The Great Bathroom Door Disappearance: A Growing Revolt in Hotels and Restaurants
In an era where privacy is increasingly prized, a surprising trend is sweeping the hospitality industry: the disappearance of proper bathroom doors in hotels and restaurants. This shift has sparked a vocal online movement, with travelers and diners demanding a return to traditional, opaque doors that offer genuine seclusion.
The Rise of the #BringBackDoors Campaign
It all began when researcher John Scott-Railton took to social media in November 2025 to lament the decline of hotel toilet privacy. His post quickly went viral, resonating with thousands who shared similar frustrations. One user, Mark Valorian, highlighted the extreme case of The W in London, where a shower opens directly into the main room, and the toilet is in a separate area accessible from the living space, leaving no private spot to dress. Another, Tom Fowler, bluntly stated, "It’s neither hip nor happening to watch the fragile outline of your partner sh*tting."
This conversation led to the discovery of a website called Bring Back Doors, created by a freelance digital marketer known only as Sadie. Like a modern-day Batman focused on toilet privacy rather than Gotham's safety, Sadie has built a platform dedicated to cataloging hotels worldwide with proper, closing, opaque bathroom doors. The site features sections for "Hotels With Bathroom Doors" and "Hotels With No Bathroom Doors," allowing users to plan trips accordingly. Sadie has even expanded her efforts to social media channels, adding visual elements to highlight the issue.
Why Are Doors Disappearing?
According to Sadie, the primary driver behind this trend is money. "Hotels have limited space to work with, but want rooms that feel larger and can be rented for higher prices," she explains. "Removing the bathroom walls gives them more space to trick consumers’ minds into thinking they have a larger room." However, interiors expert Deirdre McGettrick, founder of ufurnish.com, offers a different perspective. While she acknowledges the inconvenience, she believes it's more about design innovation than cost-cutting. "People are wanting to push boundaries and win awards," McGettrick shares. "They want to do something different and sometimes that means doing something that doesn’t work. It’s about design over function—they’re trying to be funky and trendy to stand out." She also notes that many doorless designs involve glass, which can increase cleaning costs and housekeeping implications.
Real-World Examples and Public Backlash
The trend isn't confined to hotels. In London, Gloria, a popular Italian restaurant, has faced criticism for its toilets with one-way glass doors, where occupants can see others washing their hands, potentially causing stage fright. Similarly, Indian restaurant Dishoom has been called out for wooden-slatted doors that allow too much visibility. Sadie's own worst experiences include the Holmes Hotel in London and the Boutique Hotel Vivenda Miranda in Lagos, Portugal, where a bathroom window offered a view into the shower from the hotel gardens.
Content creator Kendra Gaylord, who discusses architecture in pop culture, has also weighed in. Her video, "What happened to bathroom doors," has garnered nearly 100,000 views, with comments filled with horror stories from work conferences and shared accommodations. "Comments include horror stories of work conferences where people had to share these doorless hotels with coworkers," Kendra notes. "There were stories of people getting sick and having everyone in the room see, or people woken up anytime someone uses the bathroom because the glass bathroom walls means light pours across the room."
The Demand for Change
Sadie's website has seen over 60,000 visitors in just one month, with nearly 300 hotels already listed and more added daily. Her ideal bathroom is straightforward: "A bathroom door that touches the ceiling, floor, and both walls. No surprise windows, a non-rainfall shower head, counter space, and adequate hooks for towels. Essentially, my dream hotel bathroom is the type that would have been standard in hotels 10-15 years ago."
As the #bringbackdoors movement gains momentum, it highlights a broader clash between modern design aesthetics and practical functionality. Whether driven by cost savings or a desire for innovation, the removal of bathroom doors is proving unpopular with a significant portion of the public, who simply want to pee in peace.
