Wellness
The Case For Taking A “Quietcation"
According to Pinterest data, wanderlusters are seeking silent travel — for good reason.
Bursting into a new year means daydreaming about the next time you close your laptop and bid adieu to work for as long as your PTO allows. Rightfully so, because studies find that travel is good for your health, mood, and creativity.
In fact, for the past few years, wellness and travel have become increasingly intertwined. Based on recent Pinterest data, vacations have actually become more chill than ever: There’s been an upward trend in wanderlusters swapping 20,000 steps a day and must-see travel to-do lists for what is now dubbed silent travel or a quietcation, as searches on the platform for quiet places (up by 50%) and calm places (up by 42%) have increased.
Wait. What Is A Quietcation?
Silent travel or a quietcation is a vacation that gives you a break from the noise and hustle of the modern world, prioritizing more mindful, slow travel that doesn’t require a vacation from your vacation. Note this is not to be confused with TikTok’s “quiet vacationing” trend, where people take time off without cashing in PTO and log in without telling their jobs where they are.
A quietcation can vary depending on just how much silence you’re looking for — you can find everything from a wellness resort where you participate in a noise-free breakfast or walking meditation to an outdoor trek with just you and the sounds of nature. There are also totally silent five- to 10-day retreats.
I accidentally tapped into the quietcation trend more than a year ago in Champagne, France, booking a chateau in, well, Serzy-et-Prin, about a 30-minute drive from the Veuve Clicquot Champagne house — one of the many tours I’d booked during my stay.
I spent my other four days and three nights in complete solitude, with nothing to do but walk the beautiful grounds that boasted goats, sheep, chickens, and a lake. I did have books to read. And, of course, I had Blancs to Blancs Champagne (a recommendation from my host). I rested in complete quiet. But the days and nights were so silent, and outside was so dark, I was actually uncomfortable. I’d never experienced that degree of stillness before — but by the second day, I loved the disconnected feeling.
The Benefits Of Quiet Travel
However you decide to try the trend, know that feeling uncomfortable is to be expected.
“Silence is uncomfortable for a lot of people,” Stacian Watts, M.Sc., RP, a registered psychotherapist and founder of the Toronto-based Watts Psychotherapy, tells Bustle. “The digital age we live in contributes to that discomfort [because] we are always surrounded by noise, attached to a device, and accessible to others.”
Her take? This is likely why people are yearning for the opposite when traveling. “People are choosing to disconnect from the fast-paced and overstimulated life,” she shares. Not to mention studies have found that the benefits of silence are plentiful, noting that it can help lower blood pressure, stimulate creativity, improve sleep, and calm racing thoughts.
For travel and wellness expert and influencer Olivia Christine Perez, even with all the jet-setting she does for work, silent travel is key for her mental health. “Having an autoimmune disease, leaning into a slow-paced trip is an essential part of my self-care,” she tells Bustle. “During flares or after a period of difficult medical treatment, I find myself most often seeking silent travel to rest and rejuvenate.”
Serena Goh, a food, travel, and lifestyle influencer and creative consultant, partakes in the trend for a mental reset. “I find myself often gravitating toward quieter, slow-paced trips when I need to group myself creatively and mentally,” she says.
How To Bask In Silence
It takes practice to appreciate quiet — especially since you’re likely used to lots of noise and action. “For some people, staying busy can be self-protective,” says Watts. “Staying busy and on the go is shielding us from something — feelings or memories that may be too hard to sit with, and as long as we stay busy, we don’t have to sit with those.”
There’s also the societal need always to be productive. “When we think about silence, we’re also thinking about stillness, and we may have some conditioning around productivity that makes it difficult to do that because we equate productivity to our self-worth and value,” she adds.
For this reason, she says to pack a journal. “This allows you to have some way to channel thoughts repeatedly coming up for you, [as well as] emotions or sensations you notice coming up in your body. Write about what you’re learning about yourself while you sit in silence.” If you have trouble with blank pages, I enjoy Cleo Wade’s Heart Talk: The Journal because there are prompts that make it easier to put pen to paper.
Watts also recommends being willing to unplug from your phone. “Pick a gorgeous setting, tap into your five senses, and allow yourself to be fully present in the moment,” she says. Her pro tip: Start small with five minutes, and then move to challenge yourself each day to more time.
Where To Go
Perez suggests heading to a wellness resort for first-time silent vacationers. “You’ll be with fellow guests who are there for the same reason, and you’ll have staff ready to support your silent vacation needs,” she tells Bustle. “There are also more likely to be quiet walking trails, peaceful music, and activity offerings that value calm, like meditative coloring or yoga.”
Here are five spots that vary in destination, culture, and wellness offerings for a quiet or even silent vacation.
Just a 30-minute drive from Cancun International Airport, the Fairmont Mayakoba is surrounded by a 595-acre tropical jungle that immerses you in nature the moment you check in. This resort offers lots of time for silence and solitude with experiences like the ancestral temazcal healing experience grounded in ancient Mayan culture, sunrise rooftop breathwork classes, instructor-led silent nature trail walks, and guided cenote tours. But with the beach nearby, you can also relax by the ocean with fellow travelers when things get too quiet.
“For the more experienced silent traveler, Thailand has an abundance of wellness resorts that offer silence and luxury at midrange budgets,” Perez tells Bustle. “I loved the Soul Resort in Saraburi for its scenic mountain view property and quiet travel offerings like walking meditation, mindfulness classes, and spa services.”
Meliá Serengeti Lodge — Tanzania
Embarking on a safari adventure is likely on many people’s bucket lists — for good reason. While a visit to the Meliá Serengeti Lodge calls for an adventurous spirit, there are ample opportunities for mindful excursions and dining experiences like, walking safaris and peaceful meals in the bush.
Wildflower Farms — Hudson Valley, New York
“In New York, retreats like Wildflower Farms in the Hudson Valley have been beautifully restorative,” Goh tells Bustle. “I especially enjoy escaping upstate, where I can connect peacefully with nature without feeling too far removed from everyday life.” The farm offers many wellness activities, including reiki, sound baths, 3 miles of on-site trails, and a host of daily classes from meditation to forest immersion that will offer the silence you seek.
Portugal continues to top travel wish lists, but the Madeira still has an air of being the road (or, in this case, the coast) less traveled. Nestled in the UNESCO World Heritage site and surrounded by views of the Atlantic Ocean and the Laurisilva Forest, Saccharum offers the ideal middle ground for a silent traveler newbie. With culturally immersive offerings like a Sunday morning farmers market trip and a lunch workshop alongside tai chi and chi kung, a sunrise and breakfast on the mountain experience, and access to the Calhau Beach Club, you can ebb and flow between solitude and impactful connection.
Estelle Manor — Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
“When traveling abroad, I've cherished my time at Estelle Manor in the English countryside,” Goh shares. Located amidst lush greenery, this locale feels like an escape into timeless sophistication and is an ideal destination for relaxation. The luxe manor looks like a page out of Bridgerton, and its wellness offerings are as regal. The manor’s sanctuary, Eynsham Baths, is nearly a 10,000-square-foot Roman-inspired wellness haven. There are thermal baths; a breathwork pool; Indian-, Tibetan-, and Chinese-inspired treatments; and even NAD+ IV infusions.
You’re Back Home. Now What?
Watts says it’s essential to take these experiences with you and integrate what you’ve learned into your daily life — especially because wellness is cumulative.
“Maybe you find some time during the week when you dedicate time to just sitting in silence. Or maybe have a designated tech-free zone in your home,” she says. Taking what you felt worked to recharge is a teachable moment that can find its way into your everyday life with practice.
Since my accidental quietcation, silence feels less scary. In fact, it feels calming even when my mind wanders to things I’m avoiding. I leave my mindfulness moments with more clarity and peace, allowing the quiet into my life at least 20 minutes a day.
Before that trip, there was no way I could actively let myself experience that level of silence. Now, I seek out quietcations. My most recent vacation was a five-week trip through Japan. I spent two of those weeks alone in the mountains with minimal technology — and I had the most magical, restorative time of my life.
