Photo by LightField Studios / Shutterstock
A good night’s sleep is key to living a long, healthy life, and we recommend visiting a sleep spa to repair and restore your body.
Ahhh, the luxury of lingering in bed on a cold morning after a long night’s sleep is decadent. Sleep is important for our bodies to repair and restore on a nightly basis, and it’s critical for focus, functioning and emotional regulation throughout the day. Today, it’s taken center stage in conversations about optimal health at sleep spas around the world.
Sleep is considered one of the five pillars of living a long, healthy life.
On average, we’ll sleep about 26 years of our life, and a growing community of medical researchers is saying that is a good thing. Sadly, one in three people suffers from too little sleep, when it’s recommended, we sleep seven to nine hours each night.
While the coffee achievers boast they don’t need to sleep, not sleeping is getting called “the new smoking,” (and we know that’s not a good thing). Lack of sleep is taking a toll on our health, contributing to heart disease, obesity, depression, cancer and diabetes, according to the American Heart Association. Further, the World Health Organization says poor sleep has an impact on our ability to handle stress, think clearly and maintain a healthy immune system.
Sleep is considered one of the five pillars of living a long, healthy life, and if you feel you are among those not getting enough, sleep and spas around the world are coming to the rescue with Zen sleep spas and therapies to help you get some good, restorative sleep.
Carmel Valley Ranch
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
CARMEL VALLEY RANCH | California
You’ll want a glass of pinot noir to celebrate as you peruse Carmel Valley Ranch’s newest suites—30 havens, set alongside the vineyards amid the coastal foothills of the Santa Lucia Mountains, a short drive from Big Sur. But sleepyheads can do more than wine taste here. Seek the sandman with the help of Dr. Bee Epstein-Shepherd, who helms Slip Into Sleep Wellness.
A hypnosis program that gently guides you to sleep at the resort’s Spa Aiyana, the sessions not only relax on the spot but provide instructive, self-hypnotherapy skills (and a helpful recording) to take home. The 60- to 80-minute Hypno-health treatments can be repeated more than once during your stay. You can also start practicing your newly learned, self-calming skills from your suite’s vineyard-view porch.
The Ritz-Carlton Dallas
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
THE RITZ-CARLTON DALLAS | Texas
Start dreaming at The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas, where guests getting a good night’s sleep is their top priority. Their Suite Sleep package provides all the tools necessary for fostering 40 winks.
Overseen by the hotel’s sleep therapist, a specialist in sleep aid (such as controlling lights and sounds and white noise options), the program includes suite accommodations, noise-canceling earplugs, herbal (or unscented) eye masks, a cool-temp pillow, a bedside collection of inspiring reading, a pre-sleep tutorial, soothing music, a lavender linen mister and a discount on the Drift to Sleep ritual at The Spa, a treatment which begins with herbal tea, includes an alpha-sleep oriented massage, and ends with a power nap atop a warmed, down duvet.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: YOUR WILDEST SPA DREAMS EXIST IN THE BEAUTY OF PARIS’S EN SALON
The piece d’ resistance is the all-night sleep study, where guests spend the night in the Canyon Ranch sleep lab.
Canyon Ranch Spa
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
CANYON RANCH SPA | Arizona
Canyon Ranch, one of the leading spas of the world, offers sleep studies, a pillow menu and the opportunity for guests to talk with a doctor, so they can pin down some of the causes for their poor sleep.
Hypnotherapy and acupuncture are also used to help guests unwind, but the piece d’ resistance is the all-night sleep study, where guests spend the night in the Canyon Ranch sleep lab—which includes all the comforts of the resort’s luxury rooms—while an overnight sleep study is performed. A board-certified physician serves as a sleep specialist to review the results and make recommendations for better sleep at home.
Meditation and exercise are also often prescribed to help people relax and calm their minds.
The Corinthia Hotel
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
THE CORINTHIA HOTEL | London
Wait until you learn about how far they’ll go to get you to sleep at The Corinthia Hotel. Designed by a nutritionist and a sleep expert, the hotel’s sleep program addresses relaxation and a two-hour sleep ritual that is spa-like. Foods rich in tryptophan and magnesium are on the menu for lunch and dinner, and massages are essential.
A consultation with a sleep therapist uses cognitive behavioral therapy to calm anxieties that can keep you awake. The package includes overnight accommodations with time to unwind in one of the hotel’s famous Sleep Pods, a turn-down treat of valerian tea or warm milk with pumpkin seed cookies, and a light breakfast the next morning served in-room.
Guests also enjoy a choice of a personalized osteopathy consultation, personalized acupuncture session or Ancient Indian Shirodhara treatment in addition to their peaceful sleep with their spa bed.
The Alpina Gstaad
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
THE ALPINA GSTAAD | Switzerland
This holistic sleep spa bed and retreat at The Alpina Gstaad helps you find your mind-body balance to feel more relaxed and sleep more deeply. Massages, yoga sessions, wellness consultations, and more are all part of the program at this retreat.
Rest your body and mind with gentle yoga practice, achieve deep relaxation with Yoga Nidra and learn practical take-home techniques for creating an ideal environment for sleep. Brisk walks in the woods are also offered because exercise is one of the most iconic and recommended ways to get better sleep.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: SPA TRENDS
The Sleep Upgrade includes a sleep tracker and moisture-wicking linens and specialty bedding to create the optimal sleeping scenario.
Six Senses Douro Valley
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
SIX SENSES DOURO VALLEY | Portugal
The Six Senses Douro Valley is located in the Portuguese wine country, and upon check-in, guests will be asked about their insomnia patterns and sleeping positions.
Rooms will be customized based on the answers to those questions—noise, light levels and linens will all be adjusted to work in conjunction with what a person needs to really get good quality sleep with the Sleep Upgrade and re-connect with what works for them. The Sleep Upgrade includes a sleep tracker and moisture-wicking linens and specialty bedding to create the optimal sleeping scenario.
The Lefay Resort and Spa
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
THE LEFAY RESORT AND SPA | Italy
The Lefay Resort and Spa channels traditional Chinese medicine principles in every service it offers. The goal is to improve your sleep quality from the inside out, so, if you’re struggling with an energy imbalance, be it hormonal or due to digestive issues, you’re offered treatments like herbal medicine, acupuncture and aromatherapy to calm your senses and inner anxieties, as well as establish better sleep patterns.
According to Classical Chinese Medicine, insomnia is the manifestation of an imbalance of energy due to various causes of physical nature. The treatments in this zen sleep spa program stimulate the energy lines and specific acupuncture points, thereby promoting sleep.