The “White Lotus Effect”: Balancing Popularity and Authenticity
The latest season of The White Lotus aired last week, so it felt timely to talk about the “White Lotus Effect.” For those not familiar, this refers to the increase in tourism to locations or properties featured on the show (unsurprising, given the beautiful cinematography and picturesque surroundings featured). For example, Expedia saw searches for Hawaii and Sicily (the locations for Seasons 1 and 2 of the show, respectively) spike by over 300%. The Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea in Hawaii reported a 425% increase in website traffic and a 386% increase in availability checks after Season 1 of the show.
This phenomenon highlights broader trends within the travel industry that are worth discussing — the importance of winning attention and an increasing desire for localized, unique travel experiences. How can brands maximize popularity, while also delivering on bespoke and authentic experiences for travelers?
Content curation and the power of streaming
With the proliferation of streaming services, attention is more divided on a whole; however, content is becoming more tailored to specific audiences. In other words, the viewers of a particular program are more engaged with the content that they are watching because it is self-selected, personalized, and oftentimes recommended based on prior viewing history. As a result, viewers are highly immersed, and may be more likely to — say — actually book a trip to a location they see on screen.
Brands that understand and embrace this can use it to their advantage — ensuring their curated content reaches the right audiences, and drives valuable behavior for the brand.
Bespoke and authentic tourism
The travel inspiration from content extends beyond destinations to specific activities and restaurants in-destination. Skift published an article earlier this month that highlighted perspectives from Abercrombie & Kent, a luxury travel company. Specifically, the article stated that Abercrombie & Kent saw “a ‘unique trend’ of travelers asking to ‘live’ the White Lotus experience,” requesting reservations at restaurants featured in the show.
This heightened desire for immersive travel is wide-spread, as luxury travelers increasingly want bespoke, authentic experiences. Brands will need to consider how to curate local connection and cultural immersion, especially if they want to appeal to younger, more affluent travelers. They should aspire to make the travel experience feel personalized, unique, and selective, while also accommodating a greater influx of tourists — this is a tough balance to strike.
Trending destinations and operational considerations
What may seem like a blessing to “trending” destinations can come with its own host of challenges — a sudden surge of tourists can lead to infrastructure strains, and it can be difficult for properties to manage an inconsistent ebb and flow of traffic. There is an opportunity to reconsider how to embrace and welcome an increase in travelers, while also ensuring sustainable tourism and the long-term attractiveness of a destination. Could enhanced collaboration across players (e.g., hotels, local tourist attractions, restaurants) expand in-destination activities, and facilitate curated itineraries that reduce the strain on a few popular options, while also feeling more bespoke and personalized for the traveler? Could tour operators and travel brands leverage the popularity of specific destinations to encourage travelers to explore other, similar locations?
The “White Lotus Effect” may extend beyond the show itself — we could argue the same phenomenon takes place within our own social networks. We are now more connected than ever (e.g., on Instagram, TikTok), and watch our connections, both personal and paid influencers, post about trips and vacations. This can lead to trending destinations increasing in popularity at a speed and scale we haven’t seen before, compounding the effect of shows and brand-curated content.
The “White Lotus Effect”, at least from what we’ve seen so far, is real, and here to stay. Brands that can effectively navigate the attention economy and reach the right audiences will continue to see an influx of tourists — and the ones that can figure out how to create experiences that feel authentic and personalized for those guests will be the real winners.
