For years, travelers have joked that European hotel rooms are so small you can touch every wall without even getting out of bed. In London, Paris or Munich, it’s just part of the experience. You expect “cozy.”
But now?
That same micro-room trend is popping up everywhere — including in places where rooms used to be comfortably sized. And there’s an actual science behind it: design psychology, changing traveler behavior, and the relentless chase for profitability. Because, as it turns out, the question hotel chains are now asking is:
“How small can a room get before guests say, OK, that’s enough?”
Spoiler: pretty small.
Why Rooms Are Shrinking
Here’s the short version:
- Traditional minibars are rapidly disappearing. Hotels have removed them because guests rarely use them, they’re expensive to maintain, and grab-and-go markets in the lobby are far more cost-effective.
- Closets are being replaced with open storage. Instead of full closet cabinets, many new-build properties now rely on wall pegs, hooks, and small hanging rails to free up floor space and reduce furniture bulk.
- Dedicated desks are no longer standard. Guest surveys indicate that travelers are increasingly working on laptops from beds, chairs, or communal lobby areas, prompting hotels to eliminate desks to streamline room layouts.
- Airbnb changed traveler expectations (and pricing pressure).
- Operators are looking for the most profitable square-footage formula.
The modern strategy:
Give guests just enough space to sleep, shower, and not trip over their carry-on.
Designers claim it’s all very intentional — and based on movement studies, ergonomics, and guest-flow analytics. The Wall Street Journal even dug into the trend and talked with a leading hotel designer to find out how hotels are keeping guests happy… while giving them less.
Video: The Science Behind Smaller Rooms
Here’s the WSJ video that explores why hotels are downsizing, how much space you actually need, and why brands like Moxy are so successful at it:
Moxy: “You Think Rooms Are Small? Hold My Kombucha.”
Take Marriott’s Moxy brand, which is basically the poster child for modern micro-rooms.
- Moxy rooms are approximately half the size of the average hotel room.
- Yet they can generate up to 20% more revenue per square foot than their competitors.
Why?
Because smaller rooms allow:
- More rooms per floor
- Efficiency when maintaining rooms (decreased housekeeping and maintenance costs)
- More revenue for the same building footprint
Moxy isn’t ashamed of this strategy — it flaunts it. You get a stylish, cleverly designed room with hooks instead of closets, under-bed storage instead of drawers, and a bed that practically is the room.
The Lobby Is the New Living Room
To compensate for increasingly cramped guest rooms, hotels like Moxy have invested heavily in supercharged common spaces. Lobbies and lounges now serve double duty as co-working hubs, social hangouts, and sometimes even pseudo-living rooms. Instead of the old coffee carafes that tasted faintly of burnt hopes and regrets, you’ll now find full coffee bars slinging lattes and cold brew. Designers have packed these areas with communal tables, sofas, bar seating, and enough outlets to power a small airport terminal — all in hopes you’ll happily spend hours downstairs and forget your room is roughly half the size it used to be.
Our Room at the Moxy NYC
Here’s the room we stayed in during our last New York trip. This is the entire room. The walkway is about the width of a rolling suitcase. The TV is mounted inches from the bed. The “closet” is a single rail with two wooden hangers. And the design does everything it can to make the space feel optimized rather than cramped.
Honestly?
It wasn’t bad. Cozy, functional, and perfectly fine for one or two nights. But it really drives home how the industry is re-thinking every square inch.
Remember that long entry hallway you used to get when you walked into your room?
Hotel designers now view it as prime real estate — ideal for a sink, vanity, shelving, or a luggage nook. Why give you blank space when they can use it?
Final Thought
Hotel rooms are getting smaller, more innovative, and more efficient — and whether that’s a good thing depends on how you travel. If you’re only there to shower and sleep, micro-rooms make sense. If you’re someone who needs space to spread out, unpack, or not bump into the wall every time you turn around… well, this trend may feel like a step in the wrong direction.
Either way, it’s clear that the days of the big standard hotel room are fading. And designers are figuring out how to make rooms another 10 square feet smaller.
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