Doing laundry onboard

[sweetpee_1993]

We do laundry once on cruises longer than 4 nights and more often on cruises longer than 7 nights. It really takes no time out of my day and I'd much rather take less stuff with me. I tend to do laundry early in the morning to avoid the crowds. I usually toss our stuff in a washer, go exercise, return to put it in a dryer, go have breakfast and then pick it up when finished. Do try to make sure that you're there when you washer/dryer finishes though. The laundry rooms can get very busy so those machines are needed.

Yes! That last part! We really try to time our returns carefully never leaving anything sitting idle. I'd love to also add that with front load washers, when you empty them & they'll be sitting there unused, please leave the door at least slightly open. The inside is wet. If you close it you're trapping that moisture inside. That's where the funky musty smell in public washing machines comes from. Also, an open door is the universal sign for "this machine is available".

Can you tell I've spent a lot of time in laundr-o-mats???? LOL!

 

[Meriweather]

I only do it on the long cruises......14 days or more.
I used to use the purex sheet. Now take some kind of pods.
I am an early riser, so easy for me to do it at 6 am while DH is still sleeping.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

We sent our laundry out on our recent Med cruise-- twice. Total cost was just over $50. We also washed some quick dry items in the sink on the ship and at our hotels in London and Barcelona. My DH and I appreciated that we had only carryon for our 16 nights away! -- Suzanne

 

[canyoncam]

My brother bought a really cool shirt for my nephew in St. Martin and since my nephew wanted to wear it every day for the next 4 days of the cruise my brother wound up doing laundry every night! But my brother LOVES to do laundry and was quite disappointed there were no self laundry rooms on the Royal Caribbean ship we just got off of. Every week leading up to RC cruise he kept saying "How can they not have a laundry room?" He did survive a week without laundry though

 

[Mickeyhugger]

But my brother LOVES to do laundry and was quite disappointed there were no self laundry rooms on the Royal Caribbean ship we just got off of.

Tell him to come cruising with our family, he can do OURS!

Isn't it interesting how some of us enjoy mundane chores? I hate doing laundry, but I LOVE folding towels. Give me a mountain of towels while a good program (or movie) is on TV, and I'll fold for hours!

 

[Drusilla99]

We have sent laundry out on the dcl cruises we've done. It's well worth the $50 for me to not spend 1 minute spending my vacation sitting in the laundry room! I have had to go to the laundry to iron from time to time & the washers/dryers are always in full use with people just standing around waiting...no thank you. Dcl delivers it back next day nice & neat, never had any problems sending out.

 

[cheeser]

I do laundry every trip, whether it's at the parks or on DCL.
It costs too much in baggage fees anymore to take extra suit cases.
So....I just know...that I am going to have to do laundry for a few hours on 1 day.
At the parks...I do it at night...while my family swims. Sometimes we end a park day a little earlier...so my DH and DS8 can swim...and I know I will be at the laundry.
On DCL: I usually go during the day while my family swims or uses the aquaduck on an at sea day.

I just use their laundry facilities and I charge my room key. I wash anything that might possibly stain and then socks and underwear.

Sometimes we end up wearing shorts or a nicer outfit twice if it isn't dirty or smelly...but I always wash socks and underwear and pajamas while on board.

I usually take my Ipad or a book...and sit in the laundry room while my stuff is running. Last 2 cruises...my DMIL sat with me and we visited. I've noticed that lots of people put their loads in and just leave and don't check on them...which is really rude...because sometimes someone wants to use that washer or dryer that has sat finished for a few hours.

Doing the laundry on the trip that way...when I get home...it's not so depressing. I don't have to think about all the clothes that needs washed....just about putting them away...and maybe 1 or 2 quick loads of last stuff that wore.

and believe me...I'd rather do laundry on the ship...than at home! At least you have Disney atmosphere.

DH carries the loads to and from the laundry room for me and checks on me every once in a while...usually with a treat...like an ice cream cone...or a soda...

Sometimes I will go back to the room...with a finished load...and to use the restroom...but I like to get the laundry done and quickly so not to hog the machines.

 

[RickFreeze]

We do our laundry leading up to the last day, especially if we are going to WDW after. We brought some of the Tide pods in a zip lock baggie and it made the jobs so simple, no need for anything other than those simple little things. We also did a few loads one night the last time we were at WDW on a night after a day at Universal, since it closes early (or we got bored) and we had plenty of evening hours to do laundry. Always a few hours to get multiple loads done if needed, makes it possible to pack lighter if you plan on washing the laundry and don't have to pack enough clothes for the whole trip.

 

[DisneyDreamer2504]

I've never done laundry on a cruise, or any vacation for that matter. If I do a longer trip, more than 7 days, than I'd consider it. Because it's just DH and I, packing isn't really an issue. I actually don't mind doing laundry or the amount of time spent doing it, mostly I just don't like to re-wear items during a trip. When I vacation, especially on a cruise, I try to look and feel dressed up, and I bring all my favorite pieces of clothing. I'm sure no one notices or cares, but it's one of my favorite things about vacation, to feel like I look my best all the time. Sounds silly now that I've wrote it down, but it's relaxing to me to look nice, part of what makes a trip special, and that includes wearing different outfits throughout the trip.

 

[sabrecmc]

We have done laundry on cruises where it is part of a longer vacation or where we were in Europe and so packing light. It is really convenient. We take the Purex 3-in-1 laundry sheets to use (includes detergent, softener and anti-static in 1 sheet thing). Really great for travel.

I agree with others to please be considerate and remove clothes promptly. On sea days on longer cruises, the machines fill up. You may find your clothes placed on the laundry table if you leave them in there too long!

 

[jetskigrl]

I will be trying out the laundry room for the first time on our upcoming Alaska cruise. We have 2 nights in Vancouver pre-cruise, then the cruise, then 2 nights in Seattle, then an overnight train ride home (almost 2 weeks total). I figure by the time we get on the ship, we will already be on our 3rd change of clothes but it will be almost time to change from shorts/capris to long pants. So I will probably wash all the summer-type clothes very early in the cruise and then put them away until the end of the cruise when we will need them again.

We will also have access to a laundry room in our Seattle hotel so hopefully I can just wash once on the ship early in the trip and then not worry about it the rest of the cruise portion.

 

[DahliaRW]

I did last time. We were only on a 7 day cruise, but we spent 5 days in Florida before the cruise and 5 days at WDW after. So I did one load at the hotel night before the cruise, then some towards the end of the cruise, and finally I did a quick load at WDW one night to get us through. I brought the travel size bottle of the "method" detergent from Target, since we all have sensitive skin. It was not a hassle at all. I never had to wait for a machine. I did tend to do laundry at night after the kids were in bed, though.

I also have a collapsible laundry hamper I bring on vacation. Makes hauling things to/from the laundry room easy, and gives us a dirty clothes hamper!

 

[cedricandsophie]

I tend to do laundry a few times on a cruise. Going on the med July 5 cruise next month which is. 9 days so will probably do laundry 2 or 3 times. Try to go on port days that we are not getting off ship...we usually have been to most ports already. I take either pods and some dryer sheets or the combined laundry dryer sheets that I have saved up. I always take a couple garbage bags to hold dirty clothes. All other cruises we have been on offer free washer and dryers so it is always irritating to pay but that's Disney.

 

[gotomu212]

My widowed mother joined us on the Baltic in 2010 and made a love connection with another single grandfather in the laundry room!

We traveled bor 25 days (12 before the cruise started) with 3 adults, 1 toddler and did laundry when we first boarded. She said it was so "exciting sitting in there watching all the drama and activity and I guess the other man thought so too.

It was very cute and while nothing really came of it she did have someone to talk to occasionally in cove cafe or on deck and they saw a movie together one afternoon. I kept asking my husband if I should have a talk with her about safety and boys.

 

[Maddysdaddy]

I absolutely do laundry on board. Between a couple of days at WDW beforehand and the cruise itself, my family has neither the room nor the inclination to pack 10 days worth of clothes.

I've always used the laundry facilities about halfway through the cruise and after my wife and daughter have gone to sleep (10/10:30).

I'll throw in 3 or 4 loads, run up on deck to grab a couple of slices of pizza and a drink, come back down to the laundry room, pop in my earbuds, open up a book and have some "quiet" time.

I'd be listening to music and reading a book in my room at that time of night anyway, so might as well get some laundry done at the same time.

 

[robin19871]

I will do laundry on anything over 3 days.. I detest dirty laundry with a passion on my vacations and have no problem throwing a load in before everyone is awake and have a cup of coffee and have it put back away when it is dry.. I do wake up very early even on vacation so I am usually the only one there doing it..

 

[MakiraMarlena]

Never. I do not want to spend time sitting in the laundry room.

I do bring along detergent sheets in case something MUST be washed but it hasn't happened.

 

[kdeans1010]

My widowed mother joined us on the Baltic in 2010 and made a love connection with another single grandfather in the laundry room!

We traveled bor 25 days (12 before the cruise started) with 3 adults, 1 toddler and did laundry when we first boarded. She said it was so "exciting sitting in there watching all the drama and activity and I guess the other man thought so too.

It was very cute and while nothing really came of it she did have someone to talk to occasionally in cove cafe or on deck and they saw a movie together one afternoon. I kept asking my husband if I should have a talk with her about safety and boys.

This is adorable!

I am planning on doing laundry. I am bringing my cloth laundry bag that I'm going to hang in the closet. How much is it to do laundry? We are going on the Wonder for 2 weeks plus 2 days in California beforehand... I think I will need laundry.

 

[noahdove]

What does it cost to do laundry onboard? I know I will have to do it on our Alaskan cruise, and about how long does it take for a load? Thank you

 

[mdvlprof]

I only do laundry on longer cruises, and then only undies etc., and maybe t-shirts.
If pants get a little smelly ... that's what febreeze is for.
I have, on occasion, used the 'bag sale' [don't recall if DCL does this], and skipped doing laundry all-together.