Doing laundry on the ship

[coleland]

I've heard people say to bring a baggie of detergent and dryer sheets, does that mean that they don't offer detergent in the laundry room and you HAVE to bring your own? I don't mind paying for it there, I just don't want to have to pack it. Also, I know everything is paid with your KTTW card on the ship, but do they have change for the machines or do you HAVE to bring your own ahead of time? Thanks

 

[missmulan]

the vending machine only accepts coins....4 quarters for each item. there is a change machine but just be careful because it may not always be in order. you don't have to pack your own detergent. you may buy it there. a baggie of detergent will run the risk of spilling in your bag.

if you have time, you can even go to any laundry manufacturer (i.e. tide) and sign up for a free sample. i just received the tide coldwater sample sized detergent good for one load.

 

[coleland]

perfect, thanks!

 

[tvguy]

Just don't try and do laundry on a sea day, especially the last sea day of the cruise. CM told us that is the busiest time in the laundry rooms, and it was.

 

[aprilgail2]

Its not even a matter of the cost of it on the ship...its that they tend to run out of it and when you want to do launry you get there and there is no detergant in the machine to even buy. Also the change machine was empty twice when I was there, I pack quarters now for that!

 

[clh2]

Just my dryer hint - shhh - don't tell anyone! You can put twice the money in the dryers for twice the dryer time. Most things won't dry in 1 cycle anyway. That way, you'll have time to actually do something on the ship before you get your stuff out of the dryer.

 

[Goin4forty]

I packed travel size Tide, a zip-lock bag of dryer sheets and 3 rolls of quarters. (only used 2) It is $1.00 to wash and $1.00 to dry but the dry cycle needs to run twice to completely dry.

I also want to point out how busy the machines were right after Castaway Cay.

 

[kcashner]

I've always found that it is easier to bring along detergent. It saves me from having to depend on the vending machine on the ship. I save the little individual boxes that I get when I check into our timeshare (easier to bring a big box or bottle there) and use them on the ship. You can get some of the single use "compressed" tide (looks like a giant pill) at Big Lots.

If push comes to shove, you can probably buy individual boxes at your local laundromat cheaper than on the ship, and then you will know that you have them rather than depending on the ship's machine to not be empty when you need it.

 

[JulieWent]

DH wanted me to point out that at 5:00 a.m. the laundry room is virtually empty. (He is an early riser and got up to do our laundry one morning. He actually ended up in there about 4:45!)

(We pack those little laundry tablets in a baggie. That way they don't spill.)

Julie

 

[disneylover5]

I also did the laundry at about 5am. It was great and the laundry room was empty.....and then sunrise on the 10th deck! Coffee by myself.....I was in heaven.

I just buy the detergent on the ship.....I do not worry about bringing quarters. I go to guest services (open 24/7) and get rolls of quarters there. I love seeing their faces wihen some crazy lady shows up at 5am asking for quarters.

 

[Buckeye1]

I just found a Tide sample size bottle (4 loads) at Target in their sample section by the pharmacy for $.99. Seemed like a good deal in a sealed bottle.

 

[Serena6010]

I just found a Tide sample size bottle (4 loads) at Target in their sample section by the pharmacy for $.99. Seemed like a good deal in a sealed bottle.

We bought the same one and it worked out great. I prefer the liquid to the powder tablets. We used the tablets on our first cruise.....they don't break up easily in the wash....some residual was left over on the clothes.

 

[ljql_5969]

Thanks! Good info!

 

[FreeTime]

I have bought the same Tide ones at Target in the past. When you take the big lid off there is a smaller lid also, which is great to prevent spills. However, being the cheapy that I am, I tried to refill the bottles in the little hole, that didn't work out too well. Unfortunately, I haven't seen these at my Target in quite awhile and I gave some away on our last trip to my SIL who was travelling with us. Our stores don't cary the tabs around here any more either!