Disney

Probably most of us have grown up with Disney’s Cartoons. Disney universe is one of the most important corporations in the world dedicated to communications and entertainment.

The Disney brothers and the animator Ub Werks founded Disney Bros in 1923.

In 1995 the first Disney Park was inaugurated in Anaheim. Afterwards the company bought lands in Orlando and built there another park. Nowadays, there are six theme parks Tokio, Hong Kong, Shangai, Orlando, Anaheim and Paris. The closest one to us is Disneyland Paris founded in 1992. The most common customers are families with little children who expect to find their animated friends. For this reason, they must be in constant innovation. The shows and attractions must be updated according to the release of new films or animated cartoons. On the other side, Disney can’t forget their all time classics; Pinocchio, Snow-white or The beauty and the beast.  The main objective is to make children believe that real world can be something magic and at the same time make the experience enjoyable for the grown ups.

The cities, which host Disney Parks, get huge benefits because not everybody that visit the park stays at the resort. In addiction, many visitors take the opportunity to visit the most representative spots of the city. In the case of Paris, the impact of the Disney resort was so important that the park could be taken as one of the most emblematic places of city. On the other hand not only the locals take benefits of this animated world, but also the travel agencies around the world, who sell every year family packs to visit the parks.

As you can see, every Disney park is a great touristic attraction and is a must see for the families around the world.

The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games is an American novel written by Suzanne Collins that later in 2012 was turned into a science fiction adventure film. The movie turned out to be a massive box-office success that grew up to $685 million worldwide. We could say that The Hunger Games phenomenon has just started since two more movies have yet to be released and the book saga and one film premiered have already moved millions of fans around the world.

This is the main reason why Asheville, a small city in North Carolina and the city where the movie was filmed, is now trying to promote the city and make a business of it by offering a free getaway to the city visiting the set places and staying in the same hotel the cast did whilst filming the movie. Here is how they sell their product:

“Walk in the footsteps of Katniss and Peeta and experience all the unscripted adventures had by your favourite tributes. Our Watch & Win contest will send you soaring through the mountain tops on a zip line adventure…”

It is incredible how not only small businesses like café’s or tour companies try to obtain benefits from successful movies but also cities themselves try to gain more tourism thanks to the films set in their city. This clearly shows the huge importance that film tourism is gaining year after year. Every movie saga that has recently been released and has had success has ended producing tourism wherever the movie was filmed.  Will film tourism end up being a big and extremely profitable type of tourism? What do you think?

And by the way! To view more information about the getaway, visit the following website:

http://www.exploreasheville.com/about-asheville/cool-asheville-stories/hunger-games/watch-and-win-free-hunger-games-survival-getaway/?menuid=862

RSM Titanic

On 10 April 1912 the Titanic was leaving Southampton. Four days after the departure the Titanic hit an iceberg and sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912. This tragedy caused 1502 deaths and was one of the most remembered tragedies that occurred in the XX century. Nowadays the Titanic is still attracting people who wonder about what happened that tragic day.

Southampton was the city most affected by this tragedy, not only because it was the departure city, also because many of the passengers where families from this city. Because of that reason in Southampton there is a Museum dedicated to the victims of the disaster and is opened for people who wants to learn more about the Titanic.

The name of the museum is Seacity Museum and it has other exhibitions beside the Titanic expositions but it is specialized on it. In your visit to this museum you will see the Disaster Room that describes the events that occurred since the ship hit the iceberg and sink until the passengers were rescued.  You also will be able to find more about the British inquire that was conducted in London after the disaster.

We think that the catastrophe of the Titanic has supposed an increment in the tourism of Southampton, because many people wanted to know how was possible the sag of the ‘’unsinkable’’ ship, the Titanic, the ship of dreams.

Estrella Damm

Since 2009, this beers’ brand surprised us with their summer ads. In them we can see splendid Mediterranean paradises that the spectators wait year after year.

For this reason the chosen place to be the protagonist feels flattered and lucky at the same time because they cause a very big touristic impact.

 

In 2009, Estrella damm made us fall in love with Formentera, in it a lot of places of the Island appear such as La Mola market or the Blue bar, one of the places that has benefit the most. Thanks to the ad, the number of tourists increased and also their benefits because there were a lot of people who decided to do a stop there and drink a cold beer.
 

In 2010, they wager for Menorca, which convinced again all the spectators. This time, they continued with the same style: young people enjoying the summer surrounded by white sand and crystalline water. In it we can see; La Cala Pregonda, Cala Rafalet, the lighthouse and a little fishing village called Binibèquer Vell. They discover touristic places that are now visited by the most curious people who want to be in the same place where the advert took place.

In 2011, they stayed true to their style and they showed us with a new ad a different paradise situated in the peninsula; the Bulli restaurant and the amazing Cala Montjoi.

Finally, in 2012 they chose Mallorca, specifically Serra de Tramuntana. In that advert we can discover small beaches with incredible views that seduce all the people who watch them.

After all this, possibly everyone asks the same question: with what place will they surprise us this year?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Cv060jR6OA 

LOST

Lost is without any kind of doubt one of the most successful and profitable TV-series in the last decade. We have shown before how book and film sagas have become huge merchandising businesses, but never before a TV-series had become so big to generate a growth in tourism in a certain place.

Lost is an American TV-series that counts with 6 seasons that aired on ABC from 2004 to 2010. It’s a drama series that not only contains science fiction and supernatural aspects that follow the survivors of an airplane crash flying from Sydney to Los Angeles on a tropical island somewhere in the South Pacific Ocean. Lost was declared the highest rated show for the first ten years of IMDb.com Pro, having for example 23 million viewers with the second season premiere episode. How has this influenced tourism and created an emergent business?

Many travel agencies offer trips to Hawaii to those fans that are interested in visiting the different places where the TV-series was filmed. The visit of some of the most memorable series sets are not only the perfect escape for the Lost fans but also for those tourists interested in being seduced by the magnificent landscapes and to enjoy the islands natural beauty. Tour companies of the island have created special Lost tours that take tourists to the emblematic series sets such as; Oahu Island were Mokuleia Beach and the Waikiki Beach are visited.

There are many different Lost tours available that take you to the different TV-series sets, some last up to 10 days and take tourists to the different islands where it was filmed. For example, for those Lost maniacs there are special tours that not only take you to Hawaii but they start in New York cities ABC Studio sets taking you later to Honolulu or even getaways that combine a Hollywood Studio sets trip with Hawaii visits that finally end in Oahu.

Tour companies saw I clear business when it came to Lost fans since many of us have been amazed not only by the spectacular twisted plot but also by the breath-taking images they show. Consequently the Lost tours are not only purchased by the series fans but also by people interested in seeing the most exotic and tropical landscapes. Would you enjoy a Lost tour? We certainly would!

The Oscars

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We all know last week the 85^th Gala of The Oscars took place. Everybody has been talking about who won, who was the one with the best dress and many anecdotes that occurred during the Gala, however nobody really focused on the many millions this business moves not only on the preparation of the most famous gala in the world but the tourism it moves.

Obviously, for the candidates and final winners the Oscars are an extra source of income, prestige and recognition being also the most famous annual gala around the world, which spends over a million dollars. The Economic Development Council of Los Angeles estimates that the annual benefit gala produces benefits up to 130 million dollars for the city. Nearly 90 millions are from television rights for broadcasting the Gala, which has been the ABC channel for years.

New York & Company, which is the official marketing organization and tourism of New York City offered New Yorkers and visitors the opportunity to participate in the live broadcasting of the Oscars from Los Angeles and in many other activities that took place. The week of activities culminated with the actual reception and retransmission of the gala of The Oscars.

Also, we have to take into consideration all the services that needed to be increased in the city during the week when the Oscars took place. Such as; increase in normal planes due to the enormous amount of visitors that LA receives during the Gala, increase in private planes landing in the private LA airports due to the huge amount of celebrities arriving to the Gala, restaurants, shops or the catering services for the Gala. Many tourists and celebrities spent the night and weekend in the city, so hotel occupation increased drastically, causing a price rate rise.  Also due to the Gala services such as; security, police, reporters, journalists, photographers were needed also creating a huge increment on their expenses in LA during their stay.

            It is incredible what a Cinema Gala can actually move and affect tourism as well, increasing LA’s visitors during that weekend to crazy figures and generating an enormous amount of benefits for the city.

City of cinema

Nowadays each of us is hooked to at least one series. That’s why for a brand, place or site is very important and positive appear in one series because this can become a big campaign. Today we are going to talk about places that have become successful after they appeared continually or eventually in a television series.

Dylan’s Candy Store: this place appears in the famous and successful series Gossip Girl. Since then the candy shop has become famous even in other countries. In the store you will find a huge variety of candies and also in some locals they serve cocktails and meals.

Empire Hotel: this luxury hotel located in New York City appears many times in Gossip Girl. In the series this hotel is owned by character Chuck Bass and it’s an emblem of the Upper West Side. Many fans of the series come to the hotel only for being in the same place as their favorite Gossip Girl’s character.

McLaren’s Bar: this is the famous bar where many important life events of Ted, Barney, Robin, Lily and Marshall take place. The bar that appears in How I Met Your Mother is based in another existing bar: McGee’s Pub and Restaurant. Since the apparition of McLaren’s Bar in the series, the real bar has become famous and has incremented their visits.

Magnolia Bakery: located in New York City you will find a famous store specialized in cupcakes. The bakery became famous after they apparition in Sex and the City. They had delicious cupcakes and if you go there you’ll be able of chose between many of them.

The last place hasn’t come out in a series, but the growing fame of the book where it appears makes that we have to talk about it. The famous book is 50 shadows of Grey and the place is the amazing flat located in Seattle of the billionaire businessman Christian Grey. It follows that the description of the flat in the book coincides with an existing flat located in Seattle: Escala Building. We think that it can become a huge business in the future, because seeing the fame that involves Christian Grey books I’m sure that many fans of the saga would want to spend a night in the luxurious apartment. 

A Journey through Middle Earth

The Lord of the Rings has been a big phenomenon, both literary and thanks to the films. This big production hadn’t gone unnoticed, especially in New Zealand, where all the movies where exclusively filmed. It is well known that New Zealand is a great tourist attraction thanks to their fantastic landscapes, but since these movies where launched his tourist attraction has incremented. 


In 2000, before the first film was released, the number of tourist that went to New Zealand for tourism was 1,7M. In 2004, after the three movies where launched, the number of tourist that went to New Zealand was 2,4M, and a huge part of them came to visit the natural sites where scenes of the film were taken. Not only the government has seen in the films a big opportunity to enrich itself, the number of companies that offer the possibility to make a tour through Middle Earth has increased significantly.

These companies offer the occasion of discover Middle Earth locations with guides, who many of them where extras in the movies. You can choose between different routes, more or less complete that can take between 2 and 13 days, adapting to what the client wants to see. Some of the wonderful places that you could discover are:

Waitomo caves: you can see astonishing stalactites and stalagmites while you are walking through the place where The Hobbit was filmed.
Hobbiton movie set: you’ll see The Shire, the picturesque site where hobbits live and where some movies where filmed. 
Edoras: a breathtaking area filled of lags and rivers, the capital of Rohan.
The river Anduin: you’ll enjoy a boat trip through the river. 
Rivendell: the magic and magnificent city settled by the elves.   

But this doesn’t end here. Recently it has been a new increase in New Zealand’s tourism thanks to the new film that brings us back to the charm of Middle Earth: The Hobbit. This increment has been such important that the NZ’s slogan gone from 100% New Zealand to 100% Middle Earth. In addition Wellington has been renamed temporally Middle Earth Center.

The existence of The Lord of the Rings and his influence in New Zealand’s tourism shows up the big power that something can have if you know how to take advantage of it. 

Beverly Hills Celebrity Homes

Los Angeles has been for many years a celebrity packed up city with many districts where celebrities are door-to-door neighbours and share the star struck lifestyle. In today’s society famous people are huge targets and are followed 24/7 by paparazzi who intend to show us the most juicy facts of celebrities. Many businesses have been created thanks to the fanaticism created around celebrities, for instance Madame Tussauds wax museum which we saw at the beginning of the blog. But what is the last celebrity related business?

A company named StarLine Tours saw a market gap to cover about 25 years ago: offering sightseeing tours in Los Angeles showing the outsides of celebrity and socialite’s homes, such as; Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, Madonna, Jennifer Lopez, Tom Cruise, Nicholas Cage, Frank Sinatra and many more. The tour prices range from $44 if you wish to have a tour in a minibus with an audio guide and up to $2000 if you would like to have an exclusive experience in a limousine with a personal assistant as well as a visit to Rodeo Drive.

It is incredible how many more companies have joined and created their Celebrity Home Tours since then, creating a huge competition and pricing war. Tourists now have a wide range of tours available and may visit their celebrity’s homes from the outside getting to know all the gossip about them. Without any kind of doubt this is a recent business that has grown like foam in the past years and that is prosper since people are every time more and more interested on what celebrities are up to. The clear example is that now many other cities such as Miami, Malibu or New York offer this tours as well.