Decode the Design: Stories Behind Stunning Hotel Interiors

This article was written by Joyce Elizabeth Huston, Co-founder and Lead Designer at Decorilla

Hotels can easily become a monotonous blur for travelers, which is why creating an exceptional interior is at the crux of elevating their stay. A recent study found that interior design played a crucial role in shaping the guest experience, ultimately affecting how well the hotel performed in terms of rest and comfort for guests.

However, achieving uniqueness while delivering a stunning design can be an enigma for interior designers. They must read the intentions of each space and what they want to evoke in guests, leading them to neatly curate every design choice to build memorable spaces.

Designers are also contending with social media influencing how guests interact with their surroundings and emerging trends that are transforming the landscape. 

Here are the top tips for designers to consider when creating extraordinary hotel interiors that will have guests coming back for more.  

Standing Out from the Crowd

Iconic destinations like Santorini, the Amalfi Coast, and Paris all have a signature style and vibe, which is why they’re legendary tourist hotspots. While maintaining this vibe within hotel interiors is a must for guests looking to experience the destination, there’s the risk of rinsing and repeating a certain look. 

Quality of service will only help battle the competition to a certain extent, and the big question is: Why choose a particular hotel if they all look alike? Designers aiming to create breathtaking interiors need to find ways to make them unique.

That ‘wow’ factor in the interior design can make all the difference to stand out in guests’ memories and potential customers’ newsfeeds. This can be embedded in the finer details of a guest’s stay that make all the difference—a luxury feel is a great way to elevate that uniqueness. 

For instance, many hotels feature uniform interior designs using elements like built-in furniture, which only feels institutional and corporate rather than homely. One way around this is by opting for a boutique feel, where not all furniture matches and guests can easily move around depending on their preferences. This can help them feel comfortable and at home without compromising on that important element of luxury. 

Infusing Luxury through Comfort

Importantly, luxury doesn’t mean garish gold features and heavy velvet textures everywhere. It’s rather about feeling like your surroundings have been curated to your comfort. For example, this one hotel in Marrakech offers an incomparable dining experience, and that’s thanks to its careful design that caters to guests’ comfort. Breakfast was served on the roof, and even though the space was small, the design included little vignettes for each guest to enjoy their morning meals in privacy next to the gorgeous view.

Such a unique touch of luxury that wasn’t flamboyant or ominous, but rather personable, can shape a memorable experience in guests, where comfort rules above all. 

Still, it’s vital for designers to strike a healthy balance between luxury and making guests feel like they’re enjoying a home away from home. Even though most visitors stay at hotels to break away from their daily routines, they still want to feel comfortable in the space. 

The bottom line is that your design shouldn’t intimidate guests—it should make them feel invited to enjoy the luxury of the space.

Creating that Insta-Worthy Space

More and more people are sharing highlights of their vacations: The things they do, the food they eat, and the spaces around them, including where they’re staying if it’s feed-worthy. Social media is one of the best places for hotels to shine, and standing out on people’s feeds helps them stand out among the competition.

As a result, designers aren’t building spaces for the experience but a very specific frame. Every angle should look good in pictures, and the design should enable the interior’s unique vibes and style to permeate through the screen. 

Many forces are involved in achieving this. Beyond the color palette, consider textures and dimensions. For instance, wallpapers, bedding linen, and even the material of lampshades can make all the difference in allowing the space to pop digitally. 

To encourage guests to interact with your interior, introduce feature elements such as murals or unique artwork and displays. These could be sourced from local artisans—as a nod to the destination itself—and are small yet powerful ways of creating an unparalleled experience for guests. 

Another huge consideration is lighting. For example, LED fixtures can help you add any color and temperature based on preference. However, a word of caution: Be careful of daylight-labeled bulbs as these often look fluorescent. What’s important is making sure the lighting is warm enough to flatter people’s skin. Layering lighting with accent lighting is a great way to achieve this, such as with small desk lamps or task lighting like under-cabinet lights. 

Some designers might hesitate to explore lighting because they think it’ll break the bank, but there are lots of options on the market to fit a wide range of budgets. Whatever your price range, make sure to keep in mind how lights look on your skin and not just your space when selecting lighting for that Insta-worthy interior. 

Hot Trends this Year and Beyond

Guests want novelty and fresh looks, mainly because we live in a social media-driven world where sharing your experience is king—the more character, the better. Individuality is going to be a cornerstone of creating character in interior design: It’s about less built-ins, less uniformity, and instead carving out an identity that makes the hotel stand out. 

Recent trends like warm minimalism, biophilic design, and mid-century modern also point at spaces becoming warmer and more inviting as guests are looking for comfort and character. They also fall outside the norm, as warm doesn’t always mean beige and other warm tones: Homely yet unique and vibrant is what they thrive on. As a result, the industry will move away from white bedsheets and duvets and go for bolder and more inviting palettes. 

In the same vein, accessorizing to create luxury and comfort shouldn’t translate into clutter. Guests don’t want to feel overwhelmed by their hotel rooms—particularly if they’re sharing their stays in their newsfeeds. A rule of thumb is that any decoration or ornament smaller than grapefruit is clutter. 

As more guests resort to sharing their hotel experiences for the world to see and seek very specific luxurious yet comfortable vibes during their stays, designers must follow suit on these trends. Bold statements, warmth, and photogenic spaces are becoming key aspects to cover, and they’re here to stay for the foreseeable future. Carving out a memorable experience where guests feel at home yet pampered will elevate their expectations so your hotel can stand out among the competition.