Quality towels can add a great deal to your pleasure in a hotel stay. If you want to purchase hotel quality towels for your home or your AirBNB, dimensions, color and weight will help you make the best purchase.
Standard Dimensions
Washcloths
Standard hotel washcloths are square, either 12 or 13 inches on each side. As a general rule, these items are square. Rounded corner washcloths may be a bit more luxurious, but they will fray and fall apart faster.
Hand Towels
Hand towels are generally between 15 and 18 inches wide and 27 to 32 inches long. Because hand towels tend to get a lot of use, make sure you have a towel bar that allows you to fully spread out your hand towels so they don’t stay folded or bunched; mildew is a risk when towels stay wet.
Bath Mats
A bath mat is generally between 20 and 22 inches wide and between 30 and 36 inches long. These absorbent items are generally of a stiffer, tighter weave than a soft and fluffy towel.
If you are picking up bath mats for your guest bath or your AirBNB, make sure you put them on the floor and make sure your guests can open the door and clear the mat.
Additionally, consider adding a flat towel bar that can be an easy and obvious storage site to hang the bath mat; left bunched up on the floor, it can be damaged by foot traffic and moisture.
Bath Towels
A bath towel can be as small as 20 inches by 40 inches or as large as 30 inches by 60 inches. If your bathroom towel hanging and storage space is very small, the smaller bath towels may be your best option.
If so, consider adding a terrycloth robe for your guests with a hook outside the bath so the robe can dry fully. Go ahead and invest in the heaviest weight bath towel you can get for efficient drying.
Bath Sheets
A bath sheet is often used as a wraparound towel. These are generally 35 inches wide and from 66 to 70 inches long. A bath sheet will generally be a lighter weight towel.
If you have a pool or offer a spa for guests and renters, make sure you also get colored bath sheets to reduce the risk that your crisp white towels will end up poolside.
Weight Considerations
Towels are weighed in pounds per dozen. Twelve lightweight bath towels will weigh less than 10 pounds per dozen. A dozen medium weight towels will be between 10 and 15 pounds and 12 heavy weight towels will weigh between 15 and 20 pounds.
Heavier towels are more luxurious and offer more efficient drying after a bath. Once they capture all that water, it will take time to get the towel to dry. If your bathroom doesn’t have an adequate vent fan, or if your weather conditions are especially humid, you can quickly end up with mildewed towels.
Hotel bath towels can be as small as 20 inches by 40 inches or as large as 30 inches by 60 inches.
It’s also a good idea to take a look at your washing machine and dryer capacities. Luxury towels will quickly lose their luster if you have to lug them to the laundromat each time they get used; if they overload your washing machine or dryer and cause damage to this versatile tools, they will lose their shine for you even faster.
Heavier towels will also take more dryer time to fully dry. If your electric bills are already high, dryer time will increase them.
Finally, take a look at your laundry products. If you are tired of your personal towels because they are not terribly absorbent, you may be able to boost their absorbing mojo by reducing liquid fabric softener use.
Liquid fabric softener actually coats your clothing and linens with a light layer of silicone oil. Oiled towels will slide over wet skin rather than absorbing water off your skin.
Check out: How big are hotel beds?
White Vs. Color
Hotel towels are white. Pool and hot tub towels are colored. If you’re not keen on white towels in your guest room or rental space, make sure that your towels match one another.
If you have many towels in a variety of colors, you can change things up with a patterned shower curtain that incorporates all those colors. Do your best to coordinate all the fabrics in your bath to match for the comfort of your guests.
A matched set will reduce the risk of people treating your towels poorly.
