.svg){kind=small}
White Lotus effect lifts Koh Samui bookings by 65%
· Luxy Samui
Hotel bookings on Koh Samui for Songkran 2025 rose 65% after The White Lotus put the island on screen.
The third season of the television series The White Lotus, filmed largely on Koh Samui, gave the island a clear lift in 2025. According to Thai government figures reported by Bloomberg on 26 March 2025, hotel bookings on Samui for the Songkran holiday, from 10 to 17 April, were 65% higher than a year earlier.
Samui led the country at Songkran
The government said Koh Samui was the top destination for foreign tourists over that period. The average stay also grew a little, to 3.8 nights from 3.74 nights. Other places gained too, but less: bookings rose 41% in Chiang Mai and 20% in Bangkok, according to a deputy government spokesman.
Hotel groups saw the same trend. Minor International reported that direct online bookings for three of its Anantara resorts rose 41% compared with the same period a year before. Visits to their websites more than doubled.
Searches rose before and after the premiere
The series began in mid-February 2025, and interest started even earlier. The Bangkok Post reported several figures:
- The Tourism Council of Thailand said internet searches for Koh Samui rose 88% and hotel reservations on the island rose 44%.
- The booking site Agoda saw searches for hotels on Samui rise 12% before the show aired. Searches from users in the United States were up 65% since January.
- Among British travellers, searches for Thailand were 53% higher than a year before, with strong gains for Phuket and Bangkok as well.
The countries searching most for places to stay on the island were Israel, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui served as the main setting of the fictional hotel. The Thai singer Lisa, who has a role in the series, added to the attention.
A shorter low season?
Tourism officials quoted by the Bangkok Post hoped that the island could avoid its usual quiet months that year. That was a hope, not a measured result. Still, the search figures come from Europe and North America, markets that already send many travellers to Samui.
Later recognition suggests the interest lasted. In July 2026, readers of Travel + Leisure voted Koh Samui the best island in the world, and reports on that award again mentioned the series.
What it means for your stay
More attention means popular dates fill earlier. Songkran in April, the European summer holidays and the Christmas and New Year weeks are the periods to plan first. If your dates are fixed, book flights and accommodation several months ahead. If you are flexible, travelling outside these peaks gives you more choice. Many scenes in the series show private pools and sea views, which is what a villa offers. You can compare our villas for rent in Koh Samui by size and by beach.
