Among TV shows that inspire travel, HBO's The White Lotus arguably holds the top spot, even though the luxury vacations depicted in the first and second seasons of Mike White's acclaimed series have involved significantly less happiness than ennui, deception, narcissism, and murder.
Sicily saw such a surge in interest after appearing as the setting for the show's second season that some commentators began grumbling about the "White Lotus effect" and its contributions to overcrowding.
The third season of the series will premiere Sunday, Feb. 16, on Max, and observers predict a similar tourism boom for the country serving as the show's next scenic backdrop: Thailand.
(Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui in Thailand | Credit: Ken Seet / Four Seasons)
Filmed on location in the Southeast Asian country starting in February 2024, the third go-round features a cast including Parker Posey, Jason Isaacs, and, returning from season one, Natasha Rothwell.
White and company were reportedly drawn to Thailand in part because setting the action there let them explore (and satirize) “spirituality versus the ego" against the backdrop of Eastern religious traditions. (It probably didn't hurt that HBO is said to have negotiated a huge tax rebate with the Thai government.)
As in the first two outings, a Four Seasons resort will stand in as the latest outpost in the fictional White Lotus hotel chain.
The show's characters will check into the Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, situated on a lush island in the Gulf of Thailand.
The place has all the requisite trappings of a White Lotus stay: posh accommodations (including stilt-boosted villas with private pools and decks with palm-dotted views), an infinity pool, a spa, and lots of onsite dining to get the cast conveniently all in one room. The resort's nightly rates typically start around $1,500.
(Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui in Thailand | Credit: Ken Seet / Four Seasons)
Also on Koh Samui—and even more expensive—is the four-bedroom, glass-walled Villa Jacinta near the idyllic Cheong Mon Beach. This "Cubist-style abode" with hilltop "Gulf of Thailand views from every angle," as the Robb Report describes the structure, is another confirmed White Lotus location.
You can rent the villa at Onefinestay for around $2,000 per night.
Additionally, the production traveled to Bangkok as well as another popular island, Phuket.
For scenes in the latter destination, the cast's hotel base was reportedly Anantara Mai Khao Phuket Villas, a secluded collection of "pool villas ... inspired by traditional wooden Thai homes [with] ... their own tropical gardens," per Bloomberg. Nightly rates at that property start around $700, which seems downright reasonable by comparison.
(Antantara Mai Khao Phuket Villas resort in Thailand | Credit: Antantara Mai Khao Phuket Villas)
HBO has been more tight-lipped about the show's primary hotel in Bangkok, but Condé Nast Traveller seems pretty convinced it's the Mandarin Oriental, where scenes are rumored to have been shot "in the lobby, the suites, and the Bamboo Bar, a suitably atmospheric live jazz joint decked out in dark teak woods, wicker furniture, and animal print fabrics." So much for brand loyalty to the Four Seasons.
Beyond Thailand's luxury resorts, you can expect The White Lotus to put the country's temples, markets, and other scenic sights on enticing display as well.
For help planning a vacation in Thailand before it's overrun with fans of The White Lotus, pick up a copy of Frommer's Thailand, available in paperback and e-book versions.
This story has been updated from an earlier version published Jan. 26, 2024.
