For my entire life, I’ve categorized myself as a “good” sleeper. My evidence mainly relies on the fact that I can fall asleep pretty much anywhere, stay asleep for a ridiculous amount of time, and rarely wake up during the night.
But, recently, I’ve come to the realization that the amount of sleep I get doesn’t always necessarily translate to the quality of sleep I get: I often stay up late, end up oversleeping, and usually feel tired throughout the day, which are all red flags telling me to get my act together. So, in the name of health, wellness, and “sleepmaxxing,” I decided to chase after a good night’s rest – by going on a trip to Mexico, of course.
Thanks to the Hilton Honors and American Express team, I was whisked away to the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal to experience the property’s luxurious amenities, bank some R&R, and hopefully come out on the other side a new person (or, at least with a new sleep routine).
A growing number of people are being seduced by sleep tourism, a trend that involves traveling with the explicit goal of improved sleep. Hotels and resorts have begun to offer sleep-related packages, which often include sound healing, guided meditations, spa visits, pillow menus, and state-of-the-art sleep accommodations.
Some are more intense than others: For example the Preidlhof, located in northern Italy, offers a program that includes a comprehensive sleep analysis – tracked by a small device worn by visitors – along with a personalized sleep massage, sleep rituals, acupuncture, as well as sound and quartz classes. Oh, and everything is supervised by sleep experts and an on-site doctor.
Absurd? Maybe, but travelers are into it – according to Hilton’s 2025 trends report, 49 percent of travelers said one of the reasons they plan to travel is to rest and recharge, and two-thirds of respondents say they sleep better in hotels. And from 2020 to 2022, wellness trips increased by 30 percent annually, according to the Global Wellness Institute, with spending on these experiences surging by 36 percent each year.
Experts Featured in This Article
Phyllicia Bonanno is an Alo Moves instructor specializing in yoga and meditation.
Maj. Allison Brager, PhD, is a neurobiologist with expertise in sleep and circadian rhythms for the US Army.
Admittedly, I’m not the kind of person who takes wellness trips. When I travel for pleasure, I try to pack in as much as possible: sightseeing, going on adventurous side quests, and eating and drinking my way through wherever I land, often exhausted and feeling like I need a vacation from my vacation upon return.
But what I’ve learned during my short time on Earth is that traveling is not the same thing as vacationing. Traveling is going and experiencing a new place and culture; it takes effort, time, and energy. Vacationing, on the other hand, typically means going and specifically prioritizing relaxation. It’s meant to give you a total refresh and escape from daily, hectic life, and conflating the two can cause a serious rift in your sleep schedule. So, I embarked on an intentional sleep vacation with one goal in mind: to rest and recharge as much as possible.
The itinerary for the trip was a sleepy girl’s dream: slow morning yoga, leisure time by the pool, sound baths, spa treatments, and mindful yoga classes taught by Phyllicia Bonanno, an Alo Moves instructor who’s been on sleep vacations before (and highly recommends them). And while I thought I’d be able to get away with bedrotting in Cabo, I was sorely mistaken. The trick to optimize rest, Bonanno says, is to still be active. “Moving your body throughout the day is really essential to rest,” she says. “If you’re always resting, that’s not beneficial. If you’re always moving, that’s not beneficial. You need the two.”
Our mornings began with a yoga practice led by Bonnano, and our afternoons were free for us to roam about the property on our own terms. I laid out. I ordered an absurd amount of poolside nigiri. I soaked in my room’s personal plunge pool. I spent time at the spa – which, thanks to the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, hotel goers can earn 14X Hilton Honors points on property purchases, including spa services – and received a lymphatic drainage massage that may have changed my life.
I didn’t work or think about work – at least, I tried – and I spent the evenings connecting with the other people on the trip, eating excellent food (and drinking even better tequila), and participating in relaxing sound baths and even a gratitude-focused cacao ceremony. And, of course, I slept.
“Sleep is another form of food for our bodies and our minds,” Bonnano says. If that’s the case, I was fed. Between 10:00 p.m. and midnight each night, I was back in my room, getting ready for sleep. My normal bedtime routine mainly consists of skincare and doomscrolling, but once I was tucked away in the 400-thread-count sheets, I made a conscious effort to only use my phone to listen to self-guided meditations courtesy of the Alo Moves QR code on my bedside table.
The rooms were equipped with specially-made Waldorf Astoria mattresses (that I can’t stop thinking about now that I know they can be purchased online) and lush pillows outfitted with silk pillowcases. I brought my own silk sleep mask to cover my eyes, but also used the enormous blackout curtains to stop any light from entering the vicinity. And while my room wasn’t too close to the beach, the waves were still audible enough to lull me to sleep.
I banked over seven hours of good sleep each night, and by the time I was ready to leave the Waldorf Astoria and head home, I was in full zen mode. My mind felt clearer. I felt more gratitude and free of my persistent brain fog, all of which spilled over into my non-vacation life and sleep cycle. During those few days, I also did absolutely nothing – and I feel better for it. “80 percent of Americans are chronically sleep deprived, so if you’re dedicating a vacation to rest and recovery, you’re setting yourself up for success afterwards in terms of paying off that sleep debt,” neurobiologist Maj. Allison Brager, PhD, told me after I arrived back home.
Of course, we can’t ignore the inherent privilege that comes with being able to afford to take a vacation, especially a trip focused entirely on resting and unplugging. People have jobs, kids, families, and responsibilities, and putting those on hold to focus on oneself is a huge advantage. But you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars on a hotel sleep package. You can still reap the benefits of prioritizing rest, even if you’re at home.
Dr. Brager recommends focusing on the SLANT acronym, standing for surface, light, air quality, noise, and temperature. “[When] you’re sleeping on a good surface, you’re controlling the light input, you have good air quality, you’re able to control the noise, and you’re sleeping in a cool environment, then you’re getting a far better night of sleep,” she says.
Prioritizing quality sleep has become imperative for me since returning from Mexico. Instead of feeling guilty for doing nothing every once in a while, I’ve reframed it as necessary for my wellbeing and putting myself first – two things we should all be doing more often.
Elizabeth Gulino is a freelance writer who covers trends, wellness, and all things lifestyle. Previously, she was a senior staff writer at Refinery29. Her work has been featured in Cosmopolitan, PS, Bustle, Wirecutter, and more.