Washing clothes off the ship

[ocwave1x]

Thanks again for the info.

Klingoncruises had some good advice

'Washing clothes off the ship..... Isn't that a long reach to the water?:D

Do you throw soap in the ocean or just drag in in the prop wash for aggitation?"

But I will still need a dryer.:D

[bplazo]

I do not bring alot of x clothes. As someone else mentioned wear clothes that you can match and wear several times.

 

You can always wear your underwear twice by using the ole reverse them inside out trick.

[Lsimon]

I guess it is just a case of priorities.

 

If the OP and others want to spend a day of their cruise doing laundry that is their business.

 

Personally I'd never sacrifice a day, or 1/2 day on one of the islands to do laundry in order to save $40 or even $80. We're paying a whole lot more, per day, for the cruise if you consider cruise fare, airfare, on-board spending and other sundries.

 

Of course there are a lot of additional costs to doing laundry on shore that I hope the OP is thinking of. They'd have the cost of taking a taxi to/from the laundromat and possibly the hassle of changing money. While many islands accept US currency from tourists few use it for their normal currency. The only exception on your list is St Thomas. I also doubt that there would be waiting taxis at the laundromat - so they'd have to make sure they could call a taxi when they were done, unless they know exactly how long the laundry will take.

 

And one more subject that I'll admit in advance is a little touchy. On most of the islands we've been to we've been treated great and the locals have been very friendly. But there have been a few where were were a little uncomfortable - especially with some who were not in the business of providing services or goods to tourists. And that was in tourist areas where laundromats are not normally located.

 

We've taken cruises of 14 days plus a few days pre-cruise in the past couple years, and also took a 21 day cruise including 2 b2b segments last spring. I'd say that we did a lot of laundry on these usually in the range of $50 to $80 if bag of laundry and other discounts were not available. the bag of laundry is nice, but not that big a deal as I've figured it saves about $10 to $18 on the contents (yes I've computed it) and nothing comes back pressed. If you pay the per piece rates pants and shirts will be pressed and on hangers.

[sloopsailor]

I too get a vision in my head of those critical of fellow passengers who would like to find an alternative to paying top dollar for ship board laundry services.

 

A suggestion - if you eat in the specialty restaurant, offer to help with the dishes afterwards for a discount on the extra fare for your meal. In your stateroom, help the steward clean up and make the bed for him for a break in the cabin costs. Give the bar waiter a break and offer to serve his customers for a price break on your drinks. In the middle of the night, offer to help the maintenance crew varnish the railings and touch up areas with paint for even more discounting. And, when taking an excursion, offer to drive the bus and you might save a few bucks off the cost of the tour.

 

Just trying to help! ;)

[A Sixth?]

A suggestion - if you eat in the specialty restaurant, offer to help with the dishes afterwards for a discount on the extra fare for your meal. In your stateroom, help the steward clean up and make the bed for him for a break in the cabin costs. Give the bar waiter a break and offer to serve his customers for a price break on your drinks. In the middle of the night, offer to help the maintenance crew varnish the railings and touch up areas with paint for even more discounting. And, when taking an excursion, offer to drive the bus and you might save a few bucks off the cost of the tour.

 

Just trying to help! ;)

 

 

No problem Thurston:D

 

I don't care what fellow passengers do with their money and vacations and I have no intention of doing anything other than have a great time on my cruises and vacations.

 

I'm not sure why you even joke of me "offering" to replace the staff in their duties, but if you read my posts, I will however drop my laundry off somewhere, possibly other than the ship, for someone else to wash. And if God forbid, I find a moment to swish a bathing suit in my sink... by gosh I'll do it without help! :)

 

Let me guess, you always book the Royal Suite right? :rolleyes:

[vi1234]

There are no airline weight "restrictions". There is just a relatively small extra charge for bringing another bag. The airlines are trying to increase their revenues also. When you consider the cost of your cruise, you might want to think of taking that extra bag. Then you can dress appropriately and do your laundry at home at the end of your vacation.

[sloopsailor]

Let me guess, you always book the Royal Suite right? :rolleyes:

 

Nope! I stowaway in one of the lifeboats. There's enough food and water there to last even a 14 day cruise!!! Can't get more economical than that! :p

[alicam]

I do not bring alot of x clothes. As someone else mentioned wear clothes that you can match and wear several times.

 

You can always wear your underwear twice by using the ole reverse them inside out trick.

 

Actually...4 times...inside and out, front to back...lol

[elvnga]

This is a little off topic, but I have invested in clothes that I can wash out in the sink and will dry overnight. Clothing by Columbia and Ex Officio designed for hiking and travel and golf can easily fall in the "business casual" category and is designed for hand washing. It will dry without wrinkles hanging on a braided elastic line I got from Magellan and will easily hook from the knobs on the wall in the bathrooms on Solstice to the knobs in the shower or to those on the wall opposite the bathroom. The latter has the nice effect of holding open the bathroom door which will dry the clothes faster. Who wants to cart around a lot of suitcases? I have heard from several airline employees to depend only on carry ons. I had plenty of time on the recent TA to do a few pieces of laundry but I sent a few down as well. I would be nervous trying to get laundry done on shore in time to make it back to the ship. I will say that I find laundramats are rarely in parts of town worth visiting.

[A Sixth?]

I will say that I find laundramats are rarely in parts of town worth visiting.

 

True, but if there are a few it in port towns it may be of interest to some of the "masses" :rolleyes:

 

We actually fly carry-on almost all the time... especially to the Caribbean on cruises.

 

Yes it can be done, and if you travel enough you won't have to ask why carry-on is a great way to travel, bag restrictions or not. You just have to learn to do it. :rolleyes:

[Gablin]

I have not investigated using a laundry service off of the ship, but I have definitely washed clothing aboard, both in my bathroom sink and in the Rotterdam laundry room.

I prefer to travel light, as I am an old lady and do not want to lift a heavy suitcase. Doing laundry or paying someone else to do laundry is part of not travelling "heavy."

On RCCL's Rhapsody in September, I paid them to wash and iron a pair of jeans, as jeans take a long time to dry hanging in a shower stall. It was cheap and worth it. (At home, I don't press jeans.)

I can usually travel for three weeks with a 24 - 26 inch suitcase and a backpack carryon. That means laundry is going to happen one way or another.

My formal gowns are all washable (some sink, some machine.)

 

Five sets of underwear, a few pantyhose, and four pairs of socks will have to be washed a few times during a three week trip, even if my outerwear has not gotten dirty.

[teajak]

That laundry bag deal for $29 irritates me for two reasons. First, it is not offered to all passengers equally. I believe the Captain's Club/Elite passengers get a coupon at the start of the cruise, the rest of us great unwashed (pun intended!:rolleyes:) don't get the deal until right before the end of the cruise.

 

Second, if you are going right home after your cruise, who wants to spend an extra $29 just to put clean laundry back in their suitcase? I'd rather just do my laundry when I get home, and save the money.

 

Cheers,

mgcarnut

Not correct our friends are select and received a coupon book with their documents as we did.Several coupons including the laundry one.You can use the coupon any time during the cruise.It was just a sugestion as it would probably cost that much to find a laundromat and get a cab to drag the clothes to it.

[mgcarnut]

Not correct our friends are select and received a coupon book with their documents as we did.Several coupons including the laundry one.You can use the coupon any time during the cruise.It was just a sugestion as it would probably cost that much to find a laundromat and get a cab to drag the clothes to it.

 

You mention your friends are "select" - not familiar with that designation. Also, did the coupon book you speak of come along with your cruise docs, or was it in your stateroom upon checkin? I got my docs through a TA and did NOT receive any sort of coupon book.

This is our first cruise coming up, so we are probably the lowest of the low in Celebrity's eyes when it comes to perks and incentives.

Cheers,

mgcarnut

[Lsimon]

That laundry bag deal for $29 irritates me for two reasons. First, it is not offered to all passengers equally. I believe the Captain's Club/Elite passengers get a coupon at the start of the cruise, the rest of us great unwashed (pun intended!:rolleyes:) don't get the deal until right before the end of the cruise.

 

Second, if you are going right home after your cruise, who wants to spend an extra $29 just to put clean laundry back in their suitcase? I'd rather just do my laundry when I get home, and save the money.

 

Cheers,

mgcarnut

 

While the special is nice and the discount is nothing to sneeze at, it is not quite the nirvana that some hold it out to be.

 

First, I've done this a few times and spent a lot of time very carefully folding/rolling our clothes to fit the maximum in. I've calculated the per piece cost and it does save a good percentage of the bill but the total discount has only ranged from $10 to $18. Not an amount that is going to make or break my cruise nor laundry decisions.

 

Second, the bag of laundry is only wash and fold. It does not include any pressing. If you pay the per piece rates items that would be appropriate for pressing, like shirts and pants, will be returned pressed and on hangers.

[smtcan]

While the special is nice and the discount is nothing to sneeze at, it is not quite the nirvana that some hold it out to be.

 

First, I've done this a few times and spent a lot of time very carefully folding/rolling our clothes to fit the maximum in. I've calculated the per piece cost and it does save a good percentage of the bill but the total discount has only ranged from $10 to $18. Not an amount that is going to make or break my cruise nor laundry decisions.

 

Second, the bag of laundry is only wash and fold. It does not include any pressing. If you pay the per piece rates items that would be appropriate for pressing, like shirts and pants, will be returned pressed and on hangers.

 

On our recent b2b we took advantage of the bag special at the end of the first cruise. By diligent packing I got $67 worth of items in, and was quite proud of myself. However, shirts and blouses came back unwearable - even those that do not need ironing at home when I hang them up right from the drier. We were only Classic members so just got a 10% off coupon for laundry.

 

As a previous poster wrote, we wash underwear and socks in the sink, and took a clothesline because thanks to CC we were aware that there is no retractable line on Solstice.

[robtulipe]

Second, the bag of laundry is only wash and fold. It does not include any pressing. If you pay the per piece rates items that would be appropriate for pressing, like shirts and pants, will be returned pressed and on hangers.

 

Our bag of laundry on our last month's Mercury cruise, which was free using our Elite coupon, came backed all pressed and on hanger except for the socks and underwear.

[dutchess43]

There are no airline weight "restrictions". There is just a relatively small extra charge for bringing another bag. The airlines are trying to increase their revenues also. When you consider the cost of your cruise, you might want to think of taking that extra bag. Then you can dress appropriately and do your laundry at home at the end of your vacation.

 

I only wish you are correct the weight restrictions are now 50 lbs for checked luggage(including many arlines flying to europe) yes you can go up to 70 lbs but you will pay dearly for the extra poundage. On a lot of the overseas airlines(British airways, Aer Lingus etc.) they have for sometime been weighing even your carry ons. It is a no win situation for us now that all arlines have found extra revenue from us all!

[teajak]

You mention your friends are "select" - not familiar with that designation. Also, did the coupon book you speak of come along with your cruise docs, or was it in your stateroom upon checkin? I got my docs through a TA and did NOT receive any sort of coupon book.

This is our first cruise coming up, so we are probably the lowest of the low in Celebrity's eyes when it comes to perks and incentives.

Cheers,

mgcarnut

Select used to be the lowest, I don't know if they have changed it or not our friends have only been on 2 Celebrity cruises.The coupon book came with our Docs booklet, from Celebrity not our TA.Most of the coupons were discounts for bingo and buying logo articles in the gift shop. One was for the laundry and there was one for buy one get one free glass of wine.First time we have ever received this as Elite we get the coupon book in our cabin.We had to cancel that cruise because of DH emergency surgery so I don't know how the laundry worked.

[klingoncruiser]

Thanks again for the info.

Klingoncruises had some good advice

'Washing clothes off the ship..... Isn't that a long reach to the water?:D

Do you throw soap in the ocean or just drag in in the prop wash for aggitation?"

But I will still need a dryer.:D

 

No problem.... they have those handy lines on the ship for hanging flags and such. Just pin those undies to that line and let the sun and wind do the rest. :eek: :D

[Gonzo70]

Select used to be the lowest, I don't know if they have changed it or not

 

Here are the current Captain Club levels:

 

Classic: 1-4 Cruise Credits.

Select: 5-9 Cruise Credits.

Elite: 10+ Cruise Credits.

 

You earn a Cruise Credit for every completed cruise. You earn a bonus Cruise Credit for cruises of 12 nights or longer. You also earn a bonus Cruise Credit for booking a Concierge Class Stateroom, Aqua Class Stateroom or Suite.

 

They are reportedly coming out with a level higher than Elite in the near future, but details have yet to be disclosed.

[Lsimon]

Our bag of laundry on our last month's Mercury cruise, which was free using our Elite coupon, came backed all pressed and on hanger except for the socks and underwear.

 

You know the first time we used the bag of Laundry was on the Millennium in Europe in 2007 and they included pressing for appropriate items. We've since done it at least three other times on at least 2 other ships and they never included the pressing or hangers. The most recent were on the Equinox last month and on the Constellation last spring. I guess this isn't consistent from ship to ship, and maybe from sailing to sailing.

[elvnga]

I only wish you are correct the weight restrictions are now 50 lbs for checked luggage(including many arlines flying to europe) yes you can go up to 70 lbs but you will pay dearly for the extra poundage. On a lot of the overseas airlines(British airways, Aer Lingus etc.) they have for sometime been weighing even your carry ons. It is a no win situation for us now that all arlines have found extra revenue from us all!

 

 

One possible answer to the restrictions on carry on weight is to wear a Scottevest jacket. I can get my Kindle, camera, sunglasses, umbrella, cough drops, bottle of water, Ipod with headphones all stowed without using my carry on. That leaves my bag for clothes and meds alone.

[raudacruise]

Our bag of laundry on our last month's Mercury cruise, which was free using our Elite coupon, came backed all pressed and on hanger except for the socks and underwear.

 

We were on Century TA and used both Elite coupons. Only thing that was on a hanger (once) and pressed were a pair of pants. All shirts and another pair of pants were folded and returned in a bag with everything else.

 

No complaints, unlike others, having minimal laundry to do upon returning home is great.

 

Also, maybe because this was a TA, everyone (Captains Club member or not) could get a bag done for $29 (next to last sea day or maybe the day before that, don't remember but can look it up).

[tea4ular]

I am under the impression that the mercury or any celeb ship does not have a do it yourself clothes washing service.

i am going to the following places Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, St. Croix, U.S.V.I., Basseterre, St. Kitts, St. Johns, Antigua, Philipsburg, St. Maarten.

Does anybody know if there any laundry services at these places?

Thanks

 

Check the Lonely Planet books for the ports you mentioned (browse at the library or take a look at the bookstore).

 

Just last night while reading the Lonely Planet book for Alaska, I noted where the laundry facilities were at various ports (never know when it might come in handy). Lonely Planet is the first place I've noticed (so far) that makes mention.

 

Just found this on the web: For dry cleaning, go to One-Hour Martinizing, Barbel Plaza, Charlotte Amalie (tel. 340/774-5452). A good full-service laundromat is 4-Star Laundromat, 68 Kronprindsens Gade (tel. 340/774-8689), also in Charlotte Amalie.

[jaybird from SC]

I am under the impression that the mercury or any celeb ship does not have a do it yourself clothes washing service.

i am going to the following places Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, St. Croix, U.S.V.I., Basseterre, St. Kitts, St. Johns, Antigua, Philipsburg, St. Maarten.

Does anybody know if there any laundry services at these places?

Thanks

If you happen to be Captain's Club Elite you get "free" laundry (30 pieces), some free pressing, and free dry cleaning. We always pack clothes which can be mixed and matched and we hand wash a lot of the undies which usually dry overnight. Has always worked for us.