‘We’re booked until April 2023’: The White Lotus effect on Sicily’s glitziest town

The second series of HBO’s hit drama has moved from Hawaii to the Italian island. What has filming meant for the town of Taormina?

It must have been like manna from heaven when, in October 2020, HBO decided to locate its new hit drama, The White Lotus, at the Four Seasons on Maui, Hawaii. The luxury resort had been closed since the islands locked down in late March, but this meant suites could be reopened for filming and furloughed staff brought back to work.

Now it’s the turn of another Four Seasons hotel, the San Domenico Palace in Taormina, Sicily, to be the star turn for the second series, which airs from October 31 on HBO/Sky Atlantic. Though lockdown is now just a memory for Italy, the choice of one of Sicily’s most beautiful towns (and certainly its glitziest) was welcomed by a country hit hard – and early – by the pandemic. The arrival of the international cast and crew in February was forecast to mean a €2m boost to the town’s hotels, rental flats, bars and restaurants, along with work opportunities for local people, including roles as extras. And the benefits are expected to continue.