Five Top Tips for Navigating Laundry Wars

If there’s one sure-fire way to ruin a good day whilst holidaying this summer it’s getting caught up in the scrum at the laundry! It’s bad enough that you need to wash whilst on holidays but courtesy from your fellow holidaymakers can help ease the annoyance of this necessary evil. Similar grumbles can be heard echoing from within laundry tubs from one side of the country to the other but none more so than during the Christmas holiday peak when parks are at their busiest.

Granted that there are varying ideas on this issue mainly centred on whether “to remove or not remove” (ie. another’s laundry from a washing machine or dryer) however common courtesy can help you navigate the awkwardness of having to handle someone else’s smalls or someone handling yours!

After decades of frequenting holiday parks during January we’ve compiled these top tips to keep you smiling all summer long despite the chores!

1. Be present or risk having someone man handle your smalls.
If you don’t want someone touching your clean washing after your load is done, set the timer on your phone as a reminder to return on time or wait at the laundry until your load finishes. The machines and dryers in parks are there to share. It’s completely unfair to your fellow holiday makers to expect them to hold up their holiday until you’re ready to return- after all they too are on holidays and want to get the chores done and get on with fun in the sun. Guaranteed they also didn’t want to be put in the situation to have to make the awkward choice to remove your washing or not, nor did they want to handle your washing, so do the right thing and be there if you can. Most machines will tell you how long a load takes or there will be a sign. Set your timer approximately 8 mins prior to the load ending... this will give you time to finish your morning cuppa and walk back to the laundry in time- some machines are quicker than what they say too so it’s a good idea to be a few minutes early.

2. Leave a basket or bag.
We all know that at times the best laid plans to get back to the laundry before the loads finishes can go pear shaped. Very few people would want to dump your clean load on the floor but I have seen this happen when there is no owner to be found, no basket or bag left and no side table or ironing board on which to place the clean load. Leaving a basket or bag on top of or in front of the machine or dryer where your load is can avoid such situations. It says to your fellow holidaymakers... if I’m not here and you need the machine please put my things in here and not on the floor. If you are tight for space and can’t fit a basket in your luggage then throw in a striped bag that you can pick up from a dollar shop for a few bucks or buy yourself a pop up basket from a camping store.

3. If you need to remove someone else’s washing, respect it.
If you arrive at the laundry only to find it deserted of people but all bases loaded with machines that have gone full cycle then it’s only fair that you continue to wash as you’d planned. This leaves you with the dilemma of what to do next. As you’ve probably already gathered, in this instance I’m a “remover” but a respectful one. Hopefully there’s a basket or bag to place the washing in or there may be a sorting table where you could leave it. If there’s nowhere clean to leave it then put it into a garbage bag so it stays clean. There could be a good reason that they didn’t come back to get their washing on time so a little consideration here goes a long way.

4. Clean up after your load!
Most caravanners and campers would agree that sandy bedsheets are pretty annoying... especially when you’ve just washed them! Summer is best when it’s sandy but not when holiday park washing machines are full of it; so if you’ve had fun at the beach try to shake as much sand out of your clothing before washing it. Take a packet of wipes or some wet paper towel with you to the laundry and when your load is done and removed, give the machine a quick wipe out so it’s clean and sand free for the next user. Similarly clean the lint filter in the dryers after use... having to empty it after someone else has used it isn’t much fun... Eeek!

5. Share the lines.
The only line we should be holding this summer is a fishing line, not a washing line. If you are holidaying in a park where there are limited clothes lines please consider removing your washing from the line as soon as it’s dry. Once again you risk someone man handling your washing in the fight for facilities if there are no other available washing lines free and yours is the driest load. The “but I got up and got in early” argument doesn’t always stand to reason here as many travellers are in transit and part of their reason for stopping at a holiday park is often to wash. These travellers will often pull in later and leave early. They too have paid to use the facilities and it’s only fair to share them.

A trip to the laundry doesn’t have to become World War III, by following these simple tips, you are on your way to a harmonious holiday. Enjoy your washing-war-free summer break!


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