Sunset's wellness vertical is a goldmine for anyone planning a restorative trip along the US West Coast — and the standout threads are all about water. Think hot springs under the stars, city bathhouses, and even hotel baths run by professional 'bath butlers'.
The headline pick for travellers is Esalen Institute, the storied retreat on the Big Sur cliffside in California. Its hot springs pools sit right above the Pacific, and Sunset frames the experience as a chance to soak beneath the Milky Way and unplug properly. Clothing-optional bathing, midnight reservations and a booking system that opens months in advance are all part of the Esalen ritual, so this one rewards early planning.
Closer to town, Sunset points out that you don't need a remote spa resort for a proper soak-and-steam session. A roundup of urban bathhouses across West Coast cities offers aqua therapy — think Korean-style jjimjilbang, Japanese-inspired onsen and Nordic plunge-and-sauna cycles — all within city limits. Several hotels in the region have also leaned into locally sourced spa treatments, with products drawn from the surrounding landscape for a treatment that supposedly benefits 'the skin and the soul'.
There's practical home wisdom too. A piece built around advice from a professional bath butler breaks down how to actually build a better bath — a small but useful skill if your accommodation comes with a deep tub. Elsewhere, Sunset road-tested running and hiking shoes across thousands of miles of Western trails, crowning the Hoka Speedgoat 6 GTX as the writer's favourite — handy if your wellness trip leans more trail than tub.
Why care? Because wellness travel on the West Coast is at its best when it combines the region's natural assets — coastal hot springs, redwood-fringed retreats, desert spas — with a low-key, unpretentious approach. Sunset's coverage maps exactly where that's happening, from Big Sur to the Bay Area and beyond. Pair a stay at a soak-focused retreat with city bathhouse days and you've got a holiday itinerary that costs a fraction of a destination resort while delivering more of the same calm.
