White Lotus Wanderlust: How Thailand Became 2025's Hottest Destination — and Why I'll Never Forget Winter 2022
Thanks in no small part to the White Lotus effect, the Land of Smiles is basking in the glow of a new wave of wanderlust. The announcement that the third season of the wildly popular HBO series would be filmed in Thailand sent travel searches surging, catapulting the country back into the spotlight as one of the best places to visit in 2025. From the jungles of Chiang Mai to the dreamy shores of Koh Samui, Thailand is having its long-overdue main character moment.
But while I love Thailand in any season, it's hard not to feel a little nostalgic for the version I experienced during the winter of 2022 — one of the most surreal, unforgettable, and bittersweet travel moments of my life.
Back then, the world was still gingerly tiptoeing its way out of a pandemic. Thailand had cracked open its doors just slightly, welcoming travelers under its Thailand Pass program, a bureaucratic obstacle course of epic proportions. I submitted health declarations, acquired special COVID insurance, scheduled multiple PCR tests, and pre-booked my quarantine stay. Travel felt like applying for a visa to Mars.
And yet, I wouldn't trade those hoops for anything. Because on the other side? A Thailand that hadn't existed for more than two decades.
I wandered the Grand Palace in Bangkok and didn't have to dodge a single selfie stick. Ayutthaya's crumbling ruins, usually crawling with tour groups, stood stoic and silent, the only other sound the distant hum of cicadas. There were no tuk tuk jams along Sukhumvit. No lines for ferries along the Chao Phraya.
Koh Samui was quiet. So quiet. Chaweng Beach, often bustling with nightlife, felt like a forgotten tropical outpost. In Ao Nang, the longtail boats waited patiently, bobbing on clear aquamarine waters, no queues of sunburned tourists clamoring to island-hop. The beaches of the Andaman Sea felt like I'd stumbled into a postcard — only there was no one else in the frame.
This was slow travel in its purest, most meditative form.
But it wasn't all halcyon beaches and blissful solitude. That version of Thailand came at a cost. A country that thrives on tourism saw its lifeline choked. Hundreds of local businesses shuttered. Whole neighborhoods felt eerily still, their once-vibrant restaurants and guesthouses closed with handwritten signs taped to the gates. The competition among those who remained was intense, and some locals shared quietly how hard it was to keep hope alive.
As a traveler, I felt the paradox deeply: the awe of having Thailand "to myself" was constantly shadowed by the weight of what had been lost.
Still, that winter trip etched itself into my soul. Not because it was perfect, but because it was utterly singular. It's a memory that feels wrapped in amber — a moment in time that will likely never come again.
Today, Thailand is bustling once more. Chiang Mai's night markets are alive with sizzling woks and the jingle of trinkets. Phuket is back in the headlines, its turquoise waters packed with speedboats and White Lotus film crews. Koh Samui is no longer whispering, but navigating its way through not only the usual throngs, but a new wave of travelers fueled by the intoxicating White Lotus high.
And I am so glad for it. Thailand deserves it.
But when people ask me when the best time to visit Thailand was, I always pause. The truth? It's not now. Not for me, anyway. Thailand is absolutely one of the top travel destinations for 2025, thanks to White Lotus Season 3, its wealth of wellness retreats, luxe hotels, and remote work escapes.
Yet a piece of my heart still lives in 2022 — in the hush of sunrise in an empty Wat Arun, in the deserted jungle roads of Mae Hong Son, in the heartfelt greetings of hoteliers who hadn't seen a guest in months.
Travel, at its core, is about transformation — of the world around us, and of ourselves. Thailand taught me that some of the most magical moments come not when the world is wide open, but when it pauses — just for a moment — and lets us truly see it.
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