deedles, a lot depends on the underlying surface. In a steamy bathroom, some moisture will work its way between the wall surface and the back of the wallcovering, and different wallcovering materials will behave differently to that condition. We repapered our master bathroom 21 years ago (autumn 1990) as a DIY project with a foil prepasted wallpaper. The walls had been papered before, and we removed the old wallpaper to expose the plaster underneath, which was a good surface to paper on. Over the years, we have had to flatten curling at the seams a couple of times (injecting additional paste and rolling), but after the seam flattening the overall result looks the same now as it did the day we installed it. Last year, we papered the previously glossy oil-paint covered walls of our downstairs powder room, and we needed to do a lot of surface preparation to make sure that the "paper" (we used a Rasch -- German brand -- "nonwoven peelable fabric" [NOT vinyl] product that is very dimensionally stable) would adhere to the surface. I doubt that we would have ventured trying to adhere a prepasted vinyl or paper wallcovering to that surface, even after the preparation. So far -- after a year -- the not-vinyl, nonwoven peelable Rasch product is working very well. It is hard to tell from the pictures on the page that you linked whether the Cole & Sons paper you are considering is true paper, vinyl, or nonwoven peelable; if you have a choice, by all means go with the nonwoven peelable. But even if it is available only as a prepasted paper or vinyl, our master bathroom experience suggests that you can get at least a couple of decades out of it.

thanks kudzu! i guess i thought that was why i see photos of bathrooms with backsplash tile or countertops that wrap up the back and side walls. to be honest, i've never paid attention to whether or not my family makes much splash around the sink. i'm assuming powder rooms tend not to get as much water splashing since most people don't use powder rooms to wash their face or brush their teeth, but this guest bathroom will be a full bath. that's good to know that you think it won't be a problem. good point about having a fan.

I wouldn't then. I don't think it will stick worth a dam to start with let alone high moisture even with a decent bath fan.

I also grew up in NYC in a building complex built in the late 1920s. No central air and there was no vent in the bathroom, just a small window in the shower we would crack open for ventilation. My mother wallpapered the bathroom and it lasted many years but eventually began to peel at the edges. I do not know how she installed it but since she's an artist and the type to do everything correctly, I suspect she used the right techniques. The room definitely got steamy and moist on a daily basis as it was the primary bathroom for two teens.