1bd/1ba Ski Condo "Crash Pad"...Queen or snug King?

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1bd/1ba Ski Condo "Crash Pad"...Queen or snug King?

Anthony R.
Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes

I read previous posts about Q/K, helpful but they seem to have ended in a bit of a coin-toss.

I plan to go live with a small 1bd/1ba ski/golf area condo (think humblest little place in the whole area, but clean and convenient!). Bedroom is 10x10. It fits a Queen bed fine, of course, but I measured for a King and it would have 22" on either side. Not the ideal 36" per side, but do-able. Besides, anybody who books a 570sq ft 1bd/1ba knows they aren't booking the Taj Mahal.

If it were you, would you offer a bit of luxury with a King (and two night tables and a closet), or risk losing business because you only have a Queen?

Thanks!

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Villy Ellinger
Real Estate Agent · Fort Walton Beach, FL · Member since 2018 · 219 posts · 275 votes
4y

@Anthony R. First of all, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE small, studio or one-bedroom STRs. Those cash-flow the best per sq ft. I hope you do awesome. I have two of those kind and they kill it on a regular basis.

Second, I am going to respectfully, but very firmly, lol, disagree with the advise you're received so far. If in any way you can fit in a KING, GO WITH A KING! You don't need a headboard, you only need one night stand or no night stand at all. Or if you can fit a headboard, they make some with built in lights, so you don't need night stands. Or built-in shelves on the wall next to the bed, if the fit is that tight. The people, the guests, are coming to your unit mainly for the attractions of the location and for a place to sleep. We live in a society where people are "in general" taller and larger. If a "larger couple" (or any couple actually) is given a choice between your place with the Queen bed or Motel 6 (or whatever equivalent) with a King, they will go for the King. Most people won't care if you have night stands or if they have to jump from the door to the bed, lol, if they are able to get a comfortable sleep once they get on that bed :-). Yes, a Queen will look better, but you will lose clientele that you would otherwise capture with King.

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  • John UnderwoodPro Member
    Investor · Greer, SC · Member since 2014 · 13k+ posts · 17k+ votes
    4y

    Use a Queen and just clearly state what you have. 

    I have a Lake house with 2 beds in each room and No Kings size beds. Never had a single complaint.

    I guess really big people don't go to the lake much.

    2Reply
  • Anthony R.
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes
    4y

    Oh yeah, honest listing photos, description, etc. for sure.

    Thanks!

    0Reply
  • Michael BaumPro Member
    Olympia, WA · Member since 2016 · 8k+ posts · 7k+ votes
    4y

    Hey @Anthony R., I agree with @John Underwood. Go with the queen. This sounds like a place for a max of 2 or 4? You could do a queen sleeper as well. Keep all the linens the same.

    We looked at a place at the Inn at the 7th Mountain in Bend, OR. Similarly sized and a queen fits so much better and looks better 2. Kings in a 10x10 might work but look stuffed in place.

    1Reply
  • Villy Ellinger
    Real Estate Agent · Fort Walton Beach, FL · Member since 2018 · 219 posts · 275 votes
    4y

    @Anthony R. First of all, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE small, studio or one-bedroom STRs. Those cash-flow the best per sq ft. I hope you do awesome. I have two of those kind and they kill it on a regular basis.

    Second, I am going to respectfully, but very firmly, lol, disagree with the advise you're received so far. If in any way you can fit in a KING, GO WITH A KING! You don't need a headboard, you only need one night stand or no night stand at all. Or if you can fit a headboard, they make some with built in lights, so you don't need night stands. Or built-in shelves on the wall next to the bed, if the fit is that tight. The people, the guests, are coming to your unit mainly for the attractions of the location and for a place to sleep. We live in a society where people are "in general" taller and larger. If a "larger couple" (or any couple actually) is given a choice between your place with the Queen bed or Motel 6 (or whatever equivalent) with a King, they will go for the King. Most people won't care if you have night stands or if they have to jump from the door to the bed, lol, if they are able to get a comfortable sleep once they get on that bed :-). Yes, a Queen will look better, but you will lose clientele that you would otherwise capture with King.

    3Reply
  • Anthony R.
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Michael Baum:

    Hey @Anthony R., I agree with @John Underwood. Go with the queen. This sounds like a place for a max of 2 or 4? You could do a queen sleeper as well. Keep all the linens the same.

    We looked at a place at the Inn at the 7th Mountain in Bend, OR. Similarly sized and a queen fits so much better and looks better 2. Kings in a 10x10 might work but look stuffed in place.


     Thanks!

    0Reply
  • Anthony R.
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Villy Ellinger:

    @Anthony R. First of all, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE small, studio or one-bedroom STRs. Those cash-flow the best per sq ft. I hope you do awesome. I have two of those kind and they kill it on a regular basis.

    Second, I am going to respectfully, but very firmly, lol, disagree with the advise you're received so far. If in any way you can fit in a KING, GO WITH A KING! You don't need a headboard, you only need one night stand or no night stand at all. Or if you can fit a headboard, they make some with built in lights, so you don't need night stands. Or built-in shelves on the wall next to the bed, if the fit is that tight. The people, the guests, are coming to your unit mainly for the attractions of the location and for a place to sleep. We live in a society where people are "in general" taller and larger. If a "larger couple" (or any couple actually) is given a choice between your place with the Queen bed or Motel 6 (or whatever equivalent) with a King, they will go for the King. Most people won't care if you have night stands or if they have to jump from the door to the bed, lol, if they are able to get a comfortable sleep once they get on that bed :-). Yes, a Queen will look better, but you will lose clientele that you would otherwise capture with King.

    Thanks very much!
    0Reply
  • Chris Violette
    Member since 2022 · 2 posts · 0 votes
    4y

    We own a 1 bd-1.5 bath in a college town and there are 9 other identical units in our building. We decided to put a King into the bedroom. We have a little more room then you do, however. It has really been interesting to see what each owner has built out in their townhome. I personally like the other townhomes with a Queen better than ours with a King from a look perspective. Also, 6 of the owners do STR and we openly compare notes. Not one time, this past year, have any of us gained a reservation or lost one.

    I personally think it comes down to what you want. In our case, the wife wanted a king size bed, so that decided that.

    Good luck!

    0Reply
  • Anthony R.
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Chris Violette:

    We own a 1 bd-1.5 bath in a college town and there are 9 other identical units in our building. We decided to put a King into the bedroom. We have a little more room then you do, however. It has really been interesting to see what each owner has built out in their townhome. I personally like the other townhomes with a Queen better than ours with a King from a look perspective. Also, 6 of the owners do STR and we openly compare notes. Not one time, this past year, have any of us gained a reservation or lost one.

    I personally think it comes down to what you want. In our case, the wife wanted a king size bed, so that decided that.

    Good luck!


     Thanks very much, Chris. How long ago did you switch out? How do you know you've not gained a reservation or two? How do others know? Or, are you saying that bed size doesn't seem to have a correlation to revenues in your building? I wonder if it's the demographics of your market? Are your guests younger (maybe younger don't care about bed size?)? In my head I'm figuring more folks my age (50s), who tend to go for king at home, or splurge while away.

    Again, thanks very much!

    0Reply
  • Lauren Kormylo
    Rental Property Investor · Phoenix, AZ and Rehoboth Beach DE · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    4y

    I would go with a king.  With my large husband, I don't want to pay big bucks to stay in a bed smaller than I have at home, and there are many people like me. 

    I have a small bedroom in my STR, It's 11'6" wide, by 10"7" deep. I have a king in it, pushed over to one side a bit to allow the closet door to open. You do have to think about that. There is 24" of room on that side, and it's plenty, doesn't feel cramped at all. So I think 22" will be fine. To save space in your room that is only 10' deep, don't have a foot board, just a headboard on the bed frame. Here are some quick pics of my room, the 24" clearance is the side of the bed by the window. There are narrow nightstands available now. Wayfair lets you specify the width in your search.

    2Reply
  • Chris Violette
    Member since 2022 · 2 posts · 0 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Anthony R.:
    Quote from @Chris Violette:

    We own a 1 bd-1.5 bath in a college town and there are 9 other identical units in our building. We decided to put a King into the bedroom. We have a little more room then you do, however. It has really been interesting to see what each owner has built out in their townhome. I personally like the other townhomes with a Queen better than ours with a King from a look perspective. Also, 6 of the owners do STR and we openly compare notes. Not one time, this past year, have any of us gained a reservation or lost one.

    I personally think it comes down to what you want. In our case, the wife wanted a king size bed, so that decided that.

    Good luck!


     Thanks very much, Chris. How long ago did you switch out? How do you know you've not gained a reservation or two? How do others know? Or, are you saying that bed size doesn't seem to have a correlation to revenues in your building? I wonder if it's the demographics of your market? Are your guests younger (maybe younger don't care about bed size?)? In my head I'm figuring more folks my age (50s), who tend to go for king at home, or splurge while away.

    Again, thanks very much!


    Anthony: We have not switched out. We have kept ours a king size bed. My fellow neighbors get together and share intel and experiences on our individual STR. The occupancy rates have been comparable to each one of our properties and we have talk about whether we felt the bed size made a difference. Our age demographic has mainly been 40-50 years old. Our guests are usually coming to either visit their college student, come for a football game or have ties to the area.

    Hope this answers your questions.

    0Reply
  • Andrew Simms
    Rental Property Investor · Marietta, GA · Member since 2017 · 131 posts · 101 votes
    4y

    We have 3 kings in our 3 bedroom cabin. It was a squeeze with only about 24" clear on one side of each bed, but we have had zero complaints. We built floating nightstands with conference room type receptacles (the ones with 3 prong plugs and USB connections). No complaints about cramped space or anything like that. We never book a place that doesn't have kings. Some people may not care... we do. 

    1Reply
  • Elaine Bonini
    Real Estate Investor · Benicia, CA · Member since 2008 · 3 posts · 1 vote
    4y

    @John Underwood you won't get complaints, you'll just have people scroll past your listing and rent a unit with a King bed. My husband and I eliminated a bunch of condos when planning a trip to Hawaii for this reason. We aren't large people, average sized, used to sleeping in a King

    0Reply
  • Elaine Bonini
    Real Estate Investor · Benicia, CA · Member since 2008 · 3 posts · 1 vote
    4y

    @Villy Ellinger agree wholeheartedly with you!! I hope he takes your advice, out he will lose a large customer base.

    1Reply
  • Zaneta Hardy
    Investor · MD · Member since 2018 · 8 posts · 9 votes
    4y

    I like a bit of luxury, so that's what I provide for my guests, thus I'd go with a King. I have a 1bd/2bth condo in the mountains with a king sized mattress in the bedroom and a queen sized sleeper sofa in the living room. It also depends on who you are catering too. Personally I get small families or couples, so I do think it helps to have a king. 

    1Reply
  • John UnderwoodPro Member
    Investor · Greer, SC · Member since 2014 · 13k+ posts · 17k+ votes
    4y
    Quote from @Elaine Bonini:

    @John Underwood you won't get complaints, you'll just have people scroll past your listing and rent a unit with a King bed. My husband and I eliminated a bunch of condos when planning a trip to Hawaii for this reason. We aren't large people, average sized, used to sleeping in a King


     Not true. 

    We have 150 plus 5 star reviews  we stay full and for top dollar.

    I guess the big people who need a king find other occomodations. 

    0Reply
  • Anthony R.
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Chris Violette:
    Quote from @Anthony R.:
    Quote from @Chris Violette:

    We own a 1 bd-1.5 bath in a college town and there are 9 other identical units in our building. We decided to put a King into the bedroom. We have a little more room then you do, however. It has really been interesting to see what each owner has built out in their townhome. I personally like the other townhomes with a Queen better than ours with a King from a look perspective. Also, 6 of the owners do STR and we openly compare notes. Not one time, this past year, have any of us gained a reservation or lost one.

    I personally think it comes down to what you want. In our case, the wife wanted a king size bed, so that decided that.

    Good luck!


     Thanks very much, Chris. How long ago did you switch out? How do you know you've not gained a reservation or two? How do others know? Or, are you saying that bed size doesn't seem to have a correlation to revenues in your building? I wonder if it's the demographics of your market? Are your guests younger (maybe younger don't care about bed size?)? In my head I'm figuring more folks my age (50s), who tend to go for king at home, or splurge while away.

    Again, thanks very much!


    Anthony: We have not switched out. We have kept ours a king size bed. My fellow neighbors get together and share intel and experiences on our individual STR. The occupancy rates have been comparable to each one of our properties and we have talk about whether we felt the bed size made a difference. Our age demographic has mainly been 40-50 years old. Our guests are usually coming to either visit their college student, come for a football game or have ties to the area.

    Hope this answers your questions.


     Cool, yep. Satisfies the curiosity, haha. Thanks again!

    0Reply
  • Anthony R.
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Zaneta Hardy:

    I like a bit of luxury, so that's what I provide for my guests, thus I'd go with a King. I have a 1bd/2bth condo in the mountains with a king sized mattress in the bedroom and a queen sized sleeper sofa in the living room. It also depends on who you are catering too. Personally I get small families or couples, so I do think it helps to have a king. 


     Thanks Zaneta. That's good to know!

    0Reply
  • Anthony R.
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Elaine Bonini:

    @Villy Ellinger agree wholeheartedly with you!! I hope he takes your advice, out he will lose a large customer base.


     Thank you, Elaine. What I find interesting in this thread is that, generally speaking, the men say it doesn't matter, but the ladies all say the king bed is a must.

    My margins are going to be razor thin on this, so I need all the competitive advantage I can. If I can figure out how to get a king bed and queen sofa down a flight of 14 steps, into a narrow foyer, down a flight of 6 steps, through a door, and down a final flight of five steps, I will make it happen, lol.

    1Reply
  • Steven Foster Wilson
    Rental Property Investor · Columbus, OH · Member since 2017 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    4y
    Quote from @Anthony R.:

    I read previous posts about Q/K, helpful but they seem to have ended in a bit of a coin-toss.

    I plan to go live with a small 1bd/1ba ski/golf area condo (think humblest little place in the whole area, but clean and convenient!). Bedroom is 10x10. It fits a Queen bed fine, of course, but I measured for a King and it would have 22" on either side. Not the ideal 36" per side, but do-able. Besides, anybody who books a 570sq ft 1bd/1ba knows they aren't booking the Taj Mahal.

    If it were you, would you offer a bit of luxury with a King (and two night tables and a closet), or risk losing business because you only have a Queen?

    Thanks!


     I do not think you would lose business due to having a queen. If anything people are more about the aesthetic and how clean a place is. It sounds like the queen would look better in the room and create a better space. 

    1Reply
  • Anthony R.
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes
    4y
    1Reply
  • Michael Weigum
    Real Estate Agent · Santa Rosa Beach, FL · Member since 2019 · 112 posts · 116 votes
    4y

    Hi @Anthony R.

    My two cents, go with the king! When I am personally looking for a place, a king wins over a queen bed everytime, especially if the nightly rate is similar. We put King beds in our 1 bedroom condos here in Myrtle Beach and they have performed very well. It helps us stand out. A lot of the competition has queen beds or 2 full size beds in the master, so we stand out with a king bed and a smart tv in the bedroom.

    Hope that helps. Where is your ski condo?

    2Reply
  • Anthony R.
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 53 posts · 24 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Michael Weigum:

    Hi @Anthony R.

    My two cents, go with the king! When I am personally looking for a place, a king wins over a queen bed everytime, especially if the nightly rate is similar. We put King beds in our 1 bedroom condos here in Myrtle Beach and they have performed very well. It helps us stand out. A lot of the competition has queen beds or 2 full size beds in the master, so we stand out with a king bed and a smart tv in the bedroom.

    Hope that helps. Where is your ski condo?


     Thanks!

    0Reply
  • Andrew Street
    Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 292 votes
    4y

    There's nothing wrong going with a queen because the space will feel weird or tight with a king. Both options sleep two people, so focus on the aesthetic and over deliver in other ways to your guests.

    1Reply
  • Scott Mac
    Austin, TX · Member since 2019 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    4y
    Quote from @Lauren Kormylo:

    I would go with a king.  With my large husband, I don't want to pay big bucks to stay in a bed smaller than I have at home, and there are many people like me.

    Hi Lauren,

    I love the green.

    If you want a little more floor room at the foot end.

    Maybe lose the foot board and bed frame and use a metal under frame under the mattress and the fasten the headboard to the wall.

    I took your (summer cozy PHX room and and did a mock up of a cozy ski theme (I know you're in PHX but the thread is a about a ski retreat and your's looks good as is for a hot climate).



    Good Luck!

    0Reply
  • Michael Zeng
    Member since 2022 · 16 posts · 6 votes
    4y

    Using a King could allow you to sleep 3, instead of just 2. Food for thought

    0Reply
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