Set-jetting: Tapping Into The 'white Lotus Effect'

South Africas booming film industry perfectly positions the country to take advantage of the set-jetting trend, according to a report prepared by South African Tourism.

Set-jetting refers to travel destinations featured in film and television productions. The latest trend, dubbed the White Lotus effect, refers to the surge in tourism in the wake of the hit TV series of the same name. Each of its three seasons has been filmed at a fictional White Lotus Hotel in Hawaii, Italy and Thailand. Visitors are flocking to the properties featured in the show.

According to South African Tourism, set-jetting offers destinations the chance to benefit from a blend of pop culture and immersive travel. To stay relevant, the industry must adapt and deliver authentic, engaging experiences for film enthusiasts, says the report.

While the report highlights the importance of streaming services like Netflix in developing the trend, it says it is not an entirely new craze. Austria, for example, has been operating popular tours since the release of The Sound of Music in the 1960s.

South Africa has built a thriving film industry, providing locations for major motion pictures like Mission: Impossible , The Bourne Ultimatum and Black Panther . Co-Founder and Director of the International Tourism Film Festival Africa James Byrne says data compiled by the festival and the Commercial Producers Association of South Africa shows that the sector is expected to bring in R5.2billion 266million in foreign investment in 2025. Between November 2023 and August 2024, international film crews booked over 59000 hotel bed nights, injecting R148million 7.5million into the economy.