The Thai island Koh Samui is about to be hit by the “White Lotus Effect”.
Filming for the third series is currently underway and when the show is finally released in early 2025, the island will become one of the most coveted destinations in the world. So now is the time to book that trip before prices go bananas.
As with the first two series, filmed in Maui, Hawaii, and Taormina in Sicily respectively, much of the show will be filmed in the Four Seasons resort. The Koh Samui outpost of the famously upmarket US brand is a fantastical, tropical haven set on a hillside in the northwest corner of the island – all polished teak, cultivated jungle and a perfect arc of private beach.
But with prices currently starting at £1,000 for one night (and this is before it becomes one of the most famous film locations in the world), you need very deep pockets to stay there.
The good news is that there are plenty of other fabulous places to stay on Koh Samui, from family-friendly hotels, to Airbnb villas and some surprisingly swanky youth hostels.
The producers of The White Lotus have made a clever choice. Thailand’s second-largest island is rapidly becoming known as the most upmarket island in the country. Whilst it’s historically been best-known as a launching pad for Full Moon wipeout parties on Koh Pha Ngan, a 40-minute ferry ride away, things have changed.
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Koh Samui’s best restaurants have just been added to the Michelin Guide, it has its own boutique airline Bangkok Airways (which means you don’t have to suffer through that stomach-rolling ferry ride from the mainland), and it has the highest concentration of five-star hotels outside Bangkok.
This was made blindingly clear to me when we were whisked from the airport (which itself looks like an open-air resort hotel) to the Ritz-Carlton, Koh Samui for three days of Hollywood-grade glamour. Let’s put this in context for a moment: the last time I was in Koh Samui 30 years ago, I slept on a palm mat in a beach hut. We didn’t have air con, but we did have a bottomless supply of cockroaches.
This time, I stayed in an ultimate pool billa on the 58-acre Ritz-Carlton estate, with panoramic views across the Gulf of Thailand, complete with private plunge pool, a deep bath overlooking the ocean, Diptyque bath and body products and the sort of firm yet marshmallowy king-size bed that luxe American hotel brands seem to nail every time.
The resort has four restaurants (its steak house, Ranch, has made the Michelin Guide), a spa village where my Thai fusion massage was one of the best one-hour experiences of my life, and a surprisingly chill and unstuffy beach bar where you can sip a pina colada from a green coconut before slipping into the infinity pool above the resort’s private, sandy cove.
If you ever get bored of doing absolutely nothing, there is complimentary kayaking, paddle boarding, yoga, morning meditation and Muay Thai boxing lessons in an actual ring.
To give you an idea of the value, if you book outside school holiday peak season, prices per room start from £217 a night including an extraordinarily gluttonous breakfast buffet.
From the road (and there is only one that circumnavigates the island), Koh Samui looks like a chaotic mash-up of fruit stalls, cafes, massage parlours and scooter rentals. But it’s what lies behind that matters – fabulous restaurants, beaches, resort hotels, markets and beach clubs.
Chaweng Beach: Around 7km, a stretch of white, sandy beach and the main hub on the island. Head here for supercharged fun – bars, nightlife and shopping.
The ultimate pool villa at the Ritz-Carlton, Koh Samui
Lamai Beach: A lovely stretch of sand and deeper water (better for water sports) and less hectic than Chaweng but with plenty of small hotels and restaurants, including the chilled Baobab bar and restaurant. A good family option.
Bophut Beach: A three kilometre stretch of sandy beach on the north of the island with views towards Ko Phan Ngan. A great place to while away an afternoon. At 7pm and 9pm, grab a beanbag on the beach and a cocktail at Coco Tam’s for the excellent fire show.
Choengmon Beach: A quieter, smaller and more exclusive series of bays near the run of five star resort hotels. Good for a quieter day.
Mu Ko Ang Thong National Marine Park: Book a boat trip and enjoy unmissable snorkelling at this nearby archipelago of jewel-like islands made famous in Alex Garland’s The Beach.
Mu Ko Ang Thong National Marine Park, shot from the highest point of Mae Island
Bliss: the infinity pool and beach bar on the Ritz-Carlton’s private cove on Koh Samui
