CASE 102 / Tourism Ireland / 2016
Doors of Thrones
Salvaged wood became a sequence of story-linked objects that fans could visit in real communities.
AI-assisted research and analysis for the SNS Creative Fieldbook; published by SNS Media Tech. No named human reviewer is claimed.
Sources reviewed 2026-11-05
Campaign credits belong to the original creators. They did not write or endorse this analysis.
Credits: Publicis London for Tourism Ireland. Tourism NI describes the screen-tourism campaigns as a partnership involving Tourism Ireland, HBO and Tourism NI. This record covers the 2016 doors, not the later tapestry or stained-glass campaigns.
Recognition: 2017 One Show Merit, Print & Outdoor / Craft / Illustration - Single or Campaign.
Launch / edition: 2016. Award years: 2017.
The problem. The idea. The experience.
Northern Ireland’s connection with Game of Thrones offered an audience interested in the show’s real locations. After Storm Gertrude damaged trees at the Dark Hedges in January 2016, the campaign used salvaged wood rather than simply treating the loss as the end of the attraction.
How the idea came to life
Across ten weeks in 2016, ten carved doors depicted story elements from season six. They were installed in pubs and other venues close to filming locations, combining physical craft with a sequence tied to the television season.
How it reached people
Short films and online communication accompanied the doors. Tourism NI subsequently introduced a Journey of Doors passport in 2017, encouraging people to follow the route and collect venue stamps. That later visitor tool is part of the legacy, not the original launch date.
Supporting sources: Primary tourism-body retrospective → Primary award archive →
Read the data in context.
The numbers below describe different kinds of outcomes. Their date, scope and reporting source are part of the result.
- Reporting period
- 2016 Doors of Thrones campaign; retrospective cutoff unstated
- Scope
- Views of campaign short films, not unique viewers, visits or later Game of Thrones campaigns
- Evidence
- Tourism NI retrospective
Tourism NI reports 17 million short-film views for the doors campaign. Its broader screen-tourism page contains separate metrics for later campaigns that are not combined here. The One Show records a 2017 Merit for the doors’ illustration craft.
The creative mechanism.
Episodic cultural attention is translated into collectible physical stops rooted in the destination
Use material provenance to deepen the reason to care
The objects carry a connection to a real place through the wood as well as the imagery. Provenance can make a crafted object more meaningful than a generic branded installation. Document the material’s origin honestly and obtain permissions; an attractive story is weakened if its physical claim cannot be substantiated.
Borrow a cadence, not just an audience
A weekly programme creates repeated moments when fans want something new to discuss. A campaign can align with that rhythm if each installment contributes fresh value. Small teams should choose a schedule they can reliably support and avoid releasing spoilers or pretending to have a partnership they do not hold.
Distribute value across the visitor journey
A trail can spread attention to multiple venues instead of concentrating it at a single photo spot. Its usefulness depends on practical route information, opening times, accessibility and a worthwhile experience at each stop. Include local operators in planning so the marketing benefits do not arrive as an unmanaged burden.
Design for life after the media moment
Physical work can remain valuable when a launch ends, but only with maintenance, ownership and current visitor information. A passport or map can help people explore the collection without requiring them to have followed the original campaign. Evaluate the long-term service separately from the short-term publicity burst.
The intended behavior loop
- 01Encounter an installment online
- 02Recognize the connection to a real place
- 03Visit one physical stop
- 04Explore the remaining trail
Growth job: Connect screen interest with place → create a visitor trail → leave a lasting local attraction. This is an interpretation of the mechanism, not an audited attribution model.
A direction to take into the room.
Original editorial interpretation and proposed adaptation. This is a proposed adaptation, not historical campaign execution or a forecast.
The transferable principle
Turn a legitimate cultural connection into an original physical trail with a clear local benefit and an afterlife.
Keep these boundaries
Do not reproduce protected show imagery without rights, damage natural assets to create material, or treat online fandom as proof of footfall.
Turn the lesson into a test.
Illustrative adaptation, not a historical campaign fact
A small-team experiment
A town’s independent venues commission a small trail of original artworks using documented reclaimed local materials and stories supplied with permission.
Build the test
- Agree on rights, artist fees, material provenance and maintenance responsibility before fabrication.
- Give each venue one distinct story and publish verified route, access and opening information.
- Release the artworks on a manageable schedule and offer an optional paper stamp card without requiring personal data.
Measure the right thing
Count voluntary trail completions and venue visits using consistent definitions; ask operators about costs and disruption as well as visitor interest.
Know when to stop
Pause if provenance is unverified, rights are disputed, venues cannot support visits or the trail causes unacceptable local impact.
How this reading fits your brief
Start with the useful part.
Best for: Connect screen interest with place → create a visitor trail → leave a lasting local attraction
What to adapt: Turn a legitimate cultural connection into an original physical trail with a clear local benefit and an afterlife.
Prerequisites: Rights-cleared cultural connection; Documented reclaimed materials and skilled makers; Venue participation and maintenance; Verified route and accessibility information.
Smaller-team route: A town’s independent venues commission a small trail of original artworks using documented reclaimed local materials and stories supplied with permission. Constraint: Do not reproduce protected show imagery without rights, damage natural assets to create material, or treat online fandom as proof of footfall.
Budget: Not established by the cited sources. No cost-fit claim is made.
Trade-offs and evidence: Read the limits below before choosing a test. There is no guaranteed reach, sales lift or ROAS.
Questions for your next brief
- Which local material or story creates a legitimate reason for a physical object to exist?
- Who will maintain the visitor experience after the campaign ends?
Sources & further reading.
Brand and award-entry results are attributed claims, not independent causal audits. Source links open the original third-party pages.
- Tourism NI: Game of Thrones campaigns →Primary tourism-body retrospective · Supports: 2016 ten-week campaign, ten doors, short-film views, partnerships and 2017 passport; later campaigns kept separate.
- The One Show: Doors Of Thrones →Primary award archive · Supports: Storm Gertrude context, salvaged wood, Publicis attribution, episodic installations and 2017 Merit.
Independent educational analysis of external campaigns. These are not SNS client projects, endorsements or claims of involvement. Campaign facts and reported outcomes are attributed to their sources. Explanations, adaptations and test plans are original analysis and hypotheses, not proven causal findings.