‘Having a bath in the bedroom isn’t a new trend,’ explains Keeley Sutcliffe, design manager at BC Designs, the British maker of the ‘it’ baths favoured by interior designers. ‘It can be traced back to the Middle Ages when many of the rich lords would have a bath in their bedroom. Fast-forward to the 1990s and the trend was revived by boutique hotels placing free-standing roll-tops at the end of huge beds. Popular with guests – but considered too impractical for many homes – bedroom bathtubs are finally becoming a desirable and workable feature.’
From Soho Farmhouse in Oxfordshire to Dumbleton Hall in Worcestershire, there’s something so luxurious about stepping out of fine thread-count sheets and straight into a beautiful free-standing tub. In the last three months alone, UK searches for ‘bath in bedroom’ have increased by 50%, according to Google Trends, which is up a whopping 800% versus the same period in 2025.
‘Made popular by luxury hotels, but with little consideration to everyday life and how a bedroom needs to function, the increased presence of bathtubs in bedrooms leans into the luxury home aesthetic,’ explains Brian Woulfe, founder and director of Designed by Woulfe, his interior design studio. ‘The design choice makes a real statement, reflecting the home as more of a retreat. It’s not as absurd as it seems, either – a warm soak before bed actually sits naturally within the bedroom’s role as a place of rest.
However, when designing a bedroom with a bath, it’s important to consider the practicalities, such as plumbing, potential water damage to the flooring or possible leaks, and even the added weight that a full bath adds to joists in a period property.’
Emma Sims-Hilditch, the interior designer behind her eponymous company, is similarly realistic. ‘I’d only introduce a bath into a bedroom where the architecture genuinely allows, with space around it so it feels intentional and elegant rather than as though it has simply been squeezed into a corner. Ideally, the bath should have its own visual territory – perhaps in a bay window, beside a fireplace, within an adjoining dressing area or behind a partial screen. Rugs, an occasional table and good lighting can also help it feel integrated in the bedroom.’
Emma also notes that natural light and good views – albeit with soft blinds or café curtains for added privacy – as well as timber floors and natural stone with traditional sanitaryware, can all help to make the space less bathroom-like.
And when it comes to the bath itself? ‘Scale is crucial,’ she advises. ‘A huge sculptural design can overwhelm an English bedroom. But a beautifully proportioned roll-top bateau or compact free-standing bath often sit more comfortably in a traditional interior.’ Emma’s own bath in the bedroom of her 17th-century barn conversion in the Cotswolds – a free-standing style hand-painted in sage green – is a spectacular case in point.
In the same neck of the woods, interior designer Bee Osborn was inspired by late decorating maestro David Hicks who had a bath in his bedroom. ‘I thought it was the height of luxury,’ she says. Like Emma, Bee designed hers so it sat comfortably at the end of her bed opposite a wood-burning stove to create a romantic spot for a good soak in her period cottage. Sisal carpet, a wooden stool for housing bathing accoutrement and a Boat bath from BC Designs in a soothing taupe colourway complete the look.
In Somerset, married couple – and co-founders of luxury wallpaper brand Divine Savages – Jamie Watkkins and Tom Kennedy were inspired by a stay at The Pig in Dorset, where they loved the indulgence of having a beautiful roll-top bath within the bedroom itself. Jamie explains: ‘We have a generously sized bedroom, so adding a free-standing bath felt like an opportunity to create something a little unexpected. We loved the idea of bringing the softness and character of a bedroom into the bathing experience, rather than creating a traditional, tiled bathroom.’
The pair chose BC Designs’ Penny and surrounded it with their own Wild Wild Woods grasscloth wallpaper before adding velvet curtains and textural rugs to create a sanctuary-inspired space that feels warm and cocooning. ‘There was a practical element, too,’ Jamie says. ‘We’ve only got one main bathroom, so the bath gave us an additional bathing space without undertaking major structural changes.’
For Anouska Lancaster, the interior designer behind her namesake studio, who has been documenting the renovation of her period home in Cornwall on Instagram, a BC Designs bath in two of her bedrooms were no-brainers. ‘I always love a bathtub in a hotel room, so thought, why not create that luxury experience in my own home?’ she reveals.
‘I always start with a visual focus when I’m designing any space to create wow-factor. The bathtubs are a stunning focal point in the bedrooms, especially because they’re painted in dramatic colours from my own paint collection – “Penally Pink’ and “Mermaid’s Tail’. If a bedroom is brighter and airier than your bathroom, the ritual feels more like a relaxing treat, too.’
And it’s not just interior designers incorporating bathtubs. Barrister Hannah Ready got the idea after discovering a second fireplace in the bedroom of her Oxfordshire cottage when she was renovating a couple of years ago. She says: ‘I immediately knew a bath in front of it would be perfect.’ Hannah raised her bath on a plinth to hide the plumbing – diverted from a bathroom on the same floor – but also to soak up the views of the hills through the window. ‘With three children and busy jobs, we don’t manage to get away very much, but I can shut the bedroom door, light some candles and pretend I’m in a country hotel.’
At my house in the same county, we have a spare room above our principal bedroom and I’m currently deciding whether to keep it as it is to catch the overspill of guests at Christmas or turn it into another bathroom with a roll-top to carve out a luxurious, split-level bedroom suite. I would raise the bath up on a plinth like Hannah’s, to give it a sense of grandeur, and wrap the room in a patterned wallpaper with the same carpet as the bedroom, to make it feel like part of the same space. Inspired by designers, I might now take the plunge.
