I am planning a backpacking trip and I don’t want to have to dip into Laundromats whenever I need to wash my clothes. I plan to wash them by hand. Any tips on the best way to do this so that my clothes dry quickly and don’t get too wrinkled?
Tips for washing laundry while traveling
Tips
Washing your own clothes while traveling is a great way to save both time (you don’t have to sit at the Laundromat) and money (you don’t have to pay for anything but the soap!).
If I were you, I would bring a really strong, big Ziploc bag. Loksak bags are great for this. Throw your clothes in the bag, add water and soap. You can get small travel-sized packets of laundry detergent (specifically meant for hand washing clothes) or you can even use normal liquid soap or shampoo (which I have done – it gets the clothes clean, but in general, try to use laundry detergent if you can). Swish the clothes around in the soap and water and make sure the soap really goes through the clothes. Squeeze the soapy water through your clothes. Let it soak for awhile and then pull out your clothes, rinse them in the sink or tub, and then hang them up to dry. You can hang them over a radiator, over a chair, over the shower bar, or you can even bring your own clothesline (which is small and lightweight, so it won’t take up much room in your luggage). If you’ve got a room with a balcony, then by all means let your clothes dry outside.
Obviously you won’t be able to wash large loads by using this method, so get used to washing small loads every 2-3 days. If you wash clothes in the evening or at night, chances are they’ll be dry in the morning!