You're not alone if you're thinking of visiting Westeros
Data from travel search engine Skyscanner shows increased interest in "Game of Thrones" filming locations, while vacation rental site HomeToGo is offering stays in Westeros-inspired abodes.
If you're a true blue "Game of Thrones" fan, there's really only one thing you can do to get closer to the action before the season 6 premiere on April 24, and that's visit Westeros. Hold up, you cry, it's a fictional world. Yes, but that hasn't stopped fans from visiting actual filming locations in Ireland, Spain and Croatia.
According to data provided to CNET by Skyscanner, the travel site spotted a "significant spike" in consumer interest in travel to these destinations when the season 6 date was announced in December. Interest from New Yorkers grew by 33 percent for visiting Ireland, while Croatia and Spain saw a surge of 16 percent and 22 percent respectively over the previous year.
Meanwhile, fans from Sydney picked Spain and Croatia as their destinations of choice, with an increase of 54 percent and 43 percent, while Ireland saw an increase of only 22 percent. The real fans, however, come from Hong Kong, with a 94 percent increase from fans hot to visit Ireland, and Spain at 64 percent. Croatia, meanwhile, didn't seem to attract as much interest, with only a 29 percent increase compared with last year.
If you're keen on checking out King's Landing (also known as the Diocletian's Palace in Croatia's second largest city, Split), Skyscanner has compiled a nifty list of where to go. Meanwhile, HomeToGo, a search engine for vacation rentals worldwide, has even highlighted six available "Thrones"-inspired vacation homes on its site.
These include an apartment in Croatia that mimics the centrality of trading city Qarth and the wealth it brings to surrounding areas; a house in Malta that has a distinctly King's Landing kind of feel; and a forest farmhouse in Washington state that's "set to inspire a weekend looking for Wildlings."
