Visit Cardiff
Live brief in collaboration with Spindogs
About the brief
Attract a new international audience and reduce its reliance on event‑driven tourism, which creates seasonal spikes rather than consistent interest. The challenge was to present Cardiff in a distinctive way that would appeal to culturally curious travellers and encourage longer stays.
Insight
Studio Ghibli has authentic links to Wales: Miyazaki’s 1984 visit inspired elements of Laputa and Howl’s Moving Castle, and Diana Wynne Jones’ Welsh childhood shaped the novel behind the film. Fans actively search for real‑world Ghibli‑inspired places, creating a strong opportunity for content tourism (Seaton, 2019). This aligns with Gen Z’s preference for fantasy aesthetics and immersive storytelling (Sang, 2025; IJFMR, 2024).
Idea
Positions Cardiff as the gateway to a curated route linking Castle Coch, Caerphilly Castle and the South Wales Valleys. Rather than replicating Studio Ghibli, the campaign uses anime‑inspired aesthetics to highlight real Welsh landscapes that echo the atmosphere of the films. The trail is supported by a downloadable map, a celebration weekend, and a content‑driven landing page, creating an integrated tourism experience rooted in authentic Welsh culture.
Audience
Anime fans aged 18–35 from countries such as Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand and Chile. These travellers are culturally curious and actively seek narrative‑led, cinematic experiences that feel emotional, meaningful and visually rich. Their interest in fantasy‑driven escapism aligns with the aesthetic and storytelling qualities associated with Studio Ghibli, making them highly receptive to a Welsh travel route inspired by these worlds.
Strategy
Cardiff is positioned as the starting point for a wider regional journey, encouraging longer stays. A landing page acts as the campaign hub, supported by SEO‑driven blog content built around high‑intent keywords. The Ghibli Trail Map functions as the main lead magnet, enabling email capture and remarketing. Cultural sensitivity is maintained by focusing on real Welsh locations rather than Ghibli IP (Seaton, 2019).
Creative
Blends anime‑inspired visuals with Welsh medieval elements to create a distinctive fantasy aesthetic that resonates with Gen Z (Sang, 2025; IJFMR, 2024). The asset suite includes a landing page, a 30‑second film, a 15‑second cut‑down and three still images for digital OOH and print, all designed to evoke cinematic storytelling while showcasing authentic Welsh landscapes.
The KPIs
Performance is measured across awareness, consideration and conversion. Awareness focuses on reach, impressions and QR scans. Consideration is tracked through VTR, CTR, engagement and landing‑page sessions. Conversion centres on Ghibli Trail Map downloads, supported by metrics such as time on page, scroll depth and return visits. Tracking is managed through GA4, Meta/TikTok analytics and QR data.
The project got a grade of 80
Assets
Social Media Ads, Out of Home ads, Metro cover and Radio script.
30 second ad video
10 second video ad