Popular television shows influence many aspects of culture from the clothes we wear to the way we decorate our homes . For TV viewers with wanderlust, the small screen also offers plenty of travel inspiration.

I do think this golden age of television has affected the way we travel, said Phil Dengler, co-founder of The Vacationer . Cities that were often overlooked are now destinations for fans of various hit shows. Previously, most TV shows were largely filmed in studios in California. Now, many shows are filmed on location in real places. Fans want to go to the locations that they saw on TV to see what they are like in real life.

From the stately British estates of Bridgerton to the sweeping landscapes of Yellowstone, theres no shortage of beautiful destinations on TV shows that viewers can visit. If a series is still running, visitors might also get a chance to see live sets and actors during their travels. But even if not, they can explore the location and its attractions beyond the TV spots once they get their photos at the most iconic pop culture sites.

People travel thousands of miles to get those epic Instagram shots from Lord of the Rings in New Zealand, Carrie Bradshaws house in the West Village NYC, or Jurassic Park in Kauai, Hawaii, among others, said Ravi Roth , host of The Gaycation Travel Show .

American fans dont necessarily have to travel too far or shell out much money to experience the magic of a hit shows setting.

There are literally hundreds of examples here in the U.S. where tourists have been driven to visit particular sites in response to shows on TV or the cinema, said Alan Fyall , the Visit Orlando endowed chair of tourism management and associate dean of academic affairs at the University of Central Floridas Rosen College of Hospitality Management .

He pointed to the Cheers bar in Boston and the namesake settings of shows like Fargo, Ozark and Portlandia as just some of the many examples of TV-inspired tourism activity.

The Period Drama Effect

In 2022, it seems only fitting people would draw travel inspiration from shows after spending so much time at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

People had two years to sit at home and binge-watch new TV shows, so I do think theyre looking to explore those destinations themselves now that the world is opening up, said Lael Kassis, vice president of market innovation and development for EF Go Ahead Tours . And theyre choosing itineraries that embody the novelty they saw play out on their screen.

Perhaps the clearest example is Bridgerton, the Regency-era drama on Netflix produced by Shonda Rhimes.