Streaming platforms, with their global reach and constant churn of new titles, are quietly turning screen locations into travel itineraries. From Paris cafés to the hills of Nagaland, what viewers binge-watch today is increasingly where they book tickets tomorrow.

Netflix’s chief content officer Bela Bajaria has seen this effect play out across markets. “It also increases tourism in a lot of countries,” she said, pointing to how viewers discover places through storytelling. Shows and films, she noted, often act as both a mirror and a window, reflecting familiar cultures while opening up entirely new ones. “You discover shows or movies from other places… and then you want to go and see those places.”

That dynamic is now visible in India, especially in regions that rarely featured in mainstream cinema earlier.

The Northeast steps into the spotlight

India’s Northeast has emerged as a clear beneficiary of the streaming boom. Popular OTT titles such as The Family Man Season 3, Paatal Lok Season 2 and Delhi Crime Season 3 brought the region’s landscapes and urban textures into living rooms across the country. The impact has moved well beyond curiosity.

An ixigo report shows sharp year-on-year growth in flight bookings to Northeastern cities in 2025. Dimapur saw a 77% jump, Agartala rose 48%, while Guwahati and Imphal recorded 44% growth each. Itanagar followed close behind with a 42% increase. The spike, the company said, aligns closely with the release of high-profile OTT shows set in or filmed across the region.

The influence of entertainment is amplified by broader travel enablers. “Rising disposable incomes and better connectivity are helping expand the travel ecosystem beyond existing travellers,” said ixigo Group CEO Aloke Bajpai and Group Co-CEO Rajnish Kumar. According to them, cities such as Rishikesh, Indore, Nagpur, Bhopal, Lucknow and Assam are seeing strong demand across flights, trains and buses, with several metro-to-emerging city bus routes clocking nearly 80% year-on-year growth.

In other words, streaming content may spark interest, but improved access is converting that interest into bookings.

‘Age of Experience’ traveller

Cleartrip describes the current phase as the “Age of Experience”, where travellers prioritise meaning and relatability over checklists.

“Social media and entertainment shaped nearly every stage of the travel journey,” said Manjari Singhal, Chief Growth and Business Officer at Cleartrip. From destination discovery to on-ground experiences, pop culture is increasingly steering decisions. She cited how The White Lotus pushed Thailand into the spotlight globally, and how Indian OTT shows have done something similar for the Northeast.

“As inspiration increasingly flows from creators, conversations and cultural moments, influence will continue to be the new currency guiding travel decisions in 2026,” Singhal said.

A Skyscanner report found that 94% of Indian travellers are inclined to visit destinations they’ve seen on screen. Nearly half of respondents said the overall “vibe” of a place matters when choosing where to go, often shaped by how locations are portrayed in films and series.

For Netflix, the effect is a by-product of global storytelling rather than a strategy. Bajaria pointed to examples like Emily in Paris or La Casa de Papel, and anime or Korean content which drove tourism surges in France, Spain and South Asia. The same phenomenon, she suggested, applies to Indian content as it reaches both domestic audiences and the Indian diaspora worldwide. “Whether it's access for affordable data or if it's access just for storytelling, it really builds a lot of cultural affinity,” she said. 

As streaming platforms continue to invest in local stories with global appeal, the line between entertainment and tourism is blurring. What begins as a series recommendation is increasingly ending as a boarding pass.