espinach1

We will be going on a cruise that will last 2 weeks (including travel) in the Mediterranean. How do you pack for such a long trip? Has anyone done laundry on a ship? Do you send it out? How about hand washing? Any tips?

doug_stallings

Not a big deal. All ships do laundry by the piece for a fee (and some lines offer a bagful of laundry sometime during the cruise for a set price, which is generally a good deal); some have coin laundries aboard as well where you can do your own. Hand-washing works for some simple things like socks and underwear if they are the right fabrics.

I don't generally see this as a problem. You pack for one week plus one day and do laundry as needed along the way. When I go on an extended trip of more than a week, I always set aside a modest budget for laundry. For two people, a budget of $30 should do it for the trip. It's certainly cheaper than checking a second suitcase even if you have to pay $50 for laundry.

I also find that Febreeze and Downy Wrinkle Release do wonders for me, especially on ships that don't have a do-it-yourself ironing room (cruise ships do not allow irons in-cabin for fire code reasons).

doug_stallings

By the way, on longer itineraries, some cruise ships throw in a load of laundry per cabin. Not all do this, though.

abram

Because I'm allergic to fabric softener, I'm unwilling to do laundry away from home. We've taken several 2+ week cruises in one suitcase per person. I'm willing to wear pants several times, although I do insist on a clean shirt every morning. For the evening, I also wear things more than once. Mix & match works for me.

ParrotMom

YOU CAN buy little packets of Woolite or Tide..oe pour some of you favorite soap in a small empty shampoo container and pack..

Eschew

Here is a tip ... bring disposable wear. i.e. things that you can wear and throw out and buy new replacement cheaply along the way.

Outter wear can be mix and match and wore more than once. On the other hand, undergarments need to be changed more frequently, that's where the disposbale come into play. You can buy disposable undergarments and they are throwaways, plus don't take up much space.

Laundry service is an option but it is averaging $3.50 a shirt or blouse and $5 a pair of pants these days; so, $30 for 2 people don't go that far. Some cruise lines offer free laundry as part of their loyalty program.

DW uses disposable undergarments and I wash mine by hand at night when needed and usually it is dry by morning. We also pack half empty suitcases and don't bring t-shirts. We buy some cheapies along the way, and if we liked it we keep it and bring them home. If they are not keepers (an impluse buy or the print faded or whatever) we will wear it and leave it behind.

We have done 3 weeks with one suit case each and one carry on between the two of us using the above tricks. We also bring a light weight folding carry on bag to bring home the t-shirts and garemnts that we bought along the way. That's why we share one carry on to start the trip.

Dayenu

I always do a quick wash in the sink - bring the "universal sink stopper" - you never know if you will be able to close the sink completely. It looks like a round flat thin piece of rubber and sold in any hardware store, here is a photo

http://www.magellans.com/store/Clothing_CareTL469

If you don't want to bother with detergent, use ship's shampoo - it's good for this purpose!

We both pack things that do not require ironing. Wash, toss on the hangers to drip overnight, arrange nicely on the ship's hangers to finish drying if needed. Oh, we bring a few thin plastic hangers for drip-drying, leave them in the cabin closet to make more room for souvenirs.

Washing a few things in the evening becomes routine.

Sassafrass

Check out what is available on your ship. We have only been on two, but both had several small, very nice, do-it-yourself laundries with washers, dryers, ironing boards, irons, etc. It was easy to just throw in a load and be done with it. Of course, the ship also did laundry for you at a reasonable cost, picked up from, and delivered back to your cabin.

Echnaton

Sassafrass is absolutely right. Most ships have self-service-laundries, some at a nominal fee, others free of charge. And all ships have laundry service at reasonable cost.

Read the ship's description for information about laundry facilities.

Cruiseanswers

its not big issue, even if some of the cruises provides all the facilities in the ship

tajz90

Lot's of people do their laundry on longer cruises. Easy to do. We lost all of our luggage on a Med cruise a few years back and we only had a few pieces we bought. Around 11 or 12 in the evening, we would wash our clothes... Put the stuff in the washer and go up on deck and then we would go back down and put it in the dryer and do something else. The only suggestion I would make is if you plan on doing the wash, bring a tiny magnet to mark which is yours.

Scooterr

Only one of the cruises I have been on (four total) has had a self-service laundry.

If you can't find the answer on your cruise line website, ask on the relevant cruise critic board. You'll get an answer.