The Odyssey Effect: Set-Jetting, Homer and the Islands Expecting a Tourism Boom

Quick Answer

Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey — released in cinemas in July 2026 — is doing to Homer what the screen does best: turning the epic’s landmarks into travel destinations. On the real Ithaca, in the Ionian Sea, the mayor and local archaeologists expect a significant increase in visitors from next year, as the film rolls out worldwide and fans of Odysseus book ahead. On Favignana, the Sicilian island that stands in for Ithaca on screen, initial estimates cited by La Repubblica project $287 million in tourism revenue over the next three years — and more than $500 million in the long run. The box office is the headwind behind it all: $334 million in the US/Canada, $56 million in the UK/Ireland, $37.9 million in France and $35.6 million in Italy — the film’s fourth biggest territory. For the traveler, the question is not whether the Odyssey summer is real, but how to walk through it before the crowds arrive.

The Film That Made Homer a Tourist Draw

The numbers start at the box office. The Odyssey has taken $334 million in the US and Canada, $56 million in the UK and Ireland, $37.9 million in France and $35.6 million in Italy — making Italy the film’s fourth biggest territory in the world, ahead of its much larger neighbors. Massimo Proietti, general manager for Universal Pictures International in Italy, told the Cineguru podcast: “It’s an extraordinary film that is part of our life and our culture, even though we may not realize it. It’s been part of the canon that we grew up with.”

That cultural resonance is now geography. The set-jetting wave that has been reshaping Mediterranean itineraries since The White Lotus has found its biggest subject yet: the entire Homeric map. And unlike previous seasons, this one is being actively marketed — the trailer dropped in May, and within weeks Favignana was being promoted as a destination, including Airbnb listings offering accommodation positioned “to explore the locations that inspired the film’s atmosphere.”

Favignana: The Island That Plays Ithaca

Favignana, the largest of the Egadi Islands off the west coast of Sicily, is where Nolan found his Ithaca. The 15th-century Castello di Santa Caterina, perched on Monte Santa Caterina with a view of the Mediterranean in every direction, became the palace of Penelope; the pig farm of the swineherd Eumaeus — where Odysseus arrives disguised as a beggar — was built on the island by set designer Ruth De Jong, who described it as “the most epic landscape, where you could see the water everywhere you were.” The production also shot in the coves and beaches around Favignana’s coastline and on the tiny islet of Preveto.

The economic projections are equally epic. According to estimates cited by La Repubblica, The White Lotus season 2 delivered a €138 million ($158 million) tourism windfall to Taormina; The Odyssey is expected to generate more than double that in Favignana — roughly $287 million over the next three years, and more than $500 million in the long run. Nicola Tarantino, head of the Sicily Film Commission, expects “a significant increase in international tourism, especially from the U.S.” — and notes that Sicily’s role in the film is a heritage story as much as a box office one: scholars have long argued the island was one of the settings of Odysseus’ wanderings in the epic composed by Homer around the 8th century BCE. For context on the scale of the phenomenon, our top set-jetting destinations 2026 map shows how quickly screen locations become itineraries — and how quickly they fill.

Ithaca: The Real Homecoming

On the real Ithaca — small, quiet, far from the established Greek hotspots — the mood is a mixture of hope and preparation. Mayor Dionysis Stanitsas: “There still isn’t a large increase in visitors to the island because of the film. We think people will start planning from next year, as the film will gradually be released around the world.” Business owner Xhimi Hotza says tourists already speak about it: “Although the film has not yet been released in all cinemas, it has already started to showcase the island and raise its profile.”

The most precise expectation comes from philologist and archaeologist Spyros Kouvaras: “From next year we expect a significant increase in visitor numbers, and we can say that this will also affect the months that are usually dead. That is October, perhaps even November, as well as March and April.” His conclusion is the cleanest summary of the phenomenon: “Behind this, first and foremost, is Nolan’s film, but behind Nolan’s film stands Homer.”

For the visitor who wants the island before the wave: Gidaki beach, the statue of Odysseus, and the permanent exhibition ‘Light on Homeric Ithaca’ in the village of Stavros — the quiet version of the myth, as the shoulder-season logic intends.

What the Numbers Say

The full scoreboard of the Odyssey summer:

• $334 million — US/Canada box office, the film’s largest territory.
• $56 million — UK/Ireland, the second largest, on a market that famously loves its myths on screen.
• $37.9 million — France, the third largest territory in the world.
• $35.6 million — Italy, fourth in the world, ahead of all its European neighbors despite a market a fraction of the US size.
• €138 million ($158 million) — the White Lotus tourism windfall for Taormina, the comparison that makes the Favignana projections credible.
• ~$287 million / $500+ million — the projected three-year and long-run tourism revenue for Favignana.
• $17 million / ~$300 million — the immediate and long-term economic return of Dua Lipa and Callum Turner’s June wedding in Palermo, according to consultancy JFC — proof that 2026 has been the summer of cinematic and celebrity geography.

The Quiet Version of the Odyssey Summer

The Odyssey summer is real, but it is not evenly distributed. The film is releasing gradually around the world, which means the surge will arrive in waves — and the quiet traveler can plan around them:

• Go now: the real Ithaca is still off the main tourist routes; the exhibition, the statue and Gidaki beach are walkable in near solitude until the 2027 season. Our secret beaches in Greece are chosen on exactly this logic.
• Go off-season: the months Kouvaras names — October, November, March, April — are precisely the shoulder-season windows where Favignana and Ithaca are at their best and emptiest.
• Go to the echo, not the set: the myth predates the film by 2,800 years. The Ulysses festival in Djerba is the quietest way to follow the hero’s footsteps in the Mediterranean, far from the queues.
• Go informed: the White Lotus Riviera guide is the cautionary tale — set-jetting destinations fill faster than they build, and the ones that stay walkable are the ones visited before the release date.

Packing for Set-Jetting, Quietly

The packing list for the Odyssey summer is short and coastal.

A foldable travel daypack carries your layers through the island transfers and the castle climbs, lightweight walking sandals cover the coves and the cobbled streets, and a collapsible water bottle keeps you hydrated on the coastal trails. Noise-cancelling earplugs protect the quiet night between the ferry days, and an RFID-blocking travel wallet keeps your documents safe through the transfer points the surge is about to fill.

FAQ

What is the Odyssey effect?

It is the set-jetting phenomenon triggered by Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, released in cinemas in July 2026. Homer’s landmarks are now travel destinations: Ithaca, in the Ionian Sea, expects a significant increase in visitors from next year as the film rolls out worldwide, and the Italian island of Favignana, which stood in for Ithaca on screen, is being marketed as a tourist destination with major revenue projections.

Where was The Odyssey filmed?

Partly on the island of Favignana, the largest of the Egadi Islands off the west coast of Sicily. Nolan and set designer Ruth De Jong used the 15th-century Castello di Santa Caterina as Penelope’s palace, built the pig farm of the swineherd Eumaeus on the island, and shot in the coves and beaches around Favignana’s coastline and the nearby islet of Preveto.

How much tourism money is The Odyssey generating?

Initial estimates cited by La Repubblica suggest Favignana could attract roughly $287 million in tourism revenue over the next three years, and more than $500 million in the long run. For comparison, The White Lotus season 2 brought an estimated €138 million ($158 million) windfall to Taormina, and Dua Lipa’s June wedding in Palermo generated an immediate $17 million return.

What does Ithaca expect from the film?

Mayor Dionysis Stanitsas expects visitors to start planning from next year as the film is gradually released worldwide. Philologist and archaeologist Spyros Kouvaras expects a significant increase in visitor numbers — including in the usually quiet months of October, November, March and April — and says that behind the film stands Homer.

Where should the quiet traveler go for the Odyssey summer?

The real Ithaca now, before the surge: Gidaki beach, the statue of Odysseus, and the ‘Light on Homeric Ithaca’ exhibition in Stavros. For the on-screen version, Favignana in the off-season — the window the film itself is creating. For a Mediterranean echo of the myth, the Ulysses festival in Djerba is the quietest way to follow the hero’s footsteps.