However, the open plan bathroom concept is essentially one whereby the bathroom is incorporated into a larger floor plan that usually includes a bedroom, and perhaps a dressing room.
Sometimes seen in hotels, it offers a sense of space and a touch of luxury, but is it a realistic design concept for your home, or should privacy and walls dividing the space prevail?
Does the open plan bathroom concept really mean no walls?
While open plan vs broken plan is often a debate concerning the ground floor of homes, it’s not often discussed as much when it comes to bathroom design ideas – and perhaps for good reason.
Bathrooms involve elements of personal hygiene that you may not want others to have to participate and share in. However, perhaps viewing the idea as a concept rather than a boundary free bathing zone, may help.
“Open plan bathrooms can come in many different guises and don’t have to be fully open to a bedroom as you are probably thinking,” says Louise Ashdown, head of design at West One Bathrooms .
“Instead, it can have design features that help to make the space feel more open to other rooms in a master suite. This could include glass windows between a bathroom and bedroom, helping to make the spaces flow but affording some degree of privacy in that they remain two separate spaces.”
Louise Ashdown
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Head of Design, West One Bathrooms
Louise is Head of Design at West One Bathrooms, having worked in the industry for over 18 years. At West One Bathrooms, one of the UK’s premium and luxury bathroom retailers, she heads up the design and creative teams, overseeing all the bathroom projects, as well as sourcing the latest products. Her passion for bathroom design is unparallel.
Pros and cons of an open plan bathroom Although an open plan bathroom is never going to be a good idea in a single bathroom home with more than one cohabiting couple, (and let’s face it, a toilet in full view of the bedroom is a hotel bathroom idea that simply doesn’t work, even in hotels), there are instances when it can offer some benefits.
“When privacy isn’t an issue, open-plan bathrooms provide an inviting modern living space, working best when there is a large floorplan to play with,” says Leigh Price, co-director at Real Stone, Tile & Bathroom .
“It is more common to see open-plan bathrooms in three-storey homes or in loft conversions ,” says Leigh, “where the whole floor can be dedicated to a master suite, encompassing all of the homeowner’s upstairs living requirements in one.”
However, if you are considering it as an option, in a space where water and heat prevail, some of the problems you will encounter (other than privacy) may include additional plumbing needs, extra bathroom ventilation requirements and making sure the design of your sanitaryware and bathroom storage ideas work with the more aesthetic needs of your bedroom ideas .
Open plan bathrooms can work well in loft conversions or three storey homes (Image credit: BC Designs)
Leigh Price
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Co-Director, Real Stone, Tile & Bathroom
Leigh Price, Co-Director of Real Stone, Tile & Bathroom has been in the construction industry for 35 years, and has worked in the tiling and bathroom industry for the past 16 years. His favourite aspect of running the business is guiding a client through the design process for their project, and consequently seeing it come to fruition.
How to design an open plan bathroom “We don’t tend to see a lot of fully open plan bathrooms as there is always some degree of privacy required, even if it is a separate room for a toilet. However, if you are considering having an open plan bathroom, perhaps to create the ultimate master suite, there are a few things that need careful consideration,” says Barrie Cutchie, design director at BC Designs .
“If you are going open plan, chances are you will need to account for the need for additional plumbing work, as when removing walls, you’ll have more space to play with, making it likely you’ll want to move bathroom items, such as baths, into new positions,” says Barrie.
“After all, the point of open plan is to make elements such as your freestanding bath ideas the star of the show,” he notes, “so there is no point tucking them right at the back.”
If on the other hand, you want to maintain a sense of some privacy, there are ways of doing so while maintaining an overall feel of openness.
“A great way to introduce an element of privacy into open-plan bathrooms is by building stud walls around areas such as the WC,” suggests Leigh Price. “This can be done either by building a half-height stud wall around the WC area, or by using a full height stud wall as a divider.”
“This style of open plan bathroom can be a great ‘middle of the road option’ for those who aren’t keen on having everything open,” agrees Louise Ashdown.
“Stud walls, with openings at either side can also create a sense of flow between the two spaces – helped by having the same flooring to make the space feel as one – and this also offers some degree of functionality to hide plumbing and create storage for toiletries,” adds Barrie Cutchie.
“Another way to enhance privacy in an open-plan bathroom is by using privacy or smart glass in certain areas, such as a fluted shower screen, which happens to also be a popular choice in bathroom trends for 2025,” notes Leigh.
What could an open plan bathroom design look like?
If you’re still struggling to imagine how an open plan bathroom design could look in your home, browse through these 3D mock up designs from Real Stone Tile & Bathroom for inspiration.
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While open plan, the freestanding bath is the focus with showers and toilet placed to the side (Image credit: Real Stone, Tile & Bathroom)
A half height wall disguises the toilet (Image credit: Real Stone, Tile & Bathroom)
In a larger space two shower heads can be used with either a single or double shower screen (Image credit: Real Stone, Tile & Bathroom)
Windows allow for natural ventilation (Image credit: Real Stone, Tile & Bathroom)
The use of glass will help contain moisture (Image credit: Real Stone, Tile & Bathroom)
Shop baths and screens for open plan bathrooms
1000mm Wet Room Shower Screen Bronze Frameless with Wall Support Bar
Freestanding Double Ended Roll Top Bath with Chrome Feet – Park Royal
Roman Haven 8mm Fluted Black Wet Room Shower Screen
Barrie Cutchie
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Design Director, BC Designs
Barrie Cutchie founded British bathroom brand, BC Designs in 1999. He is an award-winning bathroom designer who has been at the forefront of the industry for over 30 years.
Ventilation in an open plan bathroom concept It’s essential you get the best bathroom extractor fan in an open plan bathroom concept and adequate natural ventilation too. Water and soft furnishings such as bedding, cushions and rugs rarely make the best partners.
“Having an open plan bathroom can create some issues in regards to extra moisture building up in other areas of the room, so it is vital you have proper ventilation to account for the additional moisture in the air,” warns Barrie Cutchie.
“In terms of adequately ventilating an open-plan bathroom, using the example again of a top-floor, third-storey house or loft conversion bathrooms , adding opening velux skylight or rooflight windows is a way of providing light and ventilation,” suggests Leigh Price.
“Providing ventilation in two-storey homes or bungalows will require a higher power extractor fan and opening windows in the room,” he adds.
Adding rooflights will improve the natural ventilation in an open plan bathroom (Image credit: West One Bathrooms)
While it’s not for the faint-hearted, there are ways of making an open plan bathroom concept work in your home. Other ideas such as sliding glass pocket doors on your en-suite bathroom idea can add light and a sense of space if you aren’t fully committed to everything being on show.
However, with practicality a key concern in an open plan bathroom, follow the advice in our guide to baths in bedrooms and if you’re not sure what flooring would work and are tempted by the thought of a carpet throughout, find out whether the experts think carpet in a bathroom is always a bad idea.
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