Laundry....to do it or not to do it....

[luvmyfireman]

I have never done laundry on our previous cruises. I always just packed enough to get us through. Plus, we were on RCCL and they didn't have self-service. We leave for our next cruise in 4 weeks on Carnival and I'm wondering if I should do laundry or not. They do have self-service. What does everyone else do? Wash or pack more?! Another difference is that we will have our 2 yr old so I need to determine how much we need for him if we don't wash! Thanks!!!

[98Charlie]

If you're traveling with a 2-yr-old, I'd suggest do a few loads of self-laundering but schedule your time at the laundry in mid-morning or early after lunch when the machines aren't that busy.

 

I traveled with toddlers for years during our trips from Ohio to Fl on spring break and still remember how many hours I spent in laundry rooms during those vacations.

 

I would like to add that your bathroom should (most do) have a retractable closeline in the shower which can help you if you want to wash out a few items and hang them up to dry.

 

Toddler clothes don't take up a whole lot of space in your luggage and you might think about taking what you think will be enough outfits with you and just wash out a few on your cruise to keep you out of the laundry room.

 

I'm thinking as a mother of a 2-yr-old (been there and done that with 3, 2-yr-olds) you need all the relaxation you can get on this cruise and doing self-service laundry isn't really relaxation.

 

Dianne

[takemewithyou]

DH and I have cruised with various cruiselines and have always done laundry about mid way through the cruise. Locate the nearest laundry room to you before you cruise on the deck plans. Here are some of my hints...

1. Bring a roll of quarters with you. They may not have a change machine in laundry room. Which means you have to go all the way to purser's desk to get bills changed. Come prepared.

2. Laundry detergent in dispenser is very expensive. Either carry small amount of liquid with you (in checked luggage in ziplock bag)or a small amount of powder.

3. Bring dryer sheets with you, if you like those. They will be non-existent in laundry rooms. You can use those to pack amongst your clothes to keep them smelling fresh on the way to cruise.

4. Get a pop-up hamper to put in the closet and you can toss dirty clothes in there and then use it to tranport your clothes to the laundry room. Works better than a laundry bag because it gives you something to put the folded clothes into to transport back to your room. Folds back up for packing.

5. On a shore day...if you don't have an excursion planned, you may find the laundry room remarkedly quiet because everyone else has plans onshore. That would be a good time to do laundry - right after breakfast.

 

All this is much less expensive then sending laundry out. Hasn't been too much of a hassle for us if we come prepared to do laundry. Hope this helps you.

[shoequeen1001]

I mentioned this on another post but there are irons in the laundry rooms. If you need to iron your clothes for dinner, do so early cause there may be a line. Also be kind to fellow passengers and come back for your laundry, mom is on vacation too and doesnt need to fold yours too. (I hate putting in a pile and are complused to fold it!!:D

[Susie51]

I use the sink and the clothes line in the shower. I bring baggies of powder detergent. Also, I pack 4 hangers with clips on them so I can hang more in the shower. On some ships the hangers can not be used outside of the cabin's closet.

 

To help things dry faster, I twirl them in the air and I put them between two towels to get the excess water out.

[98Charlie]

I use the sink and the clothes line in the shower. I bring baggies of powder detergent. Also, I pack 4 hangers with clips on them so I can hang more in the shower. On some ships the hangers can not be used outside of the cabin's closet.

 

To help things dry faster, I twirl them in the air and I put them between two towels to get the excess water out.

 

Traveled through Europe 3 times with that method. Worked most of the time. We always traveled in a rental car. When our clothes didn't get quite dry in our hotel rooms we just layed them out on the back seat of our car and kept the windows down.:)

 

Laundry was dry by the time we stopped at our hotel the next night.:D

 

Dianne

[Happy ks]

We send the stuff out, with the exception of my bras and undies, which are easy to wash in the sink and I don't want them ruined.

 

DH's on the other hand, would take longer to dry and I'm not touching them. If he wanted to, go for it, I don't ask him to wash out mine!

 

We send out pants, trousers, his shirts, socks and undies.

 

For the cost of a couple cocktails, we neither have to overpack or do chores on vacation.

[momofmeg]

When self service is offered I usually use it toward the end of the cruise on a port day. why? so I do not go home and have to do laundry frist thing.

 

But if there is no self service laundry I don't mind. It is not hard to pack enough clothing for a cruise.

[NYCFOD]

On both the P&O Australia cruises I have taken, the prices charged by the ship's laundry have been so reasonable that I just sent my laundry out. On the first cruise I contemplated going to the self-service laundry, but there was such a long queue that I quickly decided that spending several hours waiting on line for machines was not going to happen. I think I spent $30-40 on laundry, which was about the price of a decent bottle of wine. I just resent spending the time doing chores while I'm on vacation. Our next cruise is 8 nights, I can easily pack enough for that length of time.

[Huebie]

I have very sensitive skin and only use Tide Free so I'm going to have to do laundry on our 15 day LA-Hawaii cruise. I even bring my own towels because 15 days of itching wouldn't be much fun. We'll send my husband's laundry out unless it's something that can go in a load with mine.

[momofmeg]

On both the P&O Australia cruises I have taken, the prices charged by the ship's laundry have been so reasonable that I just sent my laundry out. On the first cruise I contemplated going to the self-service laundry, but there was such a long queue that I quickly decided that spending several hours waiting on line for machines was not going to happen. I think I spent $30-40 on laundry, which was about the price of a decent bottle of wine. I just resent spending the time doing chores while I'm on vacation. Our next cruise is 8 nights, I can easily pack enough for that length of time.

 

that is why I use the self service laundry ONLY on a port day-evenings and sea days they are too crowded.

[Bookish Angel]

I have had some bad luck with laundry services. In my experience, commercial dryers tend to get hotter than home-use dryers so shrinkage can be a problem. I NEVER send clothes to ship's laundries anymore and do my own in the coin operated machines and dry them on hangers in the cabin.

 

There is a gel detergent that comes in a tube about the size of a medium size toothpaste tube. It is fantastic and can be found at camping/outdoor stores, etc. Much less expensive is to take liquid detergent in a small plastic recyclable bottle.

[wchvdg]

NO LAUNDRY...it's vaca!!!!

[Azure Moon]

I've gone to the laundry room on every cruise.

I honestly don't mind it doing laundry. Waiting for the washer and dryer to finish gives me time to read the book I brought but have been far too busy to read :D .

~AM~

[bjdamascus]

We've only cruised on Royal Caribbean. They offer laundry service - which I wouldn't trust regardless of the cruise line - it's just my thing. Also, there are no irons in the rooms. So, we try to pack what we need. I always bring some laundry detergent just in case - the sink and the line in the shower are usually sufficient to wash and hang stuff up. I also bring one of those fold up hangers that have small clothespins on them. On our last cruise (which we just got off of yesterday!) I discovered that I hadn't packed enough undies and bras.... so I ended up washing things out throughout the first half of the trip... no big deal - it just took a little extra time. Anyway, that hanging thing fit perfectly in air conditioning vent of the ceiling. After stuff had finished dripping in the shower, I hung it out there and it dried overnight. Lesson learned - next time I will COUNT as I put things into the suitcase!

[ahoys]

I've been watching that commercial on TV that advertises the super absorbent miracle towel-thingy. They show rolling up a sweater to get a lot of the water out to help it dry faster. I've been thinking about buying one to bring on my next cruise so I can wash my hand-washables in the sink and dry them on the line in the shower. If it works to remove a lot of the water, hand washing will be the easy way to wash the undies and tshirts. Has anyone used one of those towels?

[NuttyNelly]

Hi, I am going on my first ever cruise next week with Royal Caribbean, and wondered whether they will do your ironing for you? I have a few evening dresses which need very careful ironing & I know will get creased in the case on the long flight! Also, is it expensive to have items ironed? Thanks x:)

[tweety33]

I can not even imagine doing laundry while on a 1 week cruise. Soak up every minute of your precious Vacation time. Vacation is what its all about, laundry can wait till I get home. We even take our undergarments that need retirement and throw them away after use while on vacations. Less clothes to bring home, more room for souvineers.

[rubegoddess]

You are on vacation- and when I'm on vacation, I sure don't do laundry! If I messed up packing or messed up an essential outfit, send it to the ship laundry.

[Sangela]

My first cruise, I packed really light. It WAS only 4 days, right? ;) Well, we had an ATV tour in Cabo and the clothes we wore got really dusty and dirty.

Well, I ended up doing laundry and it really was (amazingly enough) kind of relaxing, I brought a book and read it on the lido deck, then went down and threw everything into the dryer and read some more, went back down and ironed and folded and put it all back in the room. It was nice not to deal with a pile of dirty clothes when we got home, too.

Next cruise is 7 days, and I"ll pack much more clothes, (I don't have to fly, so I can really load up the suitcase:D ), may end up doing laundry, but no big deal for me.

Oh, and as for change, the casino has rolls of quarters, too. Just go to the cage thingy, and they will happily supply you with all the quarters you need.

[soozles]

I've traveled throughout Europe for a month on a couple occasions, and only washed bras, underwear, and socks in the sinks at night. So no way am I doing laundry on a 7 day cruise. Besides, how dirty do your clothes get really if you go to the beach or pool, take off your shorts, and sit around in a swimsuit all day? I can understand with kids as they get into everything, so you might need to do laundry for the toddler, but I wouldn't plan on doing any laundry.

[sillylizzie]

Again...I think it depends on whether or not you feel you should do laundry on your vacation.

Personally, I don't mind. I have to do it now, or when I get home. And I'd rather pack less (I use one 26'' suitcase) and do some laundry (usually 1-2 loads) in the middle of the trip (usually later at night, or early in the morning) and have the ease of one suitcase for the whole trip.