Late Checkout: The Best Trip You’ll Ever Take Is With Your Best Friend

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There is a particular kind of trip that has nothing to do with the destination and everything to do with who you take with you. The destination just has to be good enough to get out of the way–to hold the two of you, unhurried, without distraction, in a place beautiful enough to make you both exhale at the same time.

Sensei at Zadún, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve in Los Cabos, Mexico, is more than good enough. It is extraordinary. But what I’ll remember most about this trip is not the 93 sleep score I logged on my Oura ring, or the whale we spotted from the beach, or the stone cave entrance to the spa, or even the chocolate we ground by hand with volcanic stone. What I’ll remember is my best friend since we were one year old, across the table, by the fire, in the sauna, at the telescope, laughing.

We’ve made it a ritual: one girl’s trip a year, just the two of us, no kids, no responsibilities, full permission to be humans again. For 2026, we chose wisely.

I’ll also confess: I set the bar almost impossibly high. Having previously visited Sensei Porcupine Creek in Rancho Mirage, a property I will say, without a single reservation, is among the greatest hotels I have ever set foot in, I was cautiously optimistic about what a second Sensei experience could deliver. Particularly one that had only opened its wellness doors in early 2025. And yet, here I am, back home, fully reformed, already scheming my return.

Sensei at Zadún is not just a hotel. It is a place designed, almost conspiratorially, to give you back to yourself and to the people you love most.

Getting There: Smoother Than You’d Expect

A word to anyone who has been quietly nervous about traveling to Mexico right now: the arrival experience at Los Cabos genuinely puts those fears to rest. We flew into SJD, breezed through the QUEST line with zero wait, and were met immediately by our driver – name and photo sent in advance, itinerary already in hand. That small touch matters. It feels like the hospitality begins the moment you land, not when you check in.

The drive to the property is 40 minutes. We barely noticed and were mid-conversation before the car door closed, which, if you know anything about a friendship that goes back to infancy, is exactly how it always goes.

The Property: Where the Desert Meets the Sea

Zadún is the first Ritz-Carlton Reserve in Mexico, and it earns every distinction it has been given: Two Michelin Keys, Forbes Five-Star hotel and spa, AAA Five Diamond, and all of it entirely warranted. Set into the natural slopes of the dunes above the Sea of Cortés in Puerto Los Cabos, the property’s layout is one of its quiet masterstrokes. Everything, including the spa, restaurants, pools, and beach, radiates outward from the heart of the resort, all of it oriented toward the water. Navigating it never feels like a chore; it feels like a gentle, ocean-facing stroll every single time.

Upon arrival, we were assigned our Tosoani – Zadún’s term for your personal butler – Edwin, who gave us a warm, unhurried tour of the property. We were put on a text thread with him immediately, which meant everything from room requests to restaurant reservations was handled seamlessly throughout the stay. The staff here is extraordinary across the board. Warm without being performative, helpful without hovering. Mexican hospitality, as anyone who has experienced it knows, is genuinely in a class of its own.

The Room: A Sleep Sanctuary

Our suite was spacious, serene, and exceptionally private – with a private plunge pool outdoors, both an outdoor and an indoor shower, and a soaking tub. Blackout blinds. An exceptionally comfortable bed. Absolute quiet.

I logged a 93 on my Oura ring the second night. I will let that speak for itself.

The second morning, we were gently awoken not by an alarm but by birds chirping just outside our door. Which, truly, is the only acceptable way to wake up.

The Sensei Difference: Intentional from the Start

Here is where Zadún diverges from a very good resort and becomes more like a life experience. The Sensei wellness brand – co-founded by Oracle’s Larry Ellison and renowned physician Dr. David Agus – is built around three pillars: Move, Nourish, and Rest. Everything on the property, from the fitness classes to the restaurant menus to the spa treatments, ladders up to these three themes with a quiet consistency that you begin to feel in your body before you consciously register it.

On our first evening, before dinner, Kara and I each sat down for private, one-on-one intention-setting sessions with our Sensei guides. I want to underscore the word private here. These are intimate, unhurried conversations, more therapy sessions than hotel check-ins, where you articulate what you actually want to get out of your time here. For me, part of my intention was re-engaging with my body after having two children in four years. For Kara, it was reconnecting with her fitness. But underneath both of those intentions was something simpler and harder to say out loud: we just wanted to be here, together, without the noise. The fact that Sensei asked us the question at all and then built our itinerary around the answers is not something I take lightly. This trip was never about the Guided Wellness Experience itinerary. It was about us. Zadún understood that without us having to explain it.

Day One: El Barrio Taco Night & a Very Good Sleep Score

After settling in and exploring the property, we made our way down to the beach, where, delightfully, there is a small bell you ring if you spot a whale. We were at the tail end of whale season, and we were told not to get our hopes up (more on that the next morning)

Dinner that first night was at El Barrio, the resort’s street-style Mexican restaurant, on what happened to be Taco Night, a weekly event with live music that was genuinely transporting. Local artisans set up shop along the perimeter: we came home with felted letter decorations for our kids’ bedroom doors and sweet little animal figurines. We ordered steak, chicken, and mushroom tacos alongside crab, had some beautifully crafted mocktails, and lingered far longer than intended. The kind of dinner that resets your mood entirely.

Day Two: Move, Nourish, Rest (In That Order)

We were up for a 10 AM core strength class led by Brenda, one of Sensei’s on-property wellness experts. An hour of balance and core engagement work, gentle enough to ease into, effective enough to feel it the next day.

After a breakfast of fresh eggs, avocado, sourdough toast, berries, and, critically, both coffee and matcha at El Barrio, we headed into our individual one-on-one sessions. Mine was a mindfulness consultation with my Sensei, Nicolás, and I will say, plainly: it went places I didn’t expect. We talked through real things happening in my life, including stress patterns, emotional load, and the mental weight of early motherhood. He gave me concrete tools for managing it all that I genuinely plan to implement at home. Kara, meanwhile, worked with Brenda on a private movement and strength session tailored specifically to her goals. Brenda walked her through exercises with careful attention to form, posture, and knee protection – the kind of coaching you’d normally have to seek out and schedule separately. Kara left feeling more equipped and confident navigating a gym on her own. That is not a small thing.

Mid-afternoon was pool time. Zadún has two adults-only pools and one family pool, all overlooking the ocean, and the staff ensured we had shade before we even thought to ask. We ordered guacamole and fresh salads with pear, grilled chicken, and tomatoes, read our books, and did absolutely nothing for several glorious hours.

The Spa: A Sensory Experience You Will Think About for Weeks

The entrance to the Sensei spa deserves its own paragraph. You pass through a stone cave, stepping across smooth rocks above a shallow stream, with fire pits set into the walls on either side. It is dramatic in the best possible way like arriving at a hotel within a hotel. The energy shifts. The temperature shifts. It feels tropical, like Hawaii, actually, which is very much by design. (Sensei’s flagship property is on Lānaʻi, and the vibe carries.)

I had the Cacao Body Scrub and Massage: a full-body cacao scrub, followed by a rinse, then the rest of an hour-long treatment that was genuinely one of the most aromatic, restorative experiences I have had. Warm oil, long strokes, intentional pressure, and stretching are woven throughout. Deeply sensory.

Kara had the Invigorating Stretch and Pulse massage, a 90-minute treatment that began with the lighting of incense and a clearing of her energy. Her feet were washed with warm water, rose oil was applied, and a gentle caress was given before she moved to the massage table. Beneath the table: an assortment of crystals and precious stones, plus red light therapy to support her body’s recovery. The treatment incorporated a poultice – a small satchel packed with lavender, chamomile, and herbs, tied off and used to massage sore muscles, apply heat, and work pressure points with soothing strokes to release tension. After the massage portion, she flipped onto her back for a rosemary water scalp massage, finished with a cold gua sha lymphatic drainage sequence using precious stones. She floated out. Both treatments also incorporated gentle stretching throughout.

After our treatments, we spent time at the spa’s private heated pool, by far the most serene body of water on the property. There is a sauna, a cold plunge, and a jacuzzi. We did the full hot-cold circuit and felt, quite sincerely, like entirely different people.

That evening, we dressed for dinner at Humo, the resort’s wood-fired, Latin American-inspired restaurant. Kara had fish. I had steak. Both were exceptional. We went to bed full and deeply, unreasonably happy.

A Note on Safety & Logistics

For anyone planning a girls’ trip and wondering about traveling to Mexico right now, the care infrastructure at Zadún genuinely makes this a worry-free destination. Pickup coordination is precise and personal. The property is gated and private. Everyone who interacts with you is warm, professional, and anticipatory of your needs before you’ve voiced them. We felt completely safe and looked after from the moment our wheels touched the tarmac.

Day Three: The Wellness Philosophy, a Walk on the Beach, and a Chocolate History Lesson

Day three began the way all good days should: another morning workout in the property’s sleek, fully equipped gym – treadmills and stair climbers overlooking the ocean and outdoor pool – followed by breakfast with a purpose. We sat down with Lina, Zadún’s Wellness Director, over oatmeal with chia seeds and berries and yogurt with granola (and, critically, a matcha with protein for Kara that deserves its own mention).

This is not a boot camp. It is not a clinical detox or a rigid protocol with a 6 AM mandatory hike. Lina was emphatic about this: the philosophy is about meeting people where they are. You can have a margarita. You can sleep in. The goal is not restriction – it’s genuine nourishment of the mind, body, and soul, in whatever form that takes for you. I think it’s worth knowing that going in. If you arrive expecting a punishing wellness retreat, you’ll be pleasantly surprised. If you arrive expecting pure indulgence with no substance, you’ll be challenged in the best possible way. It is, as I’d describe it, the most approachable wellness experience I’ve encountered – rigorous in its philosophy, gentle in its execution.

After breakfast, we found ourselves back at the pool, reading, doing nothing, watching the ocean. Then we walked down to the beach – not swimmable due to the waves, but strikingly beautiful regardless. White sand, expansive views of the Sea of Cortés, total peace.

Then came one of the more quietly memorable experiences of the trip: the Sensory Eating Experience. We were guided through a four-course lunch – hummus with crudité and pita, a spinach salad with mushrooms and blackberries, chicken quesadillas, and a fresh fruit platter to close – with a focus not on what we were eating, but how. Our guide walked us through the art of actually being present with a meal: taking a few slow breaths before picking up your fork. Eating with your non-dominant hand to force intentionality and slow you down (yes, it works; yes, it feels bizarre at first; yes, you will do it again). Holding space for gratitude – for the people who grew the food, who designed the plates, who touched every point of preparation before it reached your table. And a framework I’m taking straight home: try to eat when you’re at a 3 on a hunger scale of 1 to 10, and stop around a 7. Never ravenous, never stuffed. Just present, and satisfied.

I have small children. I eat standing up at a kitchen counter approximately four nights a week. This session was a gift.

The afternoon brought our History of Cacao experience — one of the most genuinely fascinating hours I’ve spent anywhere. Zadún is home to the only Jean-Michel Cousteau Ambassadors of the Environment program in Mexico, and we were led by two of their experts: Alejandra, a biologist, and Jair, a marine biologist. Together, they walked us through the full arc of cacao’s history – from Montezuma, who reportedly consumed 40 cups of pure cacao daily (and was, by all accounts, extraordinarily muscular, powerful, and very interested in its aphrodisiac qualities), to the Spanish conquest under Cortez, who brought cacao back to Europe and catalyzed its global domestication.

But we didn’t just hear about it. We did it. We roasted cacao beans, pressed out the moisture, peeled them by hand, mashed them with volcanic stone using a mortar and pestle, worked the paste until the oils released, and poured the result into a warm cacao drink. We tasted everything from pure white chocolate to dark. It was part history lesson, part cooking class, part anthropology deep-dive –and completely unlike anything I’ve done at a hotel.

At the close, Alejandra and Jair presented us each with a hand-stamped bookmark, our initials — L and K — pressed into it. A small thing, and the most thoughtful parting gift. Every book I read for the foreseeable future will now have a little piece of Los Cabos tucked inside it.

That evening, we stumbled upon a stargazing session on our way to dinner — one of those happy accidents that ends up being the thing you talk about most. The Ambassadors of the Environment were there with a telescope, and we saw Jupiter and all four of its moons, Venus, and a sweep of constellations I couldn’t name but will not forget.

Dinner was at Equis, the resort’s beachfront restaurant, and it was a revelation. We hadn’t planned to eat much after the sensory-eating lunch, yet we ended up lingering through three courses of beautifully fresh Peruvian-inspired food, fire-grilled right there. The energy was young, hip, and fun — completely different from El Barrio’s festive taco-night warmth or Humo’s more elevated dining atmosphere. All three restaurants are genuinely distinct in vibe, cuisine, and feeling. The music across all three nights was exceptional and purposefully varied.

After dinner, we found the fire pits and made s’mores. Which sounds simple. But sitting there, by the fire, connecting — no phones, no kids, no to-do lists, nowhere to be — was the whole point of the trip. We said that out loud to each other. And we got it.

Day Four: The Recap, and What We’re Taking Home

We checked out on the fourth morning, and before we left, we sat down with Monse for our closing session — a recap of the intentions we’d set on Day 1 and everything we’d learned along the way. It was genuinely useful, not performative. A structured moment to take stock before re-entering the world: what tools did we actually gain? What are we committing to bringing back into our everyday lives? Sensei deliberately builds this into the experience, and it shows. You don’t just drift back to the airport with a vague sense of well-being. You leave with a list.

One note for anyone booking: request a late checkout. We wished we had.

The Bottom Line

Here is what I know about a great girls’ trip: the hotel has to disappear. It has to be so seamless, so beautiful, so well-held, that you stop noticing it and start noticing each other. Zadún did that. Completely.

We came home with a sleep score we’re still talking about, a sensory eating practice we’re actually using, a core strength class we’ve both bookmarked to find at home, a non-dominant hand eating habit that our families are already finding annoying, and a bookmark with our initials that will sit in every novel we read this year. We came home with tools. But more than that, we came home having genuinely reconnected — to ourselves, and to each other — in a way that the ordinary rhythms of life with small children and full schedules rarely allow.

The Sensei program is the rare wellness offering that manages to be genuinely substantive without being intimidating – evidence-led, personalized, and delivered by a team as warm as they are credentialed. The Ritz-Carlton infrastructure underneath it means nothing falls through the cracks: the rooms are exceptional, the food is differentiated and excellent across all three restaurants, and Nicolas and the entire team execute a level of service that you feel before you can articulate it.

We hope to come back. That’s the truest review I can give.

Go with your best friend. Set your intention. Ring the whale bell. You will not regret it.