remember reading how many people were crawling to
that scene to try and guess their selfie outside the
blue door, and how intrusive it was for the neighbors,
for whom it was just another block in their neighborhood
that they walk past every day. So point taken, I
(08:52):
just want to say, in case anybody's come in midway
to this conversation, that our guest in studio is Igo Matilska,
national tourist guide and travel writer as well as the
editor of Eager journeys dot com, talking about this idea
of set jetting, planning your trip to go and experience
a movie or television location of a show or film
that you've really loved. And we've had some lovely ideas
(09:14):
coming in from listeners who've already made this kind of
of sort of pilgrimage almost to a film set. I'm
going to put in my two cents worth. Earlier this year,
I went to Edinburgh. I didn't go to Edinburgh specifically
because of Harry Potter, but I knew that the city
had huge associations and that series is very, very dear
to my heart. So what I did was I said,
aside it, Dan, I said, right, I'm giving myself permission
(09:35):
to waste an entire day scarring through the sites.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
Associated with Harry Potter.
Speaker 1 (09:40):
So it was going to the little desk at the
window where Joanne Jak Rowling wrote the book, which has
been moved because the original location burnt down, but it's
the original desk. It was visiting the graveyard where the
tombstones gave the inspiration for many of the names, and
it was finding the Potter.
Speaker 2 (09:56):
Grave and the scrim Grave, et cetera.
Speaker 1 (09:59):
I just I spent it in higher afternoon there and
that these locations are scattered all around, and I found
when I was researching, I wanted to do it myself,
but there were lots and lots of organized tours Eiger
that I could have joined how I wanted to. And
in fact, on the afternoon I was in the Grayfriars
Kirkyard looking around. There must have been at least four
tour groups going past, and only one of them I
(10:20):
heard mentioning the actual history of what is a significant
churchyard under which thousands of people are buried.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
The rest of them were all there for the Harry
Potter fans. I found it very very interesting.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
So that's an example of a fairly recent one, I'm
sure you've got much more current ones to share with us.
Do you want to give us some ideas of where
people are going right now?
Speaker 3 (10:39):
Sure? Absolutely. I just want to say that I did
exactly the same thing. I went to Oxford to the
Budlian Library. You know, one of my best friends recently
sent me a photograph from King's Cross Station with platform
nine and three quarters. You know, you've got these beautiful
landscapes and views of like Millennium Bridge as well and
(11:00):
Glenfordic Viaduct where the train goes across. Yes, so same same,
I did that too. Something that's close to my heart
as well is the Witcher in Poland is Genet's Castle,
and of course it's a medieval castle in southern Poland,
so really close to where I was born, and it
(11:20):
makes part of the scenic Eagles Nest Trail. And it's
wonderful because you've got sixty odd castles that are located
along this track and various like forts and so on
as well, so like you can really go and see
the crumbling walls, you can visit the towers, the courtyards,
and obviously it's this beautiful haunting backdrop that you can
(11:43):
see and so The entire route is actually one hundred
and sixty three kilometers. It's started with fourteenth century fortifications,
it stretches all the way to crackof crack Out, and
there are twenty five different castles along this way. And
exactly what you said, Pippa is to avoid over tourism
is not to solely just go for the destination and
(12:06):
for the film sets, but to go and visit places nearby,
in and around the surrounds. I think that's also something
that's quite nice, because then you're also tempering your expectations
in terms of not solely going to go see that,
but having a much bigger, wider sort of experience as well.
Speaker 1 (12:23):
Okay, somebody's asking, did I go to diagon Alley?
Speaker 2 (12:26):
Yes? I did.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
Victoria Street is the actual street name, but it's cobbled
and it's full of those little colorful stores that were
the inspiration for diagon Ally and Harry Potter. So yes, absolutely,
and I have that selfie. I will concede to it. Okay,
So if you're a fan of the Witcher, lovely suggestions
there about heading to Poland. You mentioned nar course earlier,
and as you said, this is one you've got to
approach with some degree of care, because we're talking here
(12:49):
about drug trafficking and an industry that has brought misery
to millions. But at the same time, I'm seeing on
a lot of my traveler groups huge interest in visiting
Columbia and Bogata and Madela.
Speaker 3 (12:59):
And yes, exactly, and so in Medane you see people
going and visiting public Escobar's grave. It's located in Monte
Sacro Cemetery. They also visit the neighborhood that is named
after him, And again that's a little bit controversial because
some residents, you know, show loyalty to him because he
was very philanthropic. He did try to uplift people, and
(13:21):
he did do good for the communities in some way. Obviously,
obviously he had his own sort of ideals around that
and so on. But it's just a tangible reminder of
the influence and the complex sort of socioeconomic dynamics of
the time. And of course there are giant, larger than
life murals there as well, depicting him and in honor
(13:42):
of him. There's also La Catedra, which he built himself
as his luxurious prison. So it's located in the mountains
near Medeene and only parts of the original structure remain,
but it's been repurposed into a monastery and a homeless shelter,
which is very fascinating.
Speaker 2 (13:59):
That is kind of spiritual scrubbing of this, yes, totally.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
And then you can go and explore Park Bolivard by yourself,
and of course that's the central park in the Dein
You've got lots of various public, beautiful spaces that you
can visit there as well. In Bogota you've got La
canderl Candelaria, sorry about my pronunciation, and of course it's
a very colorful and atmospheric area that's you know, very
(14:25):
often seen in these establishing shots. I would also recommend
the National Museum Moselle Nacional. And of course there are,
as you mentioned, many different tours, and I think going
on a tour where the locals can give you those
insights beyond which you can just read on the internet,
I think can give it so much more color and
sort of bring.
Speaker 2 (14:45):
It to life. Yeah, lovely one from Pierre.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
New Zealand and tourism had such a boom off the
back of Lord of the Rings. Pierre says, amongst the others,
we've been. What remains close to our heart was New
Zealand and going to the site where most of The
Lord of the Rings was for on my bucket list,
Pire on my travel bucket list.
Speaker 2 (15:02):
If only it wor's so very very far away from
South Africa.
Speaker 1 (15:06):
With one eye on the clock, we can't not reflect
on k dramas having their moment, and I'm sure that
the tourist moment comes with.
Speaker 3 (15:13):
It, Yes, certainly. So. I lived in South care from
twenty ten until twenty eleven, and I love the fact
that I visited these places because, like before, they became
so famous in popular culture, and so I would mention
that sort of for example, Mangong Market, various soul neighborhoods
where we used to go party or dine have become
(15:35):
so popular. Gun Nam is one. We know that from
gun Nam styles as well, Young Dong Hong Day and
Young g Citizens Forestation of course, and in general you
just see them so often when you're looking at various
series beyond just squid games. And what's really interesting about
(15:56):
being able to travel in South Korea to go visit
them is that have created their own maps, so you
can go online and find these maps they'll give you
advice on where to go, which subway station to get
out of, where to walk, how many steps, when to
turn left and right. So people are very much involved
in that as well.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
And I'm so great sharing that totally and again that
feeling part of a community of fans. I love that
now quickly, quickly an honorable mention for the White Lotus
because I would imagine that right now, places that are
going through a bit of a dip in tourism are
probably writing to the White Lotus creators saying, please put
your next season where we are, because it's had that
spin off effect for so many destinations, most recently Sicily though.
Speaker 3 (16:36):
Yes absolutely, and Thailand as well. And of course, I
mean I was thinking about that, and I know that
some tourism destinations and tourism boards are actually reaching out
and collaborating with producers and various writers and directors and
everything to say, hey, do you want to come to
a site inspection. Let's do a little bit of a recue.
(16:56):
We can show you, you know, what you can see,
what you can portray. So very often there are these
sort of hand in hand collaborations as you mentioned.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
And literally offering rebates if you come and shoot hears
as well. So absolutely watch the space. I believe the
next White Lotus is going to the French riviewer, so
can you just imagine. But definitely one to think about there.
I mean, we've spoken about the need to be sensitive,
We've spoken about the need to manage expectations in terms
of what is real, what is not real. What would
(17:25):
be your recommendation or the best place to start researching at?
Just inclosing ego, if somebody really has their heart set
on doing a Harry Potter holiday or a place that's
going to take them to a sound of music location.
I mean there's a lot of information online. Any tips
or cautions.
Speaker 3 (17:41):
Yes, I would say certainly, have a look at tourism boards.
They're very often capitalizing on that and they want to
minimize over tourism. They want to just sort of manage
the expectations of local communities. I would say that's really great.
Have a look at various blog posts these days. Guidebooks
are also including like little sections you know about movie
(18:01):
tidbits and all of that. So I would say that,
and then just like one final thing I think to
keep in mind is just being mindful of local communities,
and so you know, remembering that the sudden influx can
put a strain on local infrastructure, It increases prices for residents,
it creates gentrification very often. It can also lead to
(18:22):
like environmental damage if it's not managed sustainably. So I
think try to support local businesses, local tour guides, and
then just also be aware of your footprint and just
suspend your disbelief a little bit sometimes and remember that
perhaps the versimilitude of the movie might be slightly different,
and just to embrace it in the magic.
Speaker 1 (18:41):
Absolutely, it's been wonderful having you with us again. Thank
you so much. With lots of food for thought, Ego
motil Sca. You can read more on Eager journeys dot com.
She's also a National tourist Guide, travel advisor, and guidebook writer.
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