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Watching “The White Lotus” is about more than just the hot bodies or wild drama on display; for many, it’s a chance to vacation vicariously through the filthy rich characters in a variety of luxurious locales. Despite the murders that happen each season, the show has served as a kind of tourism commercial for the spots depicted. Hotels in Hawai’i and Sicily both saw a serious uptick in bookings after seasons 1 and 2 aired, respectively, giving the places a taste of what’s becoming known as “The White Lotus Effect.” Now Thailand is set to do the same, as the excellent season 3 highlights the beautiful island of Koh Samui, along with some scenes on the mainland in Bangkok and Phuket. Fans watching each week have to wonder: just what would it cost to stay at the “White Lotus” in Koh Samui?
It’s a little tricky, because there are actually several hotels that stand in for different parts of the fictional White Lotus, so it depends on which part of the White Lotus experience you’re trying to recreate? Looking for that incredible spa surrounded by water and jungle? You’ll want to book a room at Anantara Mai Khao Phuket, which is not actually on Koh Samui. Want to lounge about a stunning villa in your bathrobe a la season 3 cast member Jason Isaacs as Timothy Ratliff? Then you’ll want to book one of the private family villas at the Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui.
So, with that in mind, let’s dig into the different incredible locales of “The White Lotus” season 3, along with the general cost of staying at each. Some of these are going to be well beyond most budgets, but others are surprisingly reasonable … if you can afford to travel to Thailand, of course.
All prices are in USD and subject to change.
The Anantara Hotels serve as several key pieces of the hotel
The absolutely stunning spa that serves as the setting for the terrifying season opener is located at Anantara Mai Khao Phuket, about an hour flight or a six hour drive from Koh Samui. The Anantara family of hotels work as several parts of the White Lotus, but the spa is among the most spectacular of set-pieces. Belinda (Natasha Rothwell), the White Lotus spa employee from Hawai’i visiting the Thai resort to learn their techniques, also has a room at the Phuket hotel. Rooms like Belinda’s run around $320 per night, though there are more expansive suites and villas as well.
The other Anantara locations featured in “The White Lotus” season 3 include Anantara Bophut Koh Samui (which serves as the lobby, security station, driveway, employee parking lot, and jewelry store for The White Lotus) and Anantara Lawana Koh Samui Resort, which hosts the incredible treetop bar we see characters drink and dine at: The Singing Bird Lounge. We don’t get to see any rooms in either of these hotels, but they’re probably just as gorgeous as their common areas, and fans can see where their faves like BLACKPINK’s Lisa performed their roles. Rooms at the Bophut hotel range from $254-701 per night, while rooms at the Lawana hotel start at $208 per night (with private villas that go up to around $1,600 per night).
Fans looking to recreate as much of the White Lotus experience as possible can do so with the hotel chain’s “Lotus Awakening Escape,” which starts at $1,788 for a four-night travel experience for two starting in Phuket and ending in Koh Samui, complete with spa treatments, some themed meals and drinks, and a half-day tour of Phuket. It’s probably the easiest and most inexpensive way to live it up like the many characters on the show, because things only get pricier from here.
The nighttime dining was filmed at the Rosewood Phuket
The nighttime dining restaurant where Belinda tries to confront Greg (Jon Gries) is Ta Khai at Rosewood Phuket, a luxury hotel in Phuket. The menu changes with the seasons, as the establishment works to source as much as possible locally and even have its own herb garden on site. As of this writing, the menu features two “sets” to choose from, which includes an appetizer, soup, entree, and dessert. Both feature traditional Thai flavors like lemongrass and galangal, local seafood, and lots of rice. Set 1 will set you back about $54, while Set 2 is just a hair more expensive at $64. That’s honestly not terrible for a high-end three-course meal in a beautiful locale, but fans who want to stay at the hotel will need to have a bit more cash.
Rooms at Rosewood Phuket start at around $1,100 per night, though it’s worth noting that these aren’t basic hotel rooms but pavilions and villas. There are even full private houses to rent on the property, though prices are not available online and require emailing to book (which means they’re probably well beyond anything else listed here).
The majority of the villas are at the Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui
Both seasons 1 and 2 featured Four Seasons hotels, so it’s no real surprise that season 3 also features one of the hotel chain’s resorts. The villas guests like the Ratcliff family and the girls trip group are staying in are all at the Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, and they are as expensive as one might expect. The Ratliff family’s villa, girl’s trip villa, Walton Goggins’ character Rick’s room, the breakfast and lunch restaurants, pool, beach, common areas, boxing ring, spirit house, and those incredible water hammocks are all located at the Four Seasons resort, making it must-see destination for the biggest “White Lotus” fans.
Meanwhile, the Ratliff family villa looks like a three-bedroom family villa, which runs around $10.5k per night, although it does have its own private pool and is absolutely stunning and massive. The girls trip group are either in the other style three-bedroom villa or in the two-bedroom villa, which runs a little less at around $8.5k per night. A standard room runs about $1,900 per night, while the biggest and most luxurious villa can cost a pretty $14k per night.
Fans seeking even more privacy can get it by renting Greg’s house
Greg, who is currently going by the name of Gary after his wife Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge) died under rather mysterious circumstances at the end of season 2, lives in a private home near the White Lotus with his new girlfriend, Chloe (Charlotte Le Bon). After Chloe befriends Rick’s partner Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood), they end up having a weird little party on Greg/Gary’s yacht and we end up getting a chance to see where Greg and Chloe live. It’s a beautiful oceanside estate that one might imagine is a personal abode or only for filming, but it turns out that it is called Villa Jacinta and is one of a set of rentable private villas owned by Samujana, and fans can rent out the stunning place themselves if they have the coin. Villa rentals start at $2,120 per night, which is a pretty fat stack of cash, but also feels reasonable considering it has a home gym and a private pool, plus four bedrooms with king-sized beds and six bathrooms.
For those of us who can’t possibly afford a trip to Thailand to check out these stunning vistas and gorgeous rooms, at least we can check into “The White Lotus” each week and dream.
