Staying in a deluxe hotel bed is one of the most luxurious and amazing experiences you can have. First-class hotel bedding is something with pure extravagance. We all want our beds at home to have the same soft and comfortable feel as we have in a hotel room. Just what types of sheets these hotels use is the only thing we need to consider. For their bedsheets, hotels often use cotton, usually a long-staple variety with a high thread count. Hotels use cotton sheets for a number of reasons, including cotton’s softness, durability, and breathability.
Cotton fabric is hypoallergenic and this is the reason why the hospitality industry mostly prefers cotton as their hotel sheets because guests aren’t at risk of irritating skin. Additionally, the material is machine-washable because hotel employees cannot hand wash or dry-clean hundreds of sheets each day.
You can also search for the best-looking bedsheets for your home as the 5-star luxury hotels do. All you need to know is what you’re actually looking for.
-
Table of Contents
Egyptian Cotton
Egyptian cotton sheets are quite popular because they are luxurious, soft, lightweight, and have incredible airflow. This cotton originated in Egypt and is hand-picked to control breaking the cotton fibers and result in a highly durable and extra-long-staple yarn for bed sheets.
-
Cotton Sateen
A cotton fabric with a one-up, four-over weave is known as cotton sateen. Hotels don’t use silk or satin since they’re very sheer, expensive, and can cause allergies, but the sateen weave is a good option since it’s silky smooth, has a shiny sheen, and is skin-friendly. Sateen sheets are very simple to maintain because they are wrinkle-resistant and machine-washable.
-
Supima Cotton
Extra-long-staple Supima cotton is only produced in the USA. Due to its smoothness, durability, and excellent color retention compared to other fabrics, it is very much popular in hotels. Supima contains extra-long staples, making it extremely lightweight and fine, yet still incredibly strong.
-
Cotton Percale
The over-and-under weave of cotton percale produces a flat, tight weave with a matte finish. The percale weave is crisp and long-lasting, similar to a dress shirt, but softens after each wash. Although they both perform similarly, cotton sateen and cotton percale sheets are significantly lighter and airier.
-
Linen
Linen is the only non-cotton type of sheet that hotels generally use. It comes from the flax plant and is eco-friendly since it needs little water and energy to produce. However, linen can be costly to harvest and produce. Still, hotels use linen since it’s hypoallergenic, soft, and low-maintenance. Linen is also breathable and moisture-wicking.
Hotel Sheets Thread Count
The amount of threads used per square inch of fabric is known as the thread count. Since hotel sheets are primarily made of cotton, it is good to look for the appropriate thread count since it only really applies to cotton fabrics.
The ideal thread count for silky, long-lasting, and breathable bed sheets is between 300 and 500. Lower thread counts feel rougher and can wear down quickly. Though technically greater thread counts are available (up to 1000), they serve just as a marketing gimmick and don’t improve the softness or durability of the fabric. A good way to determine if sheets have low-quality threads is if the thread count is super high, but the sheets are affordable, costing $50 or less. The quality of cotton sheets and feel are more influenced by the staple length than by the thread count.
Short-staple fibers are rough and crisp, whereas long-staple and extra-long-staple fibers are soft and supple. Long-staple sheets are used in top hotels because they are durable and plush.


