Why Equinox Hotels Is Investing In Sleep As The Future Of Hospitality 

Equinox’s hospitality arm is serious about sleep, investing in new tech, research and equipment as part of a partnership with Dr. Matthew Walker 

As it looks to reinvent the luxury hospitality experience, Equinox Hotels is going back to the basics  – a good night’s sleep. 

Earlier this year, the Equinox-owned hospitality brand partnered with Dr. Matthew Walker, a popular sleep scientist and professor of neuroscience at the University of California, Berkeley, to develop new sleep-focused initiatives at its hotels. The partnership includes the Equinox Hotels Sleep Lab, an immersive living experiment within Equinox’s New York City hotel that will allow guests to engage with cutting-edge sleep tech and participate in studies with Dr. Walker. 

While more details are forthcoming on the Lab’s rollout, Dr. Walker and Equinox Hotels CEO Chris Norton recently took the stage at the brand’s second annual Global Sleep Symposium to make their case for why sleep might just be the future of hospitality. 

Norton, who’s been in the hospitality industry for over three decades, believes guests will come to place a bigger emphasis on sleep as part of their hotel experience – perhaps even placing quality shut-eye over other perks like a good restaurant or fitness center. 

“My prediction is that people will (become) much more educated, and they will start judging their hotel stay on the real quality of sleep. …. That’s going to be the future judgment of a good night’s stay, at all budget levels,” Norton said at the Symposium.

Part of Equinox Hotels’ investment includes new sleep-focused initiatives – the brand currently offers an “Art + Science of Sleep” program that includes morning and nighttime rituals designed to optimize guests’ circadian rhythms, sleep-driven spa experiences and recovery-focused amenities.

But Equinox is also investing in more foundational elements of the traditional hotel experience, including premium bedding and other in-room features designed to promote rest and relaxation. 

Norton says Equinox budgets around three times as much as other luxury hotel brands on mattresses –all in the name of quality sleep. 

“You would be surprised at how many of the luxury brands, which I will not name, will buy the cheapest mattress possible,” he said. 

Norton says Equinox Hotels is investing in additional elements that are “not seen but felt.” That includes things like blackout shades, noise-reduction materials and precise temperature control inside rooms. 

“You don’t see it when you walk in the room, but you feel it when you wake up in the morning,” he said.

Dr. Walker, one of the biggest names in the burgeoning sleep industry, praised Equinox for making a serious commitment to sleep that goes beyond a “superficial level.”

“The more that I spoke with the team (including Norton and Equinox Hotels brand director Katie Tardif), it was very clear that they were very serious … and they were willing to ask hard questions,” Dr. Walker said. 

Equinox Hotels will share more details on the experiences its hotel guests expect inside Sleep Lab rooms soon, but for now, Dr. Walker is excited about the future as more people embrace the idea that sleep is critical to the travel experience. 

“The thing that you do for the greatest amount of time in the hotel that you booked is sleep,” he noted. “And yet, so few hotel brands had actually figured that out. … Finally, there was a voice that wanted to do that.”

Walker noted that while the luxury services on offer at Equinox Hotels might not be accessible to most Americans in the near term, he’s encouraged that a major hospitality player is taking an interest in sleep. In time, he believes this will be good for the entire sleep industry. 

“I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of copycatting, because people are getting very excited about it,” Walker said of the Sleep Lab.

Sleep Becomes Big Business

Equinox isn’t the only brand that’s investing in quality shut-eye – helping people sleep better, for longer is becoming big business. 

Eight Sleep, one of the leaders in the sleep tech vertical, just launched its Pod 5. The AI-powered mattress cover and integrated tech system offers temperature control that adapts to your biometric signals during the night, along with real-time health monitoring, personalized soundscapes and vibrational alarms.  

Somnee, a brand co-founded by Dr. Walker, makes a headband that uses EEG sensors to help people fall asleep faster, sleep longer and improve their sleep quality. One of several new sleep wearables to enter the market, the NBA recently selected Somnee to take part in NBA Launchpad, a “Shark Tank”-style program that puts a spotlight on emerging technologies. 

Somnee CEO Tim Rosas, a former executive at Fitbit, sees parallels between the rise of fitness trackers and the emergence of sleep technology. 

“It kind of reminds me of when we started at Fitbit,” Rosas recalled. “Then, sitting was the new smoking. Now, not sleeping is the new smoking.”

Want to hear more about the future of hospitality? Equinox Hotels Global Head of Development Shafi Syed will be speaking at the ATN Innovation Summit 2025, a can’t-miss, two-day event this June 17-18 in NYC bringing together the top names in fitness and wellness. To get your ticket or learn more, click here.

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