We generally recommend you bring some soap* (or use what’s available at the hotel) and use your hotel room’s sink to do laundry. Wring your light-weight bicycle clothes in a towel after washing them and hang them to dry over night. You may want to bring a laundry line or you can use hangers or radiators, if they are available. In Europe, you can even buy travel-specific laundry soap, such as this. (I would never recommend using it for hair or body though, as one of the reviewers suggests – it’s a concentrated laundry detergent paste.)

*On Expedition tours, it’s not necessary you bring your own laundry detergent. We’ll carry an ample amount on the van. Also check our Packing Lists as you plan.

If self-service laundry facilities are available – which is not always the case, especially in small towns and villages, – Tour Leaders can point you to them. However, I have to admit, I never feel like watching the laundry spin while I could be doing so many more fun activities on my vacation, so I usually go for the sink-option.

If your tour has a two-night stay, you can also have the hotel do your laundry, but remember you will likely be charged by piece, which can come out quite pricey. Some accommodations have washing machines available for use. A fact that surprises many of our travelers is that washer programs in Europe run much longer than, for example, standard washer programs in the US, so it might take an hour or an hour and a half for your laundry to be washed. Some machines have a short program between 30-45 minutes.