The Evolution of Hotel Beds

In the beginning we had beds with very primitive design and before beds we probably slept on the floor of caves with animal skins to keep us warm. The first were simply boxes with some sort of stuffing such as hay or straw and certainly wouldn’t have been as comfortable as we know beds are today. The Egyptians are well known for their luxurious style beds. They were raised wooden structures, often ornately carved with plush cushions and covers to adorn them. Why were they raised? To keep dry, to keep out nasty creatures, to make getting out of bed easier – you name it!

The rich and prosperous in the medieval era had extremely plush beds and bedding. The beds were generally of a larger size than today’s standard double bed, they would have a mattress stuffed with either hay or feathers and other such materials. Some bed consisted of a wooden frame with rope or leather supports, they would then place a mattress of feathers or other soft filling covered in some type of fabric outer. But for the simple and humble peasant a bed would have been a mattress stuffed with hay or straw and placed on the floor.

The Victorian era like so many other revolutions saw the very first sprung mattresses. They were packed with iron springs and feathers and were extremely heavy to lift. Each morning the mattress would be turned and beaten, the servants would then pull the mattress tight. This daily routine was to prevent bedbugs from getting into the mattress and causing infestation.

Mattresses have changed dramatically throughout millennia. We have seen therefore mentioned straw and feather filled mattresses, those with springs and cotton coverings. But we have also had mattresses filled with water, the first of which can be dated back more than 3600 years before in Persia. The water bed as it is known didn’t really take off until the 1960’s when we saw the invention of vinyl, making the mattress more stable and less likely to burst.

Hotel Beds are not just about the mattress however. It is also about pillows, duvets and sheets. We have a yearning to slip into a crisp clean linen covered bed with plush and comfortable pillows. Our beds are more that a piece of furniture to us, they are where we dream, rest and enjoy our lovers company.

When we stay away we want to know that our bed for the night is just as comfortable as the one we sleep in at home. Hotel beds have changed just as much as the beds that we have in our own homes. We expect them to be soft under us and the covers to be clean and warm. Of course it often depends on the value of the room you’re staying in but with the importation of sublimely soft Egyptian cottons and high thread counts we can only expect the best our money can buy.

The best test for any new bed is that of jumping on it, playing pillow fights if you must and checking out the 

creek value of your new bed! With all this in mind a hotel reservation and get yourself under those sheets and start testing!