The business of bedtime: Why sleep tourism is seriously taking off

Lately, though, my slumber's been more like the local bus service: unpredictable, hard to catch and constantly disrupted. Even in my favourite hotels, I'm weirdly wakeful. Humming aircon, digital lights, street noise, an unfamiliar pillow - endless distractions deny me dreamland.

I'm not alone. More than half of Australian adults report regular sleep disruption, a problem so prevalent globally it's been described by the World Health Organization as a public health epidemic.

Modern life, with its electronic devices, artificial lighting and 24/7 culture, has sabotaged our circadian rhythms, according to sleep expert Nancy Rothstein. "Our bodies were designed to sleep, but we're fighting our biology," she says. Rothstein, whose professional motto is "to live well, you must sleep well", is Sleep Ambassador for Hyatt, and it should come as no surprise the hotel group has one. Everyone in these insomniac times - from physicians to spas to companies providing napping pods for workers - is claiming expertise in Zs, but who knows sleep better than hotels? They're the standard bearers of slumber, operating on the frontlines of time-zone transitions, long-haul flights, fast and furious business trips, exhaustive sightseeing schedules. Hotels understand that nothing simultaneously demands and disrupts good shut-eye quite like travel.

And now they're stepping up as our sleep saviours. Ever heard of sleep tourism? It's a real thing. From high-tech experiences like Equinox Hotel New York's Art + Science of Sleep, with cryotherapy and a sleep-augmenting Spa Wave Table, to New York Park Hyatt's six dedicated Sleep Suites, each equipped with an AI-powered bed, sleep is hotter than sunshine. There are sleep butlers and sleep concierges and even sleep-devoted properties such as London's three Zedwell hotels and the lavish Hastens Sleep Spa in Coimbra, Portugal.

So here I am, wearing satin pyjamas in a Park Hyatt Sydney penthouse as Rothstein, live on screen from her Chicago bedroom (or rather office) explains why the new Sleep at Hyatt program is such a big deal.

"Sleep is a global, critical issue, with ripple effects across every aspect of society," she says. "Poor sleep is not sustainable." The aim of Sleep at Hyatt, available in all 11 of Hyatt's Australia and New Zealand hotels, is to set you up for ongoing sleep success, she adds. "You can't change poor sleep habits overnight, but by tomorrow you'll have strategies you can try at home."

I'm here to find out if Sleep at Hyatt works like a dream.

My sleep sanctuary is a king room with harbour view, balcony and a deep, decadent bathtub. This being a five-star hotel, the room also has the Rolls-Royce of beds, but I've learnt from Rothstein that a vehicle to the land of nod is only as good as its driver.

To sleep like a pro, you need more than a mattress, and the tools are in my Sleep Ritual Pack: calming herbal tea, De-Stress bath salts and aromatherapy spray and oil, all from organic iKOU, made in the Blue Mountains. There's a linen sleep mask and rockstar spectacles that bathe everything in a rosy glow. Dreamers Sleep Eyewear are the latest sleep tech, designed to block the artificial green and blue light that suppresses our sleep hormone melatonin. Conceived by Sydney former models and twin brothers Zac and Jordan Stenmark after their long-haul life scrambled their circadian rhythms, Dreamers have lenses devised by a US scientist to block 99.9 percent of the sleep-sabotaging rays flooding from screens, devices and LED lighting.

I'll be guided by Rothstein's tips at the dedicated website, sleepathyatt.com.au, along with meditations from relaxation app Headspace. As I spritz my De-Stress spray - step one in the ritual - a horn blasts and the gargantuan bulk of Virgin Voyages' adults-only disco ship, Resilient Lady, berths right outside. Rock band The War on Drugs contribute extra throbbing bass with their gig on the nearby Opera House forecourt. Sydney is at full festive volume.

My sleep tips do not address the scenario of 10,000 people getting their party started on your doorstep, so I close the balcony doors, lower the blackout blinds, brew my relaxing tea, and run my bath, ready to put this sleep ritual to its toughest test.

A warm bath before bed is one of Rothstein's top tips, and studies have shown that bathing in sea salts promotes quality sleep patterns. Mine are infused with natural sedatives including lavender and geranium - and they're powerful. As I bask, my tension seems to dissolve into the water.

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Wrapped in a fluffy robe, I dab the Sleepyhead aromatherapy oil onto my pulse points. The sweet almond oil, marjoram and lavender is like a shot of calm. By habit, my thoughts turn to the minibar. Perhaps a nightcap? Rothstein's guide says nope. While alcohol at bedtime might knock you out, it'll interfere with your sleep quality.

Next, I reach for my phone. On this, Rothstein's a realist. Use devices if you must, she says, but try to avoid stimulating or stressful content, and wear your Dreamers to block the blue-green light. I slide between the sheets, don the specs, and hit play on a Headspace sleep meditation. A gentle voice encourages me to let go of my thoughts. Easier said than done for this chronic overthinker, but the combined sedatives of sonorous voice, aromatherapy and the bed's embrace somehow conquer my inner chatter. I'm just conscious enough to swap my Dreamers for the sleep mask before I slip into slumber.

I wake up, check the clock ... and it's 8am. I've slept through the night. Premium Zs, too - deep and restorative. What's the secret? While there's no doubt the five-star creature comforts played their part, the charm is the ritual itself. If you're serious about sleep, you need to be proactive, says Rothstein. "We prepare for travel, meetings, exercise and more, but do you prepare for sleep?"

The intentional, holistic approach - setting up for sleep with scents, sights, sounds and sensations - was impressively effective. Plus, it's replicable at home and even to some extent on flights. My sleep sojourn doesn't have to be a one-night stand. This sleep tourist has taken away the best souvenir of all: the secret to sweet dreams. And even if my neighbour parks a 3000-berth boogie boat outside, I won't miss a wink.

Other hotels in Australia and beyond taking sleep seriously.

Pan Pacific Melbourne: Pan Pacific Melbourne's Happy Sleeper Program, available to guests in Suites and Club Rooms, includes a comprehensive pillow menu, Butler Bath Service, turn-down service with complimentary Dindi Naturals calming mists and a Slumber Supper menu of complimentary nightcaps like warm milk and chamomile tea plus chef's selections filled with sleep-enhancing ingredients.

Novotel: Novotel's collaboration with Calm, the sleep and relaxation app, offers guests in the brand's hotels worldwide a range of complimentary sleep aids including meditations, relaxing music and soundscapes by artists including Sam Smith and Sigur Ross, and bedtime stories read by actress Eva Green.

Pullman Sydney Penrith: Guests at Penrith's first five-star hotel can access a Sleep Therapy Menu on their in-room tablet, offering a variety of sleep services including face and eye masks, aromatherapy pillow sprays, soothing teas, and an extensive pillow menu. There are also pre-programmed selections of background sounds, colours and room lighting settings to choose from to help you sleep or wake up.

The Langham Hotels: Sleep Matters by Chuan is a sleep package created by the luxury hotel group's Chuan Spa wellness experts in collaboration with the World Sleep Society and available in 16 hotels worldwide, including the Sydney, Melbourne and Gold Coast properties. The snooze-boosting package includes bespoke traditional Chinese medicine breathing exercises; a soothing Spotify playlist, sleep tips from the World Sleep Society, earplugs and pillow mist.

Shangri-La Singapore: The slumber-enhancing Better Sleep package includes a 60-minute tension-relieving massage at Chi, The Spa; a sleep amenities set with pillow spray, shower gel and bath soak; curated relaxing playlist, and three-course wellness menu with nutrient-packed ingredients to lull you into the land of nod.

Park Hyatt New York: The property has six dedicated Sleep Suites, each equipped with a king-sized, AI-powered Bryte Balance smart bed. This ultimate cradle has calming audio and soothing motions powered by an intelligent mattress that senses your pressure points, adjusts to relieve them and records data about your sleep patterns to help optimise your rest. Added snooze-enhancing amenities include an essential oil diffuser, eye masks and a stash of books about sleep.

Hastens Sleep Spa: Perhaps the pinnacle of sleep tourism, this 15-room slumber sanctuary in Coimbra, Portugal, offers the opportunity to sleep on the Rolls-Royce of mattresses, from your hosts, Swedish mattress manufacturer Hastens. The hotel's motto: "Your bed decides how good your day will be." And when you're talking about a company whose flagship mattress costs US$390,000 and feels so blissful that Drake was inspired to sing about his, you're inclined to believe it.

The writer was a guest of Park Hyatt, see sleepathyatt.com.au/home-1.