Travel Laundry
Being an expat, living in the Czech Republic, has been a wonderful adventure. Along with exploring the Czech Republic, I’ve had opportunities to travel with my husband to other parts of Europe and explore new sites. We don’t have a car, but do use public transport (planes, trains, and buses) to travel from place-to-place. Traveling by public transport you soon learn the necessities of packing light and lean. My Czech husband taught me to pack one small suitcase (sized to fit in the overhead bins of most planes) and make my clothes last a week or longer. I am very grateful for his lessons in packing and how to travel with less. Traveling light helps to save money and strength for those long walks in new places.
Packing light and lean has taught me the useful technique of doing laundry in our hotel room. The first trip was strange as I was used to taking everything in a car and not even thinking about doing laundry until we got home after a trip. Doing laundry on a trip was the very last thing I wanted to think about. However, I soon learned doing laundry on a trip is a good way to save money and space when traveling. Now I plan on doing laundry on our trips and don’t give it a second thought.
Necessary Items List
Here’s a short list of helpful items to have along on a trip in order to do your laundry:
Microfiber towel: to wring water out of clothes before hanging them to dry
Laundry detergent: one cup of powdered detergent, or you can use detergent sheets
Bar soap: bar soap, such as Dove or Ivory, helps to get soiled and smelly areas cleaner
Flat sink stopper: use to hold water in a sink
Plastic or inflatable hangers: to hang clothes to dry
Microfiber Towels. Each of these items is small, light and easy to pack in a small suitcase. Microfiber towels hold more water than a regular hotel towel, and can be wrung out time after time to use on more laundry. Travel laundry detergent is available in various forms. I usually take our normal powdered laundry detergent in a ziplock plastic bag to use on a trip. However, you might find using laundry detergent sheets easier. Use the detergent you prefer, keeping in mind you want to pack light.
Bar soap. Another helpful item to have along is bar soap. A medium-sized bar of soap is easy to pack, and is helpful to use on the dirtier and smellier parts of clothing such as underarms, collars and the soles of socks. If you do use bar soap, make sure to choose soap that rinses clean like Dove or Ivory. Either of these work.
Flat sink stopper. The flat sink stopper is necessary for doing laundry in hotels. Some hotels, at least in Europe, ask you not to do laundry in your room. To prevent guests from doing laundry, hotels often remove the sink stopper from the bathroom sink. This is frustrating when you need to do laundry. A sink stopper will sit flat on the bottom of the sink or tub, holding in water while you wash clothes.
Hangers. Lastly, I always pack about four plastic hangers. The hangers not only give you more room to hang your clothes, but they offer a place to hang and dry your laundry. Plastic hangers can be hard to pack, but there are inflatable hangers you can take along. These hangers deflate and take up little space in your luggage.
How to Wash Your Clothes
Here’s a short video showing how to wash your clothes in a sink. I use this same method when we travel, but I use the flat sink stopper to hold water in the sink for washing and rinsing. The video shows the water is left running, but this is a waste of water resources.
Other Laundry Tips
Other laundry tips include pre-treating spots and other soiled areas on your clothes. You can pre-treat using the bar soap, or even shampoo. After pre-treating, allow your clothes to sit for a few minutes to help the soap loosen the dirt.
It’s very important to wash your clothes in the correct temperature water. Be sure to read the garment care labels on all clothes you plan to wash by hand, and follow the manufacturer’s instructions in order to avoid damaging your clothes.
Another tip is to use the bar soap on such areas of your clothing as underarms, collars and the soles of socks to help get rid of odors and stains. Be sure to thoroughly rinse the areas where you’ve used the bar soap or shampoo in order to get all the soap out. This will keep your clothes from getting stiff with soap.
One last tip for drying your clothes–hang clothing on your plastic or inflatable hangers, an then hang the hangers on a shower curtain rod, door handles, etc. If your clothes drip, be sure to put newspaper under them. This will keep the floor and/or carpeting from spotting and help to avoid water damage.
Travel Laundry Benefits
Doing laundry on a trip doesn’t have to be hard or expensive. This method of doing laundry will help you to pack light, save money and time, while keeping in clean clothes for your trip!
Packing for Vacation: A Guide
Packing for a vacation is every-one’s nightmare, although many of us love to travel, very few of us love to pack! Packing usually comes at a bad day too – people often finish work one day and fly the next, or even later that night! Packing is squeezed into the time between, when you tend to be at your most stressed. As with most things – if you have a plan things will be easier and less-stressed – I’m sorry I can’t promise stress free! Efficient packing should ideally mean that you return from holiday having used everything you took more than once! So lets start with what to take. Top Tips to Pack: What to Take
Clothing
Choose clothes appropriate for the climate. If you are going somewhere warm and leaving a cold climate consider leaving a set of warm clothes in the car if you are leaving it at the airport, or with friends if you are being collected.
Stick with one basic colour scheme preferably a dark one which won’t show marks and wrinkles so much.
Make clothing items do double duty, men’s shorts can be double as swimming trunks, a woman’s tankini top can be an evening top. A shirt can layer over a dress in place of a jacket.
Take multiple thinner items which can be layered instead of one bulky heavier piece. Thermal underwear is fantastic for cooler climates.
A sarong can be the most useful item you take doubling as a skirt, dress, shawl, beach towel, top sheet and a tablecloth. You can even use it as a bag in a pinch!
Shoes are always difficult: heavy and bulky. Try to wear your heaviest/bulkiest pair on the plane. I try to limit myself to 3 pairs: a pair comfortable for walking extended distances, a pair of sandals or flip flops and a dresser pair for evening! Other Items
A travel alarm if you don’t have the function on a watch or cellphone that you are taking with you.
Prescription medicines and a copy of the prescription in case you loose your bags. If you need glasses to see make sure you have a back up: an old pair, contacts or prescription sunglasses.
Toiletries: take a minimum. If you are only going on a short trip take sample sizes or buy small containers and decant some to take with you. If, however, you are traveling for a long time then don’t take 6 months supply – you can buy almost anything anywhere these days.
Liquid soap and shampoo can be used interchangeably – you don’t need both. You can buy solid shave soap which is lot more compact than carrying a shaving foam aerosol.
If flying don’t take brand new bottles of liquid – the liquid will expand slightly as the lower pressures on the plane and leak – use each bottle once to avoid this problem. Creams and aerosols are OK.
Make sure your toiletries bag is actually waterproof – a surprising number aren’t and bottles do break.
Credit cards -preferably two in case one is lost or broken or eaten by the ATM.
Details of your insurance policy. Important phone numbers or email addresses of medical specialists, family, work, anyone you may need to contact if something occurs to delay your return. What Not to Pack!
Anything you are taking “just in case”. If you happen to get a last minute invite to the Queen’s Garden Party in England ladies will need a hat – take the opportunity to go shopping!
A cellphone unless you know it work at your destination and you know what the roaming charges are.
Anything electronic unless you are sure you can plug them in / charge them at your destination.
Anything you are sentimentally attached to or is particularly jewellery – you may have it stolen but far more likely you may just misplace it or leave it behind.
Top Tips for Packing for an Overseas Vacation
If you are used to the US generous luggage allowances on planes beware that on most overseas flights not departing/arriving in the US you are restricted to 20kg per a passenger. Trust me that is not very much, fortunately you are not moving overseas permanently!
Remember that if you bring anything that needs electricity e.g. hairdryer,electric razor, camera battery charger, you may need to bring adaptors as well. Do you really need to carry the item: even a cheap hotel often provides a hair-dryer and iron on request. Can you use disposal replacements for razors or batteries?
Baseball caps and tracksuits scream “American Tourist” – if you want to blend in consider alternatives.
Clearly mark your luggage with a distinctive tie or other mark so you can retrieve it easily from the luggage carousel.
Be familiar with the security restrictions for carry-on items particularly fluids. However make sure that you carry essential items such as prescriptions with you, in quantities that will see you through 48 hours if your luggage is mislaid.
Make sure you carry on to the plane your ticket, or E-ticket receipt, passport and a pen – you will invariably have to fill in an arrival form and customs declaration form – which are normally distributed in flight.
Consider local customs when choosing cloths: don’t pack shorts and singlets, regardless of your sex, if you are traveling to the Middle East or other Muslim countries such as Indonesia Malaysia and Turkey. You won’t be allowed into key churches in European countries including Italy and Spain dressed in them either. What Luggage to Take it all In
Having decided what you are taking on holiday then choose the appropriate luggage, not the other way around.
Your bag should fit what you need to take, don’t pack to fill your bag. Decide on how much you will need to carry your bag :are you hoping on and off European trains, or unpacking once of a cruise vacation? Are you most physically capable of carrying a bag on your back, across your shoulder, or pulling it along.
People with bad backs assume that a roll-along will be best – not necessarily – you end twisting to pull a bag along which can be agony. Consider instead a well fitting, comfortable backpack which is a) not too heavy and b) backed correctly so the weight is carried on the hip belt and through the back of your legs.
Over the shoulder bags are quick and convenient but again not good for long distance carrying when heavy. How much space do you have at home to store your bag when its not being used :soft-sided luggage will take a lot less room than a backpack. However a backpack or duffel back are poor and preventing wrinkles in our clothes.
Any soft sided bag can be more vulnerable to theft than a rigid, locked suitcase. A rigid suitcase will probably give the best protection for delicate items – but seriously consider why you need to take anything delicate. What luggage to Bring Home
What you took you might be thinking? Normally though I return with quite a lot more than what I left with! Although I normally travel light, I invariably come back with more luggage than I left with. If you plan to do some shopping on vacation, delay it until the end of he trip and then just buy a bag along with your purchases. This saves you from carrying an over large bag in the first place In many countries where there are excellent buying opportunities for those with US$ there is a secondary industry of bag suppliers. I must say to date none of the bags purchased to date have actually survived more than the trip home but they have made the trip home OK
How to Pack your Bags
Before you start lay everything out on a spare bed or other space so that you can see it all. Now might be a good time to reassess what you actually need to take!
Start collecting items a few days early – particularly if you are taking out of season clothing this is easy to do. If you are taking items you are regularly wearing it will remind you to add them to the pile as you launder them and to stop you accidentally wearing them before departure! Remember that what you are wearing on departure day is included in the pile too! Tips for Packing a Backpack
To get the correct weight distribution heavier items should be near your back and higher in the pack.
Use plastic bags or packing cubes to keep similar items together.
Pack electronic and breakables near the centre padding them with clothing. Putting small items inside socks can work. Packing a suitcase
Place heaviest items at the bottom, especially for pull along bags this adds stability.
Pack fragile items towards the centre.
Fold similar clothes together e.g. all trousers, all shirts folded together to minimise creasing and pack efficiently What to Carry on the Aircraft
Check what is provided by the airline before taking a lot of stuff on board. Many international airlines, particularly Asian carriers, provide an enormous number of TV channels, movies and audio options, even in coach class. There is no point bringing the DVD player or Ipod on board with them! Others typically American carriers and budget airlines provide nothing, but entertainment can be hired for a reasonable fee -which might save you carrying a DVD player all trip just to entertain the kids for the return flight!
Also check for food and drinks service – same applies – its struggle not to over-eat on airlines such as Singapore Air, Cathy Pacific and Thai
Be cautious of bringing food on flights into Australia and New Zealand, there are substantial fines for importing banned items, even inadvertently, they take their agriculture industry seriously there.
Carry on sufficient clothing in case your luggage goes AWOL for 24 hours. If you are going to a beach location or a hotel with a pool you might want to include your swimsuit as well
Carry on essential prescription medicines and their prescriptions, spare glasses if you need them. A book or two in case of delays.
If you are taking a laptop you will need to carry it on Also make sure that you can power it up if you are requested to do by security. If you have a camera or video I carry those on two just to protect them from damage or theft
Other Tips before Leaving Home
Arrange for mail to be held or collected by neighbours. Let your neighbours know if you are going to be away.
Inform your insurance company you are going to be away – you can void your policy if you leave the house unoccupied without telling them.
Think about any bills that may come due while you are away and make arrangements – you don’ want to come home to discover the power has been cut off!
Check the fridge / kitchen for perishables and dispose of them. Take the garbage out!
Clean- there is nothing worse that coming back to a dirty house – especially if you are already depressed about coming home! Even better arrange for cleaning service while you are away!
Arrange for suspension of services you are paying for but won’t be using: pay-TV, broadband Internet and the 2 obvious ones.
Consider your home’s security – consider a timer to turn lights on/off, ask neighbors to park their car in your drive, use your washing line. Arrange for a security patrol. Inform your security monitoring company that you will be away. Leave an emergency contact number with key people.
About the Author
Thanks for reading – this is Lis from Lis’s Travel Tips an eBook series that I decided to write after being less than impressed by travel tips available in “real” published books.
I have travel writing all over the web – but I decided to start publishing some of it in a different format – hence my new eBook available at Amazon (see below) and elsewhere. Check out my Vacation Packing Tips website
The following travel tips and advice is a public service pronouncement from a father with a teenager. In my early days of travel, you could forget the sunscreen and just pick some up wherever you arrived. Try picking up an IPOD wall charger though in Paris. You might spend TWICE what it cost just to get to a place that MIGHT have them, so it is vital you take one from home first. And then consider the possibilities of these as well.
Gotta have portable speakers as well unless only one person is listening and THEN you better remember the ear plugs. Ever get tired of holding an IPOD on a plane? Consider the IPOD tripod – it holds up a video IPOD with a suction cup and frees your hands to manipulate the dials. There’s also an IPOD stand you can buy for $15 and use at home for your PDA as well. And of course you will need a universal electrical converter. They can be found online for less than $15 and work in ANY country or continent.
If you take lots of digital pictures, consider a flash drive rather than storing them on your laptop. And speaking of laptops, a security cord is vital. You can lock your laptop to a desk, bed or chair and not worry too much about it being left in the room. A camera bag is a necessity also for all your cables, batteries, flash cards etc. One of the IPOD ‘holders’ can also serve as a pad for mounting a small flash digital camera and then you avoid the hassle of accosting a local to take your group picture or the irritation of a family picture with you not in it.
Take rechargeable batteries, a battery re-charger, your IPOD wall charger AND laptop charger and perhaps a portable GPS device as well. They are quite the rage among foreign travelers I see daily and I have to imagine they will help navigate the ‘calles’ and ‘rue de’s’ of Europe as well.
There is now available a travel bag where you don’t need to take your laptop out anymore. It speeds through security because it was tested with the FAA’s input and allows the security screener to get a clear X-ray of the laptop on one part of the Zip Up case. It’s pricey ($100) but maybe well worth it for the frequent business traveler. Finally, with baggage weight a costly issue now, there is a portable scale available for $25. It runs on AAA batteries, is compact and only weighs 10 ounces. With overweight bags costing $50 and up, it may pay for itself with only one use.
There are more Travel Tips and Advice on my blog with details of the above if you are interested.
As air travel is becoming cheaper day by day, the common man is getting full benefit of it. Majority of the people are aware of the airline carry on size to take, but not all. Are you one of those people who are traveling by air for the first time? Then it’s very necessary to be aware of the airline carry on size limit, so that you don’t face any problems at the last moment with the airport security.
Since the 9/11 attacks, there has been an imposition of many airline carry on restrictions. For many people, traveling by plane has become a mere confusion. The items and luggage have been restricted to a minimum, because of the ease at which materials were allowed to be carried on flights and attacks happened. Before the 9/11 attacks, the luggage policies were not that strict, but now it has become and its necessary that a new flyer should follow air travel tips and the new airline carry on size rules and regulations.
Airline Carry on Size Requirements
Always remember that that maximum carry on size is measured in total number of inches (which is the total of the length, height and width of your bag). There are also standard dimension rules set by airlines, for instance 22+14+9 becomes the standard size 45 for your bag. Make sure that you don’t carry a bag of an unusual shape and size, as it as can get rejected by airport security. All airlines have limits on the number, size and weight of the items you can carry to the flight. Almost all airlines operating in the US have enforced some strict rules on airline carry on size luggage of a customer. Anything larger than the normal 45 inches can cause a rejection or a fee charge by the airline.
Airline Carry on Regulations
Now you have known what should be your ideal airline carry on size. But are you aware of the various airline carry on restrictions that are followed world over.
No oversize or heavy packages will be allowed as carry on luggage for air travel.
Always take less items to carry on. You can take necessary items such as medicines, personal hygiene products, passport and other documentation in your carry on luggage.
Check with your airline before packing to determine its carry on luggage rules, regarding the number of items you can carry on board.
In certain cases, airlines do check all the carry on luggage, so be prepared to do so.
Store heavy items under the seat, in front of you and not in over head bins. Never stack your carry on luggage in overhead bins, it can cause inconvenience to other passengers.
Additional items that could be allowed as carry on luggage are coats, hats, books or newspapers for reading. Keep In Mind
In some airports, airline carry on size restrictions may be more strict.
According to airline carry on liquid rules, liquids in carry on baggage must be in individual containers with a maximum capacity of 100 ml each.
Liquids like gels, toothpastes and aerosols should be packed with your checked in luggage.
Rules can also be imposed after the boarding process has begun.
Roller bags, duffle bags or other personal items that don’t fit in the overhead bins or under the seat are also considered as checked in luggage.
To make your security screening easier, carry your liquid containers in a clear plastic bag. So I hope you have enough information on airline carry on size regulations and requirements. These rules are formed to ensure for your airline safety. So next time, if you find yourself spending more time on the baggage at security counter; instead of making a frowning face remember its for your own good.
As we are getting closer to summer, many people are beginning to think about a family vacation this year. However, with the rising cost of gas, food and just living day to day, this could possibly prevent some families from taking a trip that could provide the relaxation they desperately need. But this doesn’t have to be the case. Let me give you some helpful hints that can allow you to take the trip you desire, without breaking your bank.
Consider renting a house or a condo instead of staying in a hotel. A rental provides you with a complete kitchen and eating area, allowing you to purchase and prepare your own food. Not having to eat at restaurants for every meal can really cut-down on the cost of your trip.
It is very important to look for flights, hotels and car rentals on several websites to find the best deal. Prices can vary website to website, so doing your homework will pay off. Check out the packages the different websites offer for booking flights, hotels and/or car rentals together, but also check the prices separately. A package deal may or may not be cheaper.
If you have a specific destination in mind, begin looking and planning well in advance to find the best deals. Find out when the non-peak time is to your destination and travel then. You can often find lodging and activities at a reduced cost.
If your destination is flexible, however, consider looking on-line for last minute travel deals that different sites offer, such as expedia.com. Quite often they have specials at a greatly reduced rate for the following week or two.
If you have kids, always look for kids’ deals. Choose restaurants where kids can eat for free and hotels where they can stay for free. Some airlines also offer deals for students, such as orbitz.com. Be sure to ask about senior citizen discounts if applicable.
Begin planning now. This will allow you to be ready for your trip and enjoy your vacation, knowing that you have already found the best deals available.