Why that colourful cloth on hotel beds is more useful than you think

Walk into almost any hotel room, whether it's a five-star resort or a mid-range business hotel, and there's a good chance you'll spot it: a band of colorful fabric stretched neatly across the foot of the bed, standing out against an otherwise all-white spread. Most guests walk right past it, assuming it's simply there to look nice. But this humble accessory, usually called a bed runner or bed scarf, quietly does several jobs at once. According to various hospitality sources, it serves several decorative and practical purposes. It's been a fixture of hotel design for years, and once you understand what it's actually for, you'll probably never look at it the same way again. More than just decorationHotels lean heavily on white sheets and duvets because white reads as "clean" the instant a guest walks through the door.