Breenee's travel tip #2
 

For North American travelers who are about to purchase a voltage converter for their upcoming travels, double check to see if your electrical items are not already dual voltage.

Many hairdryers, curling irons and battery chargers are already dual/world voltage and only require an adapter, which is much cheaper than a converter + adapter. Simply check your electrical item for the voltage info. If it reads 110-240 then all you need is an adapter plug. Franzus makes an "all in one" adapter which is one unit with about 7 different electrical prongs.

I've noticed that some of my traveling friends will plug their dual wattage appliances into a converter, then adapter plug and wonder why it doesn't work as well as it does at home. Many hotels offer a hairdryer as an in room amenity but I find that they are often the inferior wall mount type that resemble a marital aid on a hose.
If haircare is as important to you as it is to me while traveling, bring your own hairdryer!

Love,
Breenee

Another tip on this subject is to purchase an inexpensive dryer at your destination and then you will have it every time you travel and you can forget about converters and adapters.

Peg

I just thought I would share my experiences with this. I brought an adaptor kit and a small hairdryer with me to Florence in March. Both times I plugged the hairdryer in (I tried in two seperate outlets), it blew the fuse in our room and we had to go to the front desk because we had no electricity. I finally gave up (after two embarrassing incidents) and asked to borrow a hairdryer. We were told by the hotel owners that the hotel was very old and it cannot handle some of the more powerful appliances, even with a converter kit. Apparently they were used to Americans blowing the fuses in their rooms! Anyways, just something to think about when you contemplate bringing your own appliance.

I have always wanted to know why hotels in Europe would, apparently almost universally, install "inadequate" hair dryers.

Does ANYONE use them? Are they adequate for European hair and inadequate for Amercian hair?

I am completely serious about this. If these dryers don't work then why do the hotels bother to install them?

I dunno, I have never had a problem using the hotel hair dryers....and I stay in 2* hotels.

Most hairdryers I have seen in the rooms have been fine (the few I've been in that actually included them), although we did have a weird vaccuum-like contraption in our room in London. Never did figure out quite how to use it!

I've used the hotel hair dryers in London & Paris with no problems. I've read quite a few reports of people blowing fuses or frying the hair dryer when trying to use a converter.

I had no problems with the hotel hairdryers in Italy. Since they are not as powerful, it may help to use an Aquis or other hair drying towel to absorb more water before you start to dry.