HOTELEVISION
As ‘White Lotus’ hype comes to Thailand, a top hotel reaps rewards
OVER theatrical high teas and banana-flavored cocktails in the elephantine, Zen-gardened ground floor of the Four Seasons Bangkok, the people sleuth and speculate: “Is the hotel a location in the new season of ‘The White Lotus,’ or ain’t it?”
Perched on the potent Chao Phraya, the highly poised urban resort certainly looks a stage for HBO’s dark satire of elite travelers. But the likely answer is “ain’t.” Rumor has it that the hotel will get a cameo — at best — and that the Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, a southern island beach resort off the Malay Peninsula, will get the bulk of screen time. Episodes will also be filmed in Phuket at Anantara Mai Khao Phuket Villas, as well as an unnamed hotel in Bangkok. Could it be the Four Seasons?
It doesn’t matter. The 299-room hotel is already the beneficiary of the grapevine — as is the entire nation of Thailand.
The so-called “White Lotus effect” is now well documented. The Four Seasons Maui at Wailea, featured in Season 1, is synonymous with the show and the hotel’s general manager told The Post that since the premier three years ago, the resort is bursting at the seams. It’s a similar story at the Four Seasons’ San Domenico Palace, Taormina, in Sicily, which was the setting for Season 2. Overnight, it became a nigh-impossible booking. The entire Four Seasons portfolio — from Jackson Hole, Wyo., to Johannesburg, South Africa — stands to benefit for its exclusive association with the show.
Back in 2007, The Post coined the word “set-jetting” for this sort of thing. But the history of destination marketing via screen goes back to the start of cinema. Tourists were already heading to Hollywood to gawk at picture sets in the silent era. Now look at what “Lord of the Rings” did for New Zealand; what “Harry Potter” did for the UK.
It’s practically inevitable that Mike White, the creator of “WL,” has now unleashed the TV masses on what was already quite the tourism hub — 28 million foreign tourists arrived in Thailand in 2023. If all goes to plan, numbers, including prices, only go up from here.
All the more reason to pack your bags now — HBO boss Casey Bloys has given you until sometime in 2025, when the next installment of the show premiers, to make your arrangements.
Unfortunately, you’ll already need a reservation for the Four Seasons Bangkok’s cocktail lounge BKK Social Club. It was ranked the No. 1 bar in Thailand and the world noticed. We recommend the Bananzo — Michter’s bourbon, salted banana, chocolate bitters with a side of caviar; all for about $15.
Dining in general is the hot ticket here and the Chao Phraya Terrace is the Four Seasons’ newest offering. The riverfront restaurant has an all-charcoal-smoked menu. Also in-house are Yu Ting Yuan (Cantonese fine-dining), Palmier by Guillaume Galliot (a French brasserie) and Riva del Fiume Ristorante (open-kitchen Italian).
The spa is another major “White Lotus”-esque emphasis of the Bangkok hotel which, in 2023, reshuffled its offerings into the Urban Wellness Centre. It now hosts a rotating group of visiting practitioners on top of its more traditional Thai messages. Rarer still is the presence of a men’s salon.
But the rooms here — facing either the river or a tree-filled courtyard — are the stars, starting at just $463 per night. Compare that with the Four Season Downtown in NYC at about $1,300 a night and the “White Lotus”-approved Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, where a night costs about $970. But that’s Bangkok for you — at least, for now.