Shared bathrooms in hotels?

I'm a woman, and I almost always stay in places with shared bathrooms. The only time it was a problem was the morning that I really, really needed to use the toilet and the only available bathroom was in use! But I survived.

Figure one shared bathroom for every 2 or 3 bedrooms. The only "privacy" issue is whether you'll run into anyone else in the hallway as you go to and fro, and you're not going to be walking down the hall naked anyway, are you?

I've done a bathroom down the hall many times. It's like staying with friends or relatives. Most of the time I don't notice other people at all, either I'm up and out early or I have the bathroom to myself. You almost always have a sink in your room for the majority of your morning/evening routine.

Pension and B&B owners regularly tell me I'm a great guest. Why? Because I clean up after myself. When I use the shower, I wipe up behind myself so it's neat for the person behind me. When I use the toilet, I use the brush to clean up the toilet after I'm done (often necessary due to water usage and pressure in Europe).

Hello Salsachica. What hotel, at what city and country, are you thinking about ?

Lucerne 1 night and Venice 2 nights Pensione Guerrato

I dont have the slightest problem with shared/down the hall bathrooms.

As I'm enjoying that "wee bit pricier than usual" bottle of wine in a great Italian trattoria, or ordering from the ala carte menu instead of the prixe fixe....or even taking a cab to/from the airport instead of public transit...I remind myself that these little luxuries come free of charge courtesy of sharing a bathroom

Only had the experience once, in Poland. It was a tad more inconvenient than having a private bathroom, but the shower and toilet stalls were set up in such a manner that there was barely any loss of privacy.

@ Larson - exactly what I was thinking. A little waiting or sharing so I can splurge on other things is not a bad thing. :-)

We've done the shared bathroom at times, no big deal. Don't forget your travel slippers!

I used a shared bathroom in Zermatt. It was always clean and absolutely no problem.

It's interesting to me that all of the responders so far are men. I stayed in a couple of B&B's in Ireland in 2002 that had shared bathrooms. It wasn't too bad, although waiting for the shower did feel a bit like being back in the dorms in college. And in one place I stayed the bathroom was a floor down from my room, trips in the middle of the night were a bit of a pain. I think I would just make sure the shared facilities are close to your room.

We have had shared bathrooms many times because we like to stay in "zimmers". As a previous poster said, there is a sink with towels in your room. The bathrooms are generally spotless. Our hostess will often go in afterwards and wipe everything down--they are meticulous. I actually don't remember ever waiting to get into a bathroom. Have fun on your trip!

Thanks Erika! I needed a female's input on this one. Travel slippers and possibly those bleach wipes will be in our bags! :-)

I was told that in PG (Venice) the bathroom is right in front of our double room.

No plans of streaking while in Europe :-)

Typically are there places to hang/place your dry clothes? Do they provide towels and or/robe? Or you bring all your own? I guess each hotel is different and i imagine higher end hotels (5*) may provide the robe.

I too have stayed in hotels with share bathrooms. Often you're sharing with only one or two other rooms. The only time I had to wait was when I was staying in the same hotel with my folks and I had to wait for my dad--just like home! I have a very light weight robe that I take with me for treks to bathrooms. My dad used to say that rain coat would serve the same purpose in a pinch. I've never seen a robe in any of the hotels with share bathrooms. You could always ask about that and ask how many rooms share the facilities.

Pam

I prefer private facilities but have stayed in lodgings both in Europe and in the U.S. with a shared bathroom arrangement and haven’t had an issue. Some had sinks in rooms, and some didn’t. None had robes…all had towels, soap, and shampoo (but even private facility rooms may not provide soap and shampoo). Just wear your clothes coming and going. Most had two rooms sharing, some had more. You can strategize your showering time so that you’re in very early in the a.m. or very late in the p.m. to avoid congestion. Still, you’re unlikely to have a jammed bathroom. Cleanliness hasn’t been an issue for us. I was just in San Francisco a couple of weeks ago in a small, European–style hotel and shared a bathroom with one other room…no problem. Your room rate is typically quite a bit cheaper when you opt for shared facilities. The savings can certainly make up for any perceived inconvenience, especially when you’re visiting an expensive city. I say go for it.

In Italy, in an old hotel, a "Private bath" could be less pleasant than a "shared bath". The "Private Bath" could be a rinky dink shower (narrow hose) in a small stall that was put in the small room. There would be wet vapor from the warm water, in the room. Water from the shower could flow out onto the floor in the room. Water could spray out from a place that you did not expect water to spray out from, causing your clothes and towells to be wet. Many old buildings in Italy have improvised plumbing. I experienced all of that at hotels and B & Bs that were good in other aspects, in Italy. An expensive hotel in Venice could have an unpleasant shower and problematic plumbing.

Thanks everyone!

I've booked 4 of 6 of my accomodations and 2 are shared bathrooms. Based on your comments, I'm not too worried about the shared bathroom, will bring shower slippers and bleach wipes/spray just in case.

2 more hotels to book. If you have any recommendations for Florence or Rome, let me know. Preferably €125-150.

Paris was our splurge and I may even cancel that to save $ for rail trips.

Thanks,

Salsachica - you mention the bathroom is directly outside the door to your room in Venice. Sometimes that is as bad as having the shared bathroom too far from your room because you can hear people slamming the door in the middle of the night, toilets flushing, shower pipes creaking early morning, people talking to each other in hall outside bathroom, etc. Bring earplugs if you are a light sleeper.

Definitely bring flip flops to wear in the shower! The oddest experience I had with a shared bathroom in Europe was one place had a unisex bathroom that had 2 separate shower rooms divided by a 10 foot high wall that did not reach all the way up to the 12 foot ceilings. As I shut off the shower and was drying off, I heard a man in the next shower stall over "spanking the monkey" and he made zero effort to be quiet about it. I started laughing which probably made it shrink like a frightened turtle, but it definitely made me glad I always pack my flip flops!

Ask the hotel how many rooms share the bathroom.

I had a shared bath in Venice once for 4 nights, never met anyone in the hall, only once had to wait for the shower. Only negative experience: one time I could tell that the person before me had smoked in the toilet.

In Florence, I stayed (twice) in the Archi Rossi Youth Hostel. They have private rooms, some en suite. They have a (well-enforced) 11 pm no-noise rule, and are in a good location. Very clean and the staff are friendly and helpful. They also have coin-op laundry. The first time I stayed there I used a shared bathroom and rarely had to wait. The multi-bed rooms (4 and up) all seem to have attached baths. The second time, I splurged on a double room en suite in the annex and was very happy - great queen bed, very quiet.

I am a retired solo woman traveler.

I had a shared bathroom/toilet experience in Lisbon. Never again!! We had returned from a day trip and I desperately needed to use the toilet and I mean desperate. After 20 minutes pacing the floor, my daughter forecefully banged on the door and explained my situation. There was a young lady in the bathroom taking all the time in the world drying her hair etc. When using shared facilities, people should be mindfull and get in and out as quickly as possible.

Shared bathrooms work best when the toilet is in a separate room, or there are several bathrooms to choose from. I've never had a problem with access in the middle of the night, but during the daytime some people hog the room. I'm at the point in my life/travels where I'm willing to pay extra for my own bathroom. The hostels I've stayed in usually had a women's bathroom that could be shared. That works, too.

I'm female and have stayed in b&bs with shared bathrooms. It's no big deal. As someone mentioned you usually have a sink in your room. You'll only have to use the bathroom to shower and use the toilet. I bought some "shower shoes" that I wear to get to and from the bathroom as well as use IN the shower.

As far as waiting in line, some of the places I've stayed in either had the shower separated from the toilet by a wall, or had a toilet and bath/shower with an extra "broom closet sized" room with just a toilet.

Last May we stayed at Palazzo Masi in Siena(wonderful! absolutely wonderful!) where we had 2 of the 3 rooms that share a bathroom. We 4 were the only ones there so didn't have any problems. At Dei Mori in Florence we had a room with a separate bathroom but we didn't have to share it so obviously no problems except for getting to & from the bathroom. (Also Dei Mori put the 4 of us in rooms with bathrooms en suite when they had empty rooms at the lesser price which was wonderful so for the 4 nights we only had 1 night when the 4 of us were in 2 Doubles with separate baths!)

Our shared bathroom in Amsterdam was not a good experience. The sink & shower were ensuite but toilet off a hallway was shared by 4 rooms which translated to 8 people/1 toilet. Very nasty. Had no robe, etc. and it was sheer luck that I did not meet other guests in the hallway during the night when I wandered out in my nightgown. Never again. The bathroom situation was not explained when we booked.

I research accommodations by emailing tourist offices for the area I'm going to, and they will send copious amounts of brochures with complete listings of all accommodations, from the cheapest to the ritziest. I go for the super-cheap private rooms and I have never had a room without a bathroom, with toilet and a shower. Not that I would care, but it seems to me that most B+Bs are retro-fitting tiny bathrooms into their rooms. I would think that a place billing itself as a hotel - especially in Switzerland - and not as a B+B would have a WC en-suite. If not, it's probably sort of sleazy and I wouldn't stay there.

The beautiful old guest house I stayed at in Edinburgh had 3 double rooms with private baths and then 3 double rooms that shared a bathroom. The toilet, shower and sink were all in the bathroom together, nothing in our rooms. It was large, clean, and our hostess provided each guest with a robe to wear. I prefer a private bath, but considering our room was only 64 GBP per night, I was willing to sacrifice the privacy.

I would not want to stay in a hostel and share a bath though. Getting a bit old for that kind of thing.

We just returned from Rome where we stayed at Hotel Cortina for 109 euro per night including breakfast. It's near Rick's recommended hotels not far from Termini Station, convenient to the metro, trains, and buses. I'd gladly stay there again.

I stayed in PG three years ago. While a shared bathroom was not my choice, it worked out OK. The room had a sink and a set of towels, which you took with you down the hall to the shared bathroom. First morning, both bathrooms were in use for a while and I went back and forth between them (different floors) a few times before getting in. Next morning, I got up 15 minutes earlier and had no problem. I chalked it up as a new experience!

I have never had a problem with shared bathrooms, although I am finding them to be less prevalent as more hotels and B&Bs renovate to include all en suite rooms. With the exception of hostels, I've never had to wait for a bathrooms, and have never had a problem with cleanliness.

I will be sharing a bathroom in Prague in September and don't envisage any problems. And sometimes it's a great way to meet people! :)

I stayed in Albergo Guerato in May 2007 and had the corner room overlooking the fish market on the same floor as the check in desk. The bathroom was always clean. There is a big heavy curtain between the lobby and the accommodations hallway, and I believe there are only 3 rooms that use the bathroom. It was a great place to stay. The room was large and very nice. I stayed in several other places without a private bathroom and all of them were acceptable, though I felt the one in Siena was iffy and would have liked better.

Salsachica,

I've used a shared bath several times over the 15 years I've traveled to Europe. It has never, and I repeat never, been a big deal. Americans (we are a picky breed) have this big phobia of a shared bath and seem to almost always opt for the ensuite making the "bath down the hall" virtually unused. The ones I have used were spotlessly kept, about 2-3 doors down from my room, and far more spacious than many of my ensuite baths. Sheesh...you've already shared a bath in a college dorm and hostels (with much less privacy I might add), you use "public" toilets every day at work or school or out shopping, you share a bath with family members every day, what's the big deal? Oh yeah....are robes and slippers provided? HAH! At a property with the bath down the hall?!! Bring your own, and don't forget the shampoo and soap, too. Towels will definitely be left for you in your room, though (especially in Italy) don't expect plush, fluffy terrycloth...most of Italy's bath towels are glorified tablecloths--large, but thin. You probably won't be given a facecloth, either, so if you need that, be sure to bring one of your own or the neat disposable ones from Dove or Olay or similar. I bring disposable face cleaning cloths and one of those bath puffs for my shower gel...I can throw the face cloths away immediately and the bath puff away at the end of my trip and have slightly less stuff in my toiletry kit to take home. This ain't the Hilton, baby (and why would you want it to be??). And one more thing....a "shared bath" is down the hall, and "ensuite bath" is in your room, but if you come across a "private bath" it could be in OR out of your room, but is for your exclusive use only. I always clarify if a property offers me a "private" bath.

Salsachica,

Last May my husband and I stayed in a Rome apartment near Termini station, close to the city center with a spacious bedroom and bath, even a small kitchen. Contact florassunta @ libero.it for her reasonable rates. She provides a nice breakfast and great advice.

Lorraine