Palawan makes ‘set-jetting’ forecast list due to ‘The Last Resort’

MANILA, Philippines — Expedia sees the Philippine tourist haven of Palawan gaining more attention because of the upcoming Hollywood movie “The Last Resort,” starring Daisy Ridley and Alden Ehrenreich.

The major online travel agency recently released its Unpack ’26 report, which uses real-time data from millions of daily searches across its site and app.

Portions of the report were previewed during the 2025 TravMedia Summit Asia in Singapore on October 13. The travel outlook, based on responses from 24,000 travelers across 18 countries, was presented by Expedia Group executives Lavinia Rajaram and James Marshall.

Ten locations were identified as Destinations of the Year after meeting the Smart Travel Health Check framework aligned with the World Travel and Tourism Council’s actions for sustainable tourism management.

The list also reflects increases in flight and accommodation searches on Expedia for travel during the 2024 calendar year versus 2025.

Topping the list was Big Sky in the United States, followed by Okinawa in Japan, Sardinia in Italy, Phu Quoc in Vietnam, and Savoie in France.

Completing the top 10 were Fort Walton Beach in the United States, Ucluelet in Canada, Cotswolds in the United Kingdom, San Miguel de Allende in Mexico, and Hobart in Australia.

Related: Boracay, Amanpulo voted among Asia's best; Siargao, Palawan make top islands list

'Set-jetting' trend

Expedia reported that "set-jetting" — travel inspired by films and television shows — has the potential to be an $8 billion (P464 billion) industry in the United States alone.

More than half of travelers said their interest in set-jetting trips has increased, while 81% of Gen Z and millennial travelers plan their vacations based on what they’ve seen on screen.

Palawan appeared on Expedia’s Set-Jetting Forecast list, highlighting the island as the filming location of “The Last Resort.”

The movie, which wrapped filming in the Philippines earlier this year, stars Ridley as Brooke, an heiress seeking to prove herself capable of running her father’s hotel empire. She scouts for a new resort location in the Philippines.

There, she meets Ehrenreich’s Ben, an expatriate pilot who helps her discover the nation’s beauty.

“As love and duty collide, Brooke must choose between the life she’s built and the one she’s only just begun to love,” the movie’s synopsis reads.

Other upcoming projects that contributed to the Set-Jetting Forecast list include Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” (Peloponnese, Greece), Emerald Fennell’s “Wuthering Heights” (Yorkshire, United Kingdom), the third “Avatar” film “Fire & Ash” (Wellington, New Zealand), and the live-action “Moana” (Samoa, Polynesia).

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