If you are going to Italy, you might want to invest in a travel iron. Apparently, hotels are not allowed to provide them for in room use. <BR><BR>The three hotels we stayed at (Venice, Florence, and Rome) all had pressing services. The cost varied from $2.50 for a shirt to $9 at the St. Regis Grand in Rome. In our two weeks, we probably spent over $75 just for pressing. <BR><BR>

Why in the world would anyone take a article of clothing that HAS to be pressed on vacation??

Well I guess some of us just like to wear more than t-shirts, shorts and teevas.

A really practical piece of advice would be to pack clothes that are not likely to wrinkle and to pack them carefully (to avoid wrinkles). If you still have an international wrinkle incident, consider buying an iron while in Italy (and leave it there). That way, you won't have to worry about electricity issues (and you won't have to lug it to and from Italy).

RAE - I never (well, seldom) wear t-shirts and do not take shorts on most European trips. And I NEVER take nor need a travel iron. Many good looking styles are in either wrinkl-free fabrics or are meant to wrinkle - like broomstick skirts. And light garments like some silks that wrinkle a little will smooth out simply by hanging then in the bathroom while you shower.<BR><BR>I bought a very good travel iron a few years ago - took it on one trip and have not used it since. In fact I am selling it next weeked at a garage sale . . . .

Rae We stopped using travel irons years ago. Shake your garmet out and hang it in the bathroom while you take a shower. All of the wrinkles will disappear. Carol

I was also sorry not to have a travel iron in Italy. I'm wondering how those spray on dewrinklers work.

I took a bottle of Wrinkle Release (can buy at any grocery or drugstore by the laundry detergent)on our last trip and that worked great.

I agree with RAE - a travel iron is cheap (&lt;$20 at Target), takes up hardly any space and is no trouble to use. <BR>Even perfectly packed travel-friendly fabrics wrinkle pretty badly the first time you wash them in a sink. A travel iron won't let you do heavy-duty ironing, just enough to get the major wrinkles out. On a vacation, that's all you would need.<BR>

Thanks RAE, helpful advice! I had been planning to leave my travel iron home this time, assuming I could just borrow one at the hotel, but you've saved the day!

"Even perfectly packed travel-friendly fabrics wrinkle pretty badly the first time you wash them in a sink."<BR><BR>Absolutely NOT true!! I have lots of stylish clothing, some suitable for business travel, that looks perfect after being washed in the sink and hung to dry. Some of it is from Travelsmith, some from Chico's, some just stuff I've found here and there. All T-shirts are not cotton and casual -- there are similar tops of Tencel and rayon blends, some prints, some textured fabric, that are much nicer looking and wash well. There are pants that look and feel like rayon crepe but are polyester and NEVER wrinkle. Even Liz Claiborne makes linen pants that come out of a washer and dryer looking like they were ironed. (To be fair, I don't know that these would look the same if washed by hand.) Gauzy silk chiffon shirts wash and drip dry like a dream. <BR><BR>So you can carry your travel iron, or you can shop smarter and use the space and weight for an extra book or pair of shoes.

If you purchase your travel iron in the U.S. don't you need an adaptor for Italian electric?

"an extra book"? Now that's what I call a total waste of something to take on a trip. If you have time to read, you're not doing it right. My travel item is about the size and weight of a paperback, and despite what anyone says, I like looking fresh. Freshly pressed is nicer than wrinkly care free casual in a nice place.

Hey, I like to read about where I am. I like knowing stuff about what I'm seeing. De gustibus non disputandam.<BR><BR>And my wrinkle-free clothing, as I said in my post, is not all casual. Some of it is suitable for business travel.

xxx: What do you do on the plane or the trains? For many of us books compliment our travels. It is not like we sit in the hotel reading instead of exploring our environment, but travel often includes a little down time (and a looong flight).

How can such a benign post elicit such nastiness!<BR>A travel iron is a good idea for many of us. The advice to bring one to Italy was helpful. Basta.

xxx -- if you think THIS is a "nasty" post, you sure haven't been reading some of the others on this forum!<BR><BR>I hope you didn't mean me, because I did not intend to be nasty at all.

...I'm the X that bought his iron at Target. Marilyn, I didn't mean to imply that I'm an expert on travel fabrics, just that it's easy enough to pack an iron if one was so inclined. I still think a travel iron would be a good idea for those travelers who want to look neat, but haven't bought the latest travel clothes, or don't want to spend a lot of money for the occasional trip.<BR><BR>I think some of the resistance to taking a travel iron stems from some peoples' desires to leave the real world behind, but I think some ou you make it out to be more of a hassle than it is. Anyway, to each his or her own. <BR> <BR><BR>

Actually, Non Confrontational X, I think if people rarely iron their clothes at home then they sure don't take a travel iron in their suitcase, and if they iron their T-shirts and pajamas, then they probably do. And then there is everybody in between.<BR><BR>As for spending the money on a travel wardrobe, it's funny, but since travel has been a passion of mine for decades, and I used to do a fair amount of business travel, I rarely buy clothing without thinking about how it will travel. Just seems to be a habit I've gotten into. (Before anyone jumps on me, of course there are exceptions.) As a result, most of my wardrobe travels pretty well. I can't say I miss doing a lot of ironing at home, either.

I guess some people are sheets and underwear ironers and some aren't. To each her own. I use my iron at home maybe once a month, if that, and nothing in my closets is wrinkled. I just returned from a 12 day trip to the East coast, took a 21 inch rollaboard, and had plenty of totally unwrinkled clothing for Williamsburg and Wash DC. <BR><BR>