Doing laundry?

[figment3258]

So I am thinking about my trip next year and packing 9 days of cloths for 5 people takes up a lot of space has anyone ever packed half the amount of cloths and done laundry half way through? We are staying port Orleans riverside thanks!

 

[dawnhaze]

I did laundry on my 11-day trip in January. I packed a folding hamper with carrying handles, some detergent "pods" and dryer sheets. I was staying at AoA and the laundry room was equipped to take credit cards, so I didn't have to bring quarters. I don't think all laundry rooms on property are like this, though.

 

[Meshell2002]

We did laundry halfway through in 2009 when we stayed POFQ. Their laundry then was coin operated and next to the pool. So we took a short park day, DH loaded up the kids to the pool, I used one of our suitcases to transport the dirties down to the laundry room. Since there was no one else using it I used three machines at once and got it all done in under two hours...visiting with them at the pool and periodically checking on it during that time. Since we usually take some resort time it didn't slow us down at all, and it was great with a toddler to not have to guess how many outfits per day we would need.

They had a change machine that took dollars and fives.

In fact we now do DVC rental in part due to the laundry facility and being able to pack lighter!

Maybe someone that has stayed at riverside can fill u in on location/ logistics.

 

[CourtneyL]

We've stayed at Riverside in the past and the laundry is very convenient. There are laundry rooms by the pool and you need to swipe your room key (or possibly tap your room key or magic band) to enter. It costs $2 to wash and $2 to dry. The machines take quarters (unless this has changed in the past year, but I doubt it). The washers and dryers take about 30 minutes each.

I find that if our trip is longer than 4 or 5 days its just easier to do laundry part way though the trip. I usually pack a mesh laundry bag and then throw it on the stroller to walk to the laundry room.

 

[stormer]

When we don't use the villas we plan one laundry visit in the middle of our trip. I bring pop up hampers from Dollar Tree. They keep the room organized and serve as laundry baskets to carry the clothes. I pack those laundry pods of detergent and Aric softener sheets. One good thing about CS is there is a sundry room near the gym so DH will take care of it for me while he visits the gym.

 

[texasroni75]

We drove to WDW in 2009 and stayed at POR. For our 10 day trip (7 @ WDW and 3 on the road) we brought 5-6 days worth of clothes so halfway through our trip we did laundry. The laundry room was very convenient - we were in Alligator Bayou. Our oldest DD stayed in the room with the younger kids - who were already asleep as it was after 9m. DH and I each took a turn going back up to the room to make sure everyone was ok. We were able to get 3 medium-sized loads of laundry done in about 2 hours. Drying always seems to take more than one cycle at any laundromat, otherwise it would have taken less time. Bring quarters and your own detergent if you can.

 

[bankgirl05]

POR has laundry facilities at the "quiet pools" I loved that, I could handle both of my kids in the pool while DH went to check on the laundry. I did read somewhere that the machines are no longer coin machines, Credit Cards only now, but I am not certain about that.

This trip we are staying 11 nights, so I am planning on doing laundry 2x, but we are staying at POFQ this time, so no "quiet pools". We may start it/take turns at bedtime or during the outdoor movie.

 

[kim929]

So I am thinking about my trip next year and packing 9 days of cloths for 5 people takes up a lot of space has anyone ever packed half the amount of cloths and done laundry half way through? We are staying port Orleans riverside thanks!

I always do laundry during our stay. Sometimes twice. I put it in the wash then sit by the pool.
I bring my detergent from home and make sure I have quarters it was 2.00 for the washer and dryer for each load.
Every year I say I'm going to bring less clothes and still always over pack....

 

[bigbabyblues]

We usually do laundry partway during our trips. Most of the time, DH gets up early and does it while the boys and I sleep in, or else he goes down after we go to bed.

 

[dminnie]

It's more convenient at WDW than in the "real" world. They have more machines available at WDW. We stayed at a 12 story hotel this summer that only had ONE washer and dryer. There was a lot of competition for it and I got up at 6 am to use it in the end.
We frequently do a couple loads midway through our vacations. The tough part for me is that we're always on the go and I hate taking time from our rare down times to do laundry. I also find it frustrating trying to dry things. We don't like everything to dry to the bone and then shrink in the dryer. There are only so many places in a hotel room to hang slightly damp stuff up.

 

[GoldieLocks5]

We ended up doing laundry with a couple days to go on our first trip b/c we didn't pack enough - we just did it while swimming at the pool one night (ASMu). But it's not something I would plan, for me, vacation = not having to cook, not having to do laundry, etc

so the next trip we packed 2 outfits/day and a couple spares and did much better.

 

[Jessica14]

I did some during our last trip to POP. It was a pool day and I think I did it so we had some clean clothes when we got home. It wasn't a big deal, but If I hadn't had the block of time, not sure I would have made time for it.

 

[MommyBryn]

I always do laundry on our trips now (we're usually at POR). I take my own detergent and I pack for about 2/3 of the trip (just because with the little ones it's easier- and cheaper- to pack a little more and have back-up clothes than it is to only pack half and risk having to do multiple tiny laundry loads (instead of just one or two big ones) just to make it through! LOL

I usually do laundry in the middle of the day during a "nap time" if we've come back from the resort, otherwise I'll do it at night, and I just return to my room and watch the time. I kind of find it enjoyable...??? Except for the fact that I feel I have to "keep tabs" on our laundry (like someone might really be interested in stealing it! HA!) so I feel like I either have to sit in the boring laundry room which is nearly impossible with little ones, or I have to keep coming and going from our room, which is miserable if you're not right close to the laundry facility. Someone more laid back than me wouldn't have that issue though. LOL

The only downside is that I've found the dryers rarely get things completely dry (despite the screen being cleaned and having a proper amount of clothes inside), so it usually takes 2 times to get them dry enough or we hang them in the room (I'm considering bringing a line to string across the room next time, for the things I don't want in the dryer and the things that didn't dry in the first place).

 

[momto3gr8boys]

I did laundry on my 11-day trip in January. I packed a folding hamper with carrying handles, some detergent "pods" and dryer sheets. I was staying at AoA and the laundry room was equipped to take credit cards, so I didn't have to bring quarters. I don't think all laundry rooms on property are like this, though.

I generally do the same when we go in the summer or stay more than a week, and just did two loads at the BC last week. With 5 people, 10 days and it being AUGUST (where we often changed clothes before dinner), there was no way I could pack that much clothing. It's really no big deal as the laundry is usually near the pool and doesn't take that long.

 

[njmom47]

Since we were there for a baseball tournament, I HAD to do laundry!! I thought it was great at CBR. Will plan on doing it again (WHEN we go next time)!

 

[figment3258]

Thanks for all the response! It sounds like planing just half the cloths and doing laundry while my dh takes the kids swimming is a great option! Thanks

 

[JLa01844]

I love packing less and just taking a breather to swim and do laundry!

 

[luvmy2babies]

I did laundry on both our 2012 and 2013 trips. Our 2012 trip was 9 nights at Disney and, our 2013 trip was 8 nights at Disney and two nights on the road. In 2012, we stayed at All-Star Movies. In 2013, we stayed at Pop.

I travel alone with my 2 children so I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to do it, so in 2012, I packed like I wouldn’t be able to do laundry, but planned to try. I was able to get any change I needed in the laundry room using cash I had. I think the machine took $1 and $5 bills. I did go to the front desk to get the small bills from the $20 bill I had. The laundry room also had detergents. It was $2.00 to wash a load and $2.00 for 30 minutes of dryer time. It was easy. The laundry room there was right next to the children’s splash area, so we spent the evening out by the pool doing laundry. Looking at various maps, the laundry room seems to usually be near a pool so that helps.

In 2013, I planned ahead to do laundry so I packed those Tide pods and packed significantly less clothing and it worked out fine. I didn’t do it half-way through. I did it our last night in 2012, but in 2013, I did it with 3 days left in our trip. For me it depends on our touring schedule. I do laundry when we have a short park day during the 2nd half of our trip. I drove in 2013, so I meant to bring on of the kids’ fold up hampers, but forgot it, so I just got a couple of extra laundry bags from the front desk.

 

[mm1971]

So I am thinking about my trip next year and packing 9 days of cloths for 5 people takes up a lot of space has anyone ever packed half the amount of cloths and done laundry half way through? We are staying port Orleans riverside thanks!

We had never done laundry until this trip. We packed for the full 8 days, but decided to do some laundry during some down time. We were staying at POR as well. They have so many machines, we basically just threw everything we had in and a few hours later everything was done. The washers are right by the pool so we just hung at the pool swimming. Next time we'll definitely be packing for just over half the time and planning a morning or afternoon for laundry to eliminate bringing all the luggage.

 

[MinnieLovesMickey12]

The 2 times we stayed on property with all 5 of us once was for 11 days and once was for 9 days and I brought enough clothes for half the trip for all 5 of us and midway through I did a few loads (2) of laundry and had everybody ready to go for the rest of the trip.

When Dh and I go we just pack enough for every day no matter how many days it is.

Now that we are Wyndham owners and will be staying at Bonnet Creek with a washer and dryer I will probably only use the machines to wash my dirty clothes the night before we come home so that I can come home and just put away clean clothes and not have to do laundry.

If you are going to use the laundry room at the resort, follow this piece of advice...do not go in the evening after you have been at the parks all day because that is what everybody else does and the machines can be full for hours. GO very early in the morning while everybody else is asleep. They leave the laundry rooms unlocked.