Laundromat??

[ryan]

Are there laundromats in europe where I can do my laundry at? If not, how do I do laundry at the hostel?

[LHR02]

Gosh yes, there are laundromats everywhere! And fairly straighforward too....even if you don't speak/read the language the pictures are self explanatory. One caution though, at least the ones I was in, the water is much hotter, the dryers way more so than in the US. For undies, socks, etc I did them up in a sink every few days....but every couple weeks I would trudge off to the laundy to do the big stuff.

[ryan]

Sweet! That makes me feel so much better!!! I can handle a washing machine and a dryer but I think I would freak out at having to use a laundry line!

Thanks!

[WillTravel]

In Copenhagen, the laundry process involves three machines - at least at all the laundries I visited. We only washed clothes once, but whenever I saw a laundry, I went in to look There appears to be one main company - the translated name means Three-Star Laundry. The three machines are a washing machine, a centrifuge, and a dryer. All machines are controlled from a central panel. You don't put the coins in the actual machine, like I see in laundries in North America. I was petrified about not doing things right - the washing machines have many more options. For some unknown reason, I somehow chose a 15-minute longer wash cycle for one load vs. the other load. But both got clean anyway.

I think the reason the centrifuge is separate is to accommodate people who have a washing machine or handwash at home, so they can still use the dryers. I didn't realize the function of the centrifuge until a very tough looking woman with tattoos all over explained that I needed to use it or else the dryer would take much too long. By the way, I went to a laundry in the Istegade district - which I don't recommend for women. It's a neighborhood with a bunch of porn shops all over the place. At one point I was alone in the laundry and a drunk wandered in and started muttering endearments in Danish and attempted to hug me. I jumped up and said, "Away, away!" He left. For some reason, this is the laundromat mentioned in Lonely Planet and the UseIt materials - but there are many others. One woman had time left on her dryer and graciously pointed this out to me - saving me a bit of money. All told, the cost was 82 kroner - about $17 Canadian - for two loads.

In Norway, the Anker Hostel has a laundry in the back of the complex. There's a central panel type operation here also.

A Kurdish refugee showed us how to use the machines. We had a bit of a hard time communicating, but it was clear when he said "Saddam" and made a throat-cutting motion. Part of his family is in Toronto and part in Stockholm. He is concerned about Islamicsts and was a member of a socialist party.

Later on when we came back to dry the clothes, we spoke to a Norwegian student who explained to us why German tourists are disliked in Norway. They take in a camper or motorvan, filled to the brim with everything they need in a big freezer, drive very slowly through the countryside without a care for anyone else, and buy as little as possible - statistically among the least per-capita spending of any national group of tourists. The cost here for the laundry - 50 Norwegian kroner - about $9 Canadian for one load. I wasn't as satisfied with the results here in terms of getting the clothes clean, but they were all right.