Habitación

Habitación is a Spanish noun (feminine: la habitación) that denotes a room within a building. It is commonly used to refer to a bedroom or private sleeping space, but it can also denote any discrete area enclosed within a structure, such as a living room, study, or hotel room. In hotels and travel contexts, habitaciones are described by capacity or features, for example habitación individual or habitación doble.

Etymology and usage notes: the term derives from Latin habitatio, from habitare “to inhabit,” and is related to habitar. In architectural and real estate language, habitación appears in compound expressions such as habitación principal (master bedroom) or habitación contigua (adjacent room). The word often conveys a sense of a distinct, inhabitable space within a building.

Regional variation: usage varies by Spanish-speaking region. In Spain, habitación is a standard term for a room and for bedrooms. In many Latin American countries, terms like dormitorio, recámara, or cuarto are common in everyday speech, while habitación remains standard in more formal or hotel contexts. Historical or regional alternatives include alcoba (more archaic or dialectal).

See also: In real estate, marketing and lodging contexts, the phrase tipo de habitación (single, double, twin) is used to indicate the kind of space and occupancy. The concept intersects with related terms for living spaces such as cuarto, dormitorio, recámara, and sala.