Do Movies inspire Travel?

While watching a movie, do you ever catch yourself thinking, " I wanna go there!"

Or "wow, what a breathtaking scenery?  I'm sure a lot of us have "discovered" destinations, we had not thought about prior to watching certain films. I'll share what's on my list:

Lord of the Rings- filmed in New Zealand. I admit, I was one of the fans caught up in the Trilogy when it hit theatres, and still so, when I bought it on dvd (and watched it over and over again...)   This movie tops my list because not only was it filmed in a beautiful location, but it is also a story of adventures.  Do you wonder how director Peter Jackson transformed Tongariro National Park to create the war scenes of Middle Earth?  A lot of what set the scenes are natural and breathtaking landscapes, though there was much man-made set design incorporated with CG to turn it into a surreal vista.

[Tongariro National Park] (2010 National Geographic Society)
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/07/tongariro/white-text 

And then there's the comedic Couples Retreat, filmed in Bora Bora.  This movie also sparked increased interest in travelling to French Polynesia.  It highlights the exquisite accommodations in water bungalows, which are not unique to this area, but have now become synonymous with it.  I admit, after watching this movie, I am more eager to visit this area.  The location says it all: a tropical island far away from urban and suburban life, beautiful beaches, and being pampered to your heart's content.

[St. Regis- over water] (TahitiLegends.com. March 28, 2011)
http://www.tahitilegends.com/LEG1/specials/indextaescapes.html

The next movie is a bit of a stretch of the imagination, because it is entirely animated. However, to me, Disney Pixar's Up inspires adventure in the young and old. I loved watching this movie with my young family, and I also enjoyed researching a bit about it too. This movie evokes the spirit of adventure when a boy tags along with an old man in his balloon-equipped floating house to fly to (fictional) Paradise Falls in South America. 

The Disney Pixar team actually visited locations in Canaima National Park, in Venezuela, South America; such as Mount Roraima, and Angel Falls  to build the setting for their story. The picture below is of Angel Falls, the tallest waterfall on earth, at 979 m.

[Angel Falls] [Science 4 Grown Ups.com. April 6, 2011] http://science4grownups.com/archives/2009/05/29/general/the-real-world-behind-ups-paradise-falls-530

Sources:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/07/tongariro/white-text
http://www.tahitilegends.com
http://science4grownups.com/archives/2009/05/29/general/the-real-world-behind-ups-paradise-falls-530
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canaima_National_Park