When the HBO black comedy “The White Lotus” premiered in the summertime of 2021, it took viewers to Hawaii’s sunny Maui. It was a wonderfully timed pandemic escape stuffed with intrigue, satire, sex and bloodshed.
The second season featured a mostly latest forged — save for Jennifer Coolidge and her character’s quietly sinister husband, played by Jon Gries — and a latest location, Taormina, on the rugged southern Italian island of Sicily.
Each seasons put the highlight on so-called “screen tourism” — the growing tendency of travelers to flock to locations they see in television shows and films.
U.S. Google searches about visiting Italy spiked nearly 20% between October — after the second season premiered — and December of 2022, in keeping with the net research company Semrush.
Travel bookings by Americans to Italy nearly doubled during this time too, in keeping with Jim Corridore, insights manager on the market research firm Similarweb.
For the reason that beautifully shot settings are as much a personality because the forged, viewers are actually clamoring to search out out where the third season will probably be filmed.
A not-so-subtle hint
Many viewers caught a not-so-subtle hint in the ultimate show, when Daphne (played by actress Meghann Fahy), toasting at dinner, said, “Next 12 months, the Maldives.”
But we’re not so sure.
The Maldives was named-dropped near the top of season two of “The White Lotus,” leading fans to take a position it will be the following filming location.
Levente Bodo | Moment | Getty Images
HBO has not announced where the following season will probably be set.
Nonetheless, in October 2022, show creator Mike White implied it could possibly be Asia, when he told the entertainment news website Deadline: “I feel it might be fun to possibly go to an entire different continent. You already know, we did Europe — and possibly Asia, something crazy like that, that may be fun.”
A second theory
There’s a lot excitement generated by the show — and its borderline fanatical fanbase — that any statement made by White is quickly pounced upon.
That is what happened when he made a transient video message for author Evan Katz Ross while purportedly on a beach in Thailand last month.
Ross posted the video to his Twitter account, which has some 1.5 million views. Cue the theories that “The White Lotus” is heading to the Southeast Asian nation generally known as “The Land of Smiles.”
The front-runner: Japan
However the smart money is on Japan — specifically, the historical former capital of Kyoto.
In season one, 4 Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea played host to the show. In season two, it was the San Domenico Palace Taormina 4 Seasons Hotel.
Like Maui and Taormina, Kyoto also has a 4 Seasons hotel. The Zen-like five-star hotel is built around an ancient pond where a famed warlord lived throughout the twelfth century.
Japan has three 4 Seasons hotels — two in Tokyo and one in Kyoto (pictured).
Source: 4 Seasons Kyoto
The situation plays into hints that spirituality will probably be the main focus of season three too.
“The primary season highlighted money, after which the second season is sex,” White told Deadline. “I feel the third season will probably be a satirical and funny take a look at death and eastern religion and spirituality.”
He even let slip that “Jennifer [Coolidge] is my friend and everybody loved her in the primary season, and I used to be like, ‘I can not go to Italy without Jennifer.’ And possibly that is still the case. Like, possibly you’ll be able to’t go to Japan without Jennifer either.”
Indeed, in Japanese culture the lotus flower is revered for having the ability to emerge beautiful and pristine from dirty water, symbolizing enlightenment.
“Enlightened” is the name of one other HBO series, created by Mike White, which ran for 2 seasons and starred Laura Dern.
We asked 4 Seasons Kyoto whether plans to shoot there are indeed afoot — but representatives declined to comment.
If Kyoto is indeed the situation, the hotel and city can expect a considerable uptick to its global profile once the show airs.
The impact of ‘screen tourism’
For the premiere and finale of each seasons of “The White Lotus,” the 4 Seasons hotels in Maui and Taormina experienced a few of their highest search traffic ever, said Marc Speichert, the chief industrial officer at 4 Seasons Hotels and Resorts.
“In Maui, for instance, throughout the first season, we experienced a 425% year-over-year increase in website visits and a 386% increase in availability checks,” he said.
San Domenico Palace Taormina, which has the enduring steep slopes of smoldering Mt. Etna as its backdrop, is closed for the season until mid-March, but then fully booked until May — so hopes of skipping down the corridors like Mia and Lucia could have to attend.
Two characters spent the night in Villa Tasca within the second season of “The White Lotus.” To do the identical, prepare to pay around $6,000 per night.
Camillo Balossini | Mondadori Portfolio | Getty Images
But other filming locations in Sicily have also change into popular, comparable to Villa Tasca within the Sicilian capital city of Palermo.
The Sixteenth-century estate, which has 4 bedrooms and 20 acres of gardens, is listed on Airbnb for around $6,000 per night.
Beyond “The White Lotus,” the broader trend of traveling to go to iconic TV and movie locations continues to grow.
Netflix shows like “Bridgerton” and “Emily in Paris” are said to have increased travel interest to Bath, England (pictured) and France, respectively.
Bento Fotography | Moment | Getty Images
Jon Gieselman, president of Expedia Brands, said, “We’re seeing a surge in trips to culture capitals and TV shows playing a job in tourism.”
It’s extremely much a world phenomenon too. When polled, two-thirds of world travelers have considered — and nearly 40% have booked — trips to destinations after seeing them in movies or television, in keeping with an Expedia report published in November 2022.
