The issues are that a pocket door will offer little sound separation; a barn door will offer none and the barn door makes the adjacent wall unusable. However, those issues may not be important in your design.

Looks like to me that door in the link is very similar to the door that would be used as a conventional hinged door. Those are a bit more substantial that many pocket doors.

Mounting the slider would be much less costly and easier than a pocket door. And, depending on the model and make of pocket door and the installation, both walls can be user restricted.

With an added latching mechanism for the slider, I don't see much difference in sound blocking.

Adding a towel bar would depend on the door. Most hollow core doors have enough material on the edges and ends, so a full width bar would work. A shorter one would be difficult to mount and make last.

I like the pocket door idea. It would save much more room in the bathroom (that whole wall) and it looks pretty much the same as the pocket door.

I agree with the others about the door not providing sound separation. There will have to be a gap between the sliding door and the frame or else the door will be noisy when opened/closed and will end up with scrape marks on it.
Also, you mentioned the bathroom is very small so I don't see how you can afford to loose another 28" along one wall.

How is the depth of the vanity affected by the door? Did you mean the width of the vanity?

I wrote Johnson, asked a few questions, here's the reply:

How much bigger of a door would be needed to cover the doorframe when closed?
Your door would need to be 1 1/4" bigger than the finished opening.
Can a lock be installed if desired?
Yes, you would need to build out the jamb on the side that the door is closing into. Then, the door would lock into the jamb using a pocket door lock.
Is there a gap between the door and the frame when closed, and if so, how much, or is there a way you would be able to conceal a gap?
Approximately 1/2" or less depending on the thickness of the door. I think you are talking about the distance between the door and the wall? It is not noticeable at all, and when the door is closed (being 1 1/4" wider than the opening), you won't be able to see into the bathroom.

I was thinking, if the 1/2" or less she mentions above, and that the door covers the doorway 3/4" on each side, if there is a sound issue, why couldn't one put some type of a "buffer" - I thought about something like that furry strip on a window that slides up and down???

I actually don't think I'd be losing anything along the wall this door would slide on, it's only 3' wide as it is, and the only thing on there is a towel bar and in-wall heater, which is going to be removed when we re-tile. I figured, I could just mount the towel bar on the back of the door, I wouldn't be losing anything. Maybe put a recessed storage cabinet in between a couple studs and actually gain some space.

The vanity in there now is 42"wx22"d, I think going with one that's 36"wx18"d will just give me more floorspace, but I'm thinking all the time and not jumping the gun on this. I saw an interesting vanity that makes me wonder if I can possibly keep with a 42" but have it smaller in depth on the left side against the shower wall. See the link below for what I saw. It's just mind-boggling on how expensive some of this vanities are!

Thanks to all - this is not going to be an easy decision on what to do, once I think I know, something I see changes my concept. I appreciate all the info and replies.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{!gwi}}

As I search, and search (not getting other thigns done) I keep coming across some great items. I found another sliding door that seems to close flush. It's very expensive though. This company has some innovative ideas.

I don't understand all the installation instructions on the web, but it seems like the best for my situation, like a pocket door when it closes, flush yet also a barn door with the rail and mounting it on the outside.

LMK if anyone has any thoughts on this one.

Here is a link that might be useful: Great Sliding Door

Found this, though it doesn't save as much space, it's still a pretty cool idea.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pivoting Door

I have this exact pocket door in my master bathroom and we LOVE it! I am not sure what you mean about the rail on the inside etc - the wall that the door slides into is "vacant" - no plumbing etc. My contractor matched the door to all the other doors in my house - it is perfect.

Pocket doors can have stops added on the non-pocket side to provide more of a sound barrier.

The barn style and pocket can use the same hardware, it is how you install the track that really makes them different.

Keep in mind for a bathroom and most places actually) a pocket door needs to be wider than the opening so there is not a gap on the pocket side when the door is closed.

You can add wood to the pocket edge of the door to widen it, or use a wider door.
If the door is has details (like panels) you may need to trim the jamb side down to make the details centered when the door is closed and a few inches remain in the pocket.

The Johnson door 'guides' are not really very good.
They will scratch the face of the door as it is pulled from and pushed back into the pocket.

A metal tab on the floor in the pocket and a groove in the door bottom are much more effective and preventing any swinging of the pocket door.
You can leave barely a 1/16 inch gap on each side of the door to the split jamb for the pocket if the groove and metal tab are closely matched.

If you want even more sound insulation there are all sorts of seals that can be used.

A 'brush seal' in the pocket split jamb will not damage the door and provides some additional noise reduction, and various weather stripping seals can be used on the jamb opposite the pocket.
Resource Conservation Technology has plenty of seals to choose from.

A not perfectly quiet fan is also a good option.