6 Bedding Tips for Hotel-Quality Comfort at Home
If you want to enjoy a five-star sleep experience at home, find inspiration in how your favorite hotels make their beds so comfortable. From the fabrics you choose to how they're arranged, every layer counts. Follow these six simple steps to recreate the look and feel of a hotel bed at home.
1) Choose Cotton Percale Bedding for That Crisp Hotel Feel
The first step to five-star comfort is knowing what bedding hotels use. Crisp, cool cotton percale is the most popular material for hotel bed sheets and duvet covers. The classic cotton weave is lightweight, breathable, and versatile, so its comfortable all year for warm and cold sleepers alike. Percale retains its crisp hand but gets softer each time it’s washed, and its matte finish makes any bed look more sophisticated.
2) Add Inviting, Indulgent Hotel-Style Bedding Layers
Most hotel beds are styled with layers upon layers of high-quality linens. This makes it easy for guests to customize their comfort, whether they sleep cold or prefer to skip bulky bedding. To achieve the same result, top your sheet set with at least one extra layer in addition to a duvet cover and insert. Add a quilted coverlet, an oversized cotton throw, or a cozy wool blanket. If you are using more than one blanket, place the lightest layer beneath the duvet cover and the warmest on top so you can easily adjust in the middle of the night.
3) Don't Skip the Duvet Cover
For practicality’s sake, many hotels use two flat sheets on either side of a comforter. For a clean look and lower maintenance, we recommend a duvet cover around your insert instead. This classic combination of a lofty insert and white duvet cover creates hotel-inspired comfort and style at home, without the extra work.
4) Consider a Mattress Topper for a Softer Bed
Even the most comfortable mattresses don’t often offer the same, sinking-into-a-cloud feeling you experience when you sit or lie on a hotel bed. Make your bed feel softer by adding a featherbed filled with high-quality down and feathers or hypoallergenic down alternative. These extra-thick toppers go between your fitted sheet and the mattress, providing the perfect balance of softness and support.
5) Pile on Plenty of Fluffy Pillows
A mountain of lofty, luxurious pillows is the finishing touch for any hotel-inspired bed. Choose bed pillows in the same size but a variety of firmness levels—soft, medium, or extra firm—so you can customize your comfort to suit your sleeping preferences. A single decorative pillow in a bold color or subtle hue adds a pop of contrast and hotel-inspired dimension to your final bedding design.
6) Think Beyond Bedding
Bedding sets the foundation for hotel-inspired comfort, but other details come into play when it’s time to sleep. Follow these tips to recreate the hotel experience in your own home.
- Create a Bedroom Environment Conducive to Sleep: A suitable sleeping environment is made up of more than just a bed. Set your thermostat to an appropriate temperature, and consider adding blackout curtains, a noise machine, and masks or other sleep accessories that promote effective rest.
- Design a Dreamy Bedtime Routine: A good night’s sleep begins with the right bedtime routine. Set aside space for meditation and breathing exercises, unwind with a long soak in the tub, or catch up on your reading list. However you prefer to relax before bed, keep it consistent so your body and mind recognize the signals for sleep.
Hotel-quality comfort comes down to a bed made with sumptuous layers of the finest linens you can find. Follow our tips to recreate the five-star sleep experience at home, and find other bedding advice and ideas in our other Guides.