Like many things ephemeral, hotel interiors are subject to trends. One current trend in bathroom fixtures inspired one man to film what he called a public service announcement—but read more like an indictment of the entire industry’s current approach to bathroom design.
His complaint concerned a shower fitted with one fixed pane of glass and no door. He stepped in fully clothed to demonstrate that the panel doesn’t even cover his entire body, and how that necessarily means water on the floor.
Raeon’s (@raeonartez) post has so far drawn more than 160,500 views. “This is a PSA announcement for all the hotels,” he says. “This has got to stop.”
The video shows a walk-in shower with a single frameless panel fixed to one side, leaving part of the shower exposed to the room. He points at the floor. “You got water splashing all out here,” he says. “I guess they like just throw a towel down.”
Then he demonstrates. “I really need y’all to see what I’m talking about,” he says, stepping in and turning to show which parts of him the glass does not reach. “Look at this. Look at it.”
Asked in the comments whether it was a Residence Inn by Marriott, Raeon replied in the affirmative.
The Draught Bothered People More Than The Puddle
The most consistent gripe in the comments was not about water, but air. “Hate it. Water be everywhere. The cold air hitting you. It’s such a lazy concept,” wrote jazlosa, in a comment that itself drew more than 5,300 likes. Downtally added an annoying detail: “And whatever side ain’t under the water is freezing.”
Dimekeysa said the same thing about her own most recent stay at a Marriott. “They all like this,” she wrote. “How am I hot and cold at the same time in this shower?”
Others pointed to smaller irritations. “How am I supposed to turn it on and not get my hair wet?” asked thelaurensimone. Couldnttyper griped, “Some of them even tell you not to place towels on the ground.”
One commenter said staff are aware of the issue. “Working front desk for Marriott, this was the number one complaint I always got,” wrote abbmatic. A commenter who said they were a Hilton employee said that this design is not yet universal in the industry: “Hilton here, we still have shower curtains.”
Why Hotels Keep Building Them
The design is deliberate, and it is very much for the benefit of the hotel, not the guest. Your Mileage May Vary ran an explainer last month which told readers that a single fixed pane costs less to install than a sliding door with tracks, needs less maintenance, takes less time to clean, and avoids the mildew and soap scum that come with a curtain. It also makes a small bathroom appear larger.
It also addresses space constraints, according to the same report. A hinged shower door has to swing outward for safety, so that someone who falls inside can still be reached, and in a compact hotel bathroom there is often nowhere for it to swing without hitting the vanity or the toilet.
Accessibility rules are another factor. The US Access Board’s guidance requires a portion of accessible guest rooms in lodging with more than 50 rooms to have a roll-in shower with a folding seat, and specifies that enclosures “cannot obstruct controls, faucets, shower spray units or transfer to seats.” Those requirements apply to accessible rooms rather than every room, but this standard also describes the shower design Raeon is objecting to, suggesting that some hotels or chains may have opted to roll it out across every room.
Seanmiffinjames6 offered a more cynical, albeit unverified theory, saying he had sat in on a hotel-brand meeting about it in 2014. “That specific design is used to save money on construction and encourage shorter showers,” he wrote.
A Trend That Has Already Produced A Database
Raeon’s shower is one part of a broader abandonment of enclosed hotel bathrooms, which has in turn generated organized pushback. CNN reported in February on Bringbackdoors.com, a database of hotels sorted by how much bathroom privacy they actually provide, launched late last year by Sadie Lowell, an American marketer based in Europe. She started it after checking into a London room with her father and finding no bathroom door.
“This is beyond my wildest imagination of what this website would actually become,” Lowell told the network. “The traction it’s gaining is telling me, yes, a lot of people care about this.”
Raeon’s commenters, meanwhile, raised further gripes with current hotel bathroom design trends. Hiimgigi96 wrote: “And while they’re at it, get rid of the frosted glass toilet room. I don’t need everyone staying in the room to faintly see me sitting on the toilet.” Aliciarenee___ added, “The barn doors on the bathrooms too. Hate it.”
BoardingArea reached out to Raeon by email and to Marriott for comment. We’ll be sure to update this if either responds.
@raeonartez I don’t ever wanna take a shower is this again 🙄
♬ original sound – RAEON
