Laundry while travelling - Portable drying rack?
Aug 21, 2016, 6:53 pm
#46
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: USA
Programs: SA Air, Air Canada, KLM, BA,Lufthansa, United, AA, Hawaiian, Air New Zealnd, Qantas, Virgin Atlantic
Posts: 777
I've never looked for a drying rack that would be small enough to travel, and big enough to be usable.
For the hand wash I have a clothesline I made with loop bungee cords. I can easily adjust it depending on the length I need. I have knots tied in them that enables me to hang it from pretty much anywhere and the clothing does not move or slide down. https://www.amazon.com/TEKTON-6261-1...p+bungee+cords
I have finally put together a travel wardrobe that I keep in an extra bedroom closet. Everything can either handle the abusive laundry service on a cruise ship/hotel or they are very light things that can be easily hand washed.
This makes it so easy to pack.
For the hand wash I have a clothesline I made with loop bungee cords. I can easily adjust it depending on the length I need. I have knots tied in them that enables me to hang it from pretty much anywhere and the clothing does not move or slide down. https://www.amazon.com/TEKTON-6261-1...p+bungee+cords
I have finally put together a travel wardrobe that I keep in an extra bedroom closet. Everything can either handle the abusive laundry service on a cruise ship/hotel or they are very light things that can be easily hand washed.
This makes it so easy to pack.
Aug 24, 2016, 4:09 pm
#47
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Rio Rancho, NM - USA
Programs: DL, UA, WN, Amtrak, Hyatt, Accor
Posts: 1,793
My laundry strategies in Europe include booking airbnb's with a washer or long-stay hotels with washer and dryer in the room (the Adina Hotels chain in 6 European cities comes to mind).
I often resort to washing clothes in the hotel sink, roll them in a towel, then hang on hangers I've brought from home. If you roll items so that they aren't dripping, just hang them in the closet overnight.
In some cities you can find "fluff and fold" laundry shops at a reasonable cost. Use Yelp to find them. In NYC I use JYA Cleaners at 10 E. 37th St. for same-day service.
I often resort to washing clothes in the hotel sink, roll them in a towel, then hang on hangers I've brought from home. If you roll items so that they aren't dripping, just hang them in the closet overnight.
In some cities you can find "fluff and fold" laundry shops at a reasonable cost. Use Yelp to find them. In NYC I use JYA Cleaners at 10 E. 37th St. for same-day service.
Apr 29, 2018, 12:26 pm
#48
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Austin, TX
Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Gold, SPG Gold
Posts: 141
I travel to Europe, Asia, etc. with 4 small plastic laundry hooks (e.g. Amazon:
and a couple of foldable plastic hangars (e.g.,
). Even very nice hotels often lack convenient racks or bars to hang stuff from, and these let me improvise and use anything that sticks out enough as a place to hang stuff. If they do have good towel rack or shower curtain rod, even better.
Almost everything I travel with is lightweight/fast-dry - Ex Officio, WoolX, Icebreaker, etc. Engineered synthetics and merino wool are your friends! 5 minutes at night is all it takes most days. By the time I wring out the items in a towel, they are dry enough to hang anywhere in the room - no dripping. I went directly from a nearly three week vacation in the South Pacific to a 5 day business trip to Europe, all from my trusty B&R roll-aboard. (I'm a guy, that might make a difference.) The only things that I need hotel laundering for are jeans (horrible choice for lightweight travel, but I usually wear a pair and pack another) and cotton business dress shirts (I usually pack one or two for dressy meetings). Except for long trips, these can usually wait until I get home.
The towel-wringing step is the most important. I'm always amazed when I've squeezed every bit of water I could out of a synthetic t-shirt and in the towel step the cotton towel comes away soaked. The clothes are dry in a few hours, and the towel is still damp the next morning. (Also a good illustration of why cotton is awful for travel. Works that way with perspiration, too.)
Almost everything I travel with is lightweight/fast-dry - Ex Officio, WoolX, Icebreaker, etc. Engineered synthetics and merino wool are your friends! 5 minutes at night is all it takes most days. By the time I wring out the items in a towel, they are dry enough to hang anywhere in the room - no dripping. I went directly from a nearly three week vacation in the South Pacific to a 5 day business trip to Europe, all from my trusty B&R roll-aboard. (I'm a guy, that might make a difference.) The only things that I need hotel laundering for are jeans (horrible choice for lightweight travel, but I usually wear a pair and pack another) and cotton business dress shirts (I usually pack one or two for dressy meetings). Except for long trips, these can usually wait until I get home.
The towel-wringing step is the most important. I'm always amazed when I've squeezed every bit of water I could out of a synthetic t-shirt and in the towel step the cotton towel comes away soaked. The clothes are dry in a few hours, and the towel is still damp the next morning. (Also a good illustration of why cotton is awful for travel. Works that way with perspiration, too.)
Last edited by txirish; Apr 29, 2018 at 12:41 pm Reason: link weirdness
May 15, 2018, 6:30 am
#49
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Philadelphia
Programs: Rapid Rewards, AAdvantage,
Posts: 120
I have a folding clothes line that has its own clothes pins and you can adjust the distance between pins. The length adjusts, it's stretchy, and has hooks on both ends. It works nicely if you can find a place to hook it and (if not alone) if your travel companion is flexible enough to work around it while the clothes dry.