by Brian Major
Last updated: 5:50 PM ET, Wed February 25, 2026
Puerto Rico was a big winner of Super Bowl LX, as the destination experienced an
unprecedented spike in travel and tourism interest.
Within 72
hours, global interest in Puerto Rico fundamentally shifted from tourism
curiosity to deep cultural engagement following Bad Bunny’s halftime
performance.
The Discover Puerto Rico website saw 537,000
visitors, an increase of 16 percent month over month. According to Expedia,
overall flight searches to Puerto Rico spiked to an estimated 245 percent year
over year. On February 9 alone, Google reported searches for "Puerto Rico
Travel" and "Flights to San Juan" surged 213 percent.
Interestingly,
searches for "What is Plena Music" and "Bomba vs Plena"
exploded by 300 percent following the halftime performance. Bad Bunny’s
performance — filled with cultural icons and traditional elements — inspired
viewers to not only look up ways to get to the Island but also
understand Puerto Rican culture.
"This is what
modern destination marketing looks like." It is not about buying a moment.
It is about being prepared to capture one. We leveraged a global stage to
position Puerto Rico not just as a place to visit, but as a culture to
experience,” said Storm Tussey, CMO of Discover Puerto Rico. “And when
cultural pride translates into longer stays, higher spend, and deeper
engagement, that is when tourism becomes truly transformative.”
The cultural
engagement was unprecedented. Spanish language learning resource searches
jumped 89 percent, with over 63,000 searches from the U.S. within 72 hours.
Shazam recorded its biggest day ever for any Latin or non-English artist with a
400 percent increase and Puerto Rican rum searches surged 140 percent within 24
hours.
“Bad Bunny ignited
the spark,” said Tussey. “Our role is to convert that curiosity into confident,
responsible travel. In the same window, we drove more than 31,000 direct
partner referrals from our platforms, showing that global awareness can
translate into measurable economic impact for local businesses.”
She added, “We
also saw geographic dispersion in action. Interest in places like Vega Baja,
his hometown, surged dramatically, proving that cultural storytelling can move
travelers beyond traditional hubs and into communities across the Island.”
Puerto Rico
Searches - Google
Music as a Gateway
– "Local Music San Juan" saw a 55 percent lift, while Bad Bunny tour
searches surged by 185 percent, acting as a massive top-of-funnel driver.
Educational
Curiosity – High Intent cultural searches for "What is Plena
Music" and "Bomba vs Plena" exploded by 300 percent
post-game.
Regional
Dispersion – Successfully channeled momentum to other areas, with a 42 percent
increase in searches for the Ponce Carnival, which the DMO was highlighting on
Social channels between Football updates.
Beverage Exports
(Rums of Puerto Rico)
- Direct
Product Spike – Searches for "Puerto Rico Rum" surged 140 percent
within 24 hours of the halftime show.
- Experienced-Based
Demand – A 22 percent increase in specialized queries for "rum tasting
experiences San Juan" and "Cocktail Culture Puerto Rico",
showing a shift from product awareness to planned on-island activities.
(Source: Google
Trends)
Search and AI:
The Linguistic and Historical "Deep Dive" (Bing)
- +89
percent increase in searches for Spanish language learning resources. By Feb 11th,
over 63,000 searches in the US alone within 72 hours.
- Users
who searched for "Bad Bunny" were 4x more likely to research Puerto
Rico history, Plena music and San Juan travel, proving the artist is a direct
gateway for tourism.
- AI
Conversations (Copilot): Record spikes in AI queries for
"Boricua cocktail recipes" and the deeper meaning of "El
Apagon" showing a desire for cultural context over simple
entertainment.
Streaming
Dominance: Sustained Global Consumption (Apple & Spotify)
- Market
Saturation – Bad Bunny captured the Top 6 spots on the Spotify US Daily
Chart.
- Global
Velocity – US Streams surged by 470 percent (210 percent globally), while Apple
Music reported a 7x increase in listeners immediately post-show.
- Catalog
Depth – A 67 percent increase in his entire catalog- not just hits- proves the
audience was engaging with the breadth of the Boricua narrative.
Audio &
Discovery: Breaking Records in Real-Time (iHeart & Shazam)
- The
"Shazam" Peak – Shazam recorded the biggest day ever for any Latin or
non-English artist (+400 percent), with the Lady Gaga & Ricky Martin
overlaps being the most captured moments.
- Radio
Persistence – A 13 percent uplift in radio spins across iHeart's Top 40
and Latin stations compared to the previous six months.
- Historical
Context – Luminate confirmed Feb 9 as the second biggest streaming day in
history for Bad Bunny, nearly matching a major album release day.
(Source:
Multiple)
Online Travel
Agencies
Expedia
reported a major spike in travel searches to Puerto Rico following the Halftime
Show, with overall flight searches rising ~245 percent YOY. (Source:
Expedia)
- San
Juan searches increased ~240 percent, while Vega Baja (Bad Bunny’s hometown)
surged ~1,450 percent, indicating strong destination-specific interest. (Source:
Expedia)
- Expedia
attributes the surge to the growing “set-jetting” trend, where pop culture
moments directly influence travel decisions, particularly among younger
travelers. (Source: Expedia)
- Following
Bad Bunny’s recent halftime performance, Priceline data showed hotel searches
for Puerto Rico increased 80 percent in the three days after the show compared
to the three days before. (Source: Priceline)
*Expedia
results from February 8 through 11 (vs. YAGO)
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