Vacationing at midlife needn’t only involve checking items off a bucket list: It can uplift your spirit as well—which just might make everything else you do and see more meaningful. Read on for ways to heighten the heavenly factor of your next getaway.  

Visit Places of Worship

The architecture of temples, churches, synagogues, and mosques is designed to encourage you to gaze up and go wow. We’ve all heard of and perhaps visited the biggies like St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, Notre-Dame in Paris, and St. Patrick’s in New York, but you’re likely to find similarly impressive houses of the holy wherever you roam. 

Okay, maybe not the Elvis Chapel in Las Vegas, but consider the Byzantine beauty of Istanbul, Turkey’s Hagia Sophia (which has served as a church, a synagogue, and a mosque); the wooden wonder of Norway’s medieval Borgund Stave Church; and Bangkok, Thailand’s Wat Pho temple with its massive reclining Buddha. There’s also the sacred Sri Lankan city of Anuradhapura: It contains 40 square miles of ancient temples and monasteries and is home to the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi—the oldest living planted tree on earth, believed to have originally been a branch of the tree under which the Buddha attained enlightenment. 

Maybe not the Elvis Chapel in Las Vegas, but visiting, say, Turkey’s Hagia Sophia can be a soul-stirring event.

Make yours modern—and closer to home? See the Chapel of the Holy Cross, a modern masterpiece hewn into the towering red rock near Sedona, Arizona, or the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Beth Sholom Synagogue in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania.

Trace Your Roots

So you’ve done 23 and Me; maybe it’s time to take it a literal step further to explore the place of your ancestors. “Visiting your home country carries a profound spiritual significance tied to ancestral connection and roots,” says psychologist Elena M. Rivera, Ph.D., who specializes in dream interpretation and the symbolism behind cultural myths. “This journey back to the home country often becomes a spiritual voyage, offering a unique chance to reconnect with ancestral wisdom, traditions, and heritage. The homeland vibration is a unique energetic frequency that resonates with one’s innate spirit. It is a powerful spiritual conduit that reinforces a sense of belonging, identity, and cultural heritage.”

Seek a Natural High

There’s nothing like communing with nature to help us connect with our higher power. Some folks enjoy a truly spiritual experience simply by walking along an unspoiled shoreline, hiking in the mountains, or camping in the woods—especially off-season, when the serenity of solitude is more accessible. 

From Central America’s rainforests to Illinois’ Starved Rock State Park, nature can be a destination for mindfulness and transformation.

The natural splendor of Central America, with its lush rainforests, tranquil beaches, and mystical mountains, has made it a destination for mindfulness, meditation, holistic healing, and transformation. However, a soul-inspiring, off-the-beaten-path detour can often be incorporated into more cosmopolitan vacations. For instance, Starved Rock State Park, about an hour and a half’s drive from Chicago, boasts jaw-dropping overlooks, canyons, and waterfalls.

Consider a Retreat

Sometimes it takes a total disconnect from regular day-to-day living to get in touch with your deeper self—in other words, a real retreat. Imagine a getaway in a beautiful, secluded part of the world where you can partake in spiritually centered activities or “just be.”

A retreat, like NextTribe’s in Troncones, Mexico, can be a terrific way to find your spiritual center.

NextTribe, though no slouch in the adventures department, also runs such retreats—with a women-only vibe that makes them unforgettable bonding experiences, for besties and new friends alike. Coming up in March 2025 is our Idyllic Beach Retreat in Playa Troncones, Mexico, where the focus on yoga, meditation, and relaxation unfolds on one of the Pacific’s best beaches. 

Find Some Soul Time on a Hectic Holiday

We get it: Vacations can be busy, especially when traveling with family or even a romantic partner. And if you’re the one who does most of the packing and planning, the scheduling and shuttling of folks to events and departures on time, a week away can be stressful. So treat yourself to a bit of soul-soothing in your destination city. Research a nearby meditation session or sound bath (an immersive experience of deep sound vibrations to balance your chakras and energy flow, according to the Cleveland Clinic). Even a massage at the hotel spa or a yoga class at a local studio can work wonders—after all, there’s no place like Ommmmm!