The Tiny Italian Island Featured in ‘The Odyssey’ Could Become a Tourist Hotspot

The source material, the director, the cast—pretty much everything about Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is epic, except for one Italian island featured in the film. Favignana, which stands in for Ithaca, has only roughly 3,000 residents in real life. But it seems more people are on the horizon.

Local authorities are trying to capitalise on The Odyssey buzz to turn the tiny Mediterranean island into a tourist hot spot. Sicily‘s culture department and Universal Pictures are working with officials to open a permanent Odyssey exhibition at the former Florio tuna-processing plant, which served as the production’s headquarters.

“The idea is to allow visitors to experience the different stages of the production and see some of the costumes and equipment used in the movie,” Favignana mayor Giuseppe Pagoto told Reuters.

Located about four miles off Sicily’s western coast, Favignana is the largest of the Egadi Islands, covering 7.6 square miles of rugged land. In the film, the island serves as Ithaca, the home of long-lost king Odysseus (Matt Damon), his wife, Penelope (Anne Hathaway), and their son Telemachus (Tom Holland). The 15th-century Castello di Santa Caterina, a fortress perched atop Favignana’s highest hill, acts as the royal palace.

Favignana’s role in the blockbuster, which grossed more than US$264 million worldwide on its opening weekend, will no doubt bring more attention to the island. In fact, searches for “Favignana” on Google have increased 40 per cent year-over-year. It could also result in more visitors, with “set-jetting” a rapidly growing trend in travel. In fact, Future Market Insights estimates the film tourism sector will be worth almost US$157.5 billion globally by 2036.

Wealthy travellers are increasingly choosing to visit destinations featured in TV shows and films—think White Lotus, Emily in Paris, Bridgerton—prompting both tour operators and luxury hotels to create itineraries and experiences inspired by what’s on screen.

“We believe all of western Sicily could become more attractive to American visitors thanks to The Odyssey,” Giacomo Incarbona, head of the local hotel operators’ association, told Reuters.

The U.N. World Tourism Organization estimates that featuring a location on film can boost visitor numbers by 25 to 40 per cent. In the case of Favignana, the population can already climb from 3,000 to between 40,000 and 50,000 in summer—without the “Nolan effect,” that is—putting pressure on local services and infrastructure. As such, the city is looking at ways to manage crowds and prevent overtourism.

This article was originally published on Robb Report USA.

Lead image: maudanros/Getty