White Lotus boosted flights from US by over 200% says min

(ANSA) - ROME, APR 4 - The second season of award-winning HBO dark comedy White Lotus, set in Taormina in Sicily, boosted flights from the US to Italy by 205%, Tourism Minister Daniela Santanchè said Thursday.
    Flights from Germany rose by even more, 265%, in the wake of the mini-series screening from October to December 2022, she said.
    Further, Santanchè said, "the season generated an economic impact of 32 million euros, helping create 1,500 jobs and the production involved 700 Italian firms, bringing a contribution of 38 million euros to national GDP".
    Santanchè said that cinema and TV films were "a powerful means of promoting the beauty and excellence of our nation in an international context".
    She said movie-linked tourism brought an economic benefit of around 600 million euros to the areas where the films were shot.
    The White Lotus, whose first season was set in Hawaii, the second in the Sicilian jewel, and the third to be set in Thailand, highlights the foibles and disasters of spoiled jet-setters and the hard-pressed staff that cater to them in a fictional hotel chain.
    photo: show creator Mike White, star Jennifer Coolidge (ANSA).