Do backpackers wash their clothes?
Do backpackers wash their clothes or just wear them over and over again until the smell is unbearable or they fall apart?
Many people tend to think that backpackers are usually neglecting their hygiene, but in most cases this is not true.
So the question lingers… “Do backpackers wash their clothes?”
Being a backpacker you may not be able to carry your entire wardrobe with you every time you travel and especially when you travel for an extended period of time. However, does that really mean that you can’t keep yourself clean and wash your clothes?
And if you can’t carry many clothes with you, how do you keep the ones you have clean? Where and how can you wash your clothes in the middle of the jungle, or while on a multiple day trekking through the mountains?
You can find out below how we managed to do this while travelling continuously for one year and a half.
How to keep your laundry clean and fresh while travelling?
This has to be one of the most popular questions people ask us when we talk about our extended journey.
With only one backpack each, there are just so many clothes you can fit in there. This means, that the fewer clothes you have, the more often you need to wash them.
And if you’ve never been in the situation where you’d find yourself in a place with no washing machines or laundromats around, it may be difficult to understand how the process of keeping your garments clean happens.
Now, this is how we’ve managed to keep our clothes clean and fresh for more than one year of journeying. The same applies to shorter trips too.
Laundry Time
- The plastic bag method.
- The Sink method.
- The washing machine method – provided by accommodation (Airbnb, hostels).
- The laundromats method.
- The laundry service method – provided by accommodation (hotels and hostels)
- Where there is water, there is hope method – provided by nature
The Plastic Bag Method | Cost: FREE
We know that there are designated types of bags for hand washing your laundry. However, we didn’t think that a plastic bag that has the description of being exclusively used for washing clothes is any different than a normal plastic bag.
So we chose to use a regular plastic bag. One that was thick enough to hold a good amount of water pressure. Call it
The staff wanted to throw it to the bin, but
How it works:
Place the bag on the shower floor or inside the bath, put detergent in it, add hot water, mix everything and put your clothes in. Let them soak for a while (depending on how dirty they are), after which you give them a good shake.
To rinse, you can just do it in the sink, or the easiest way – under the shower (with you in it, or outside).
The Sink Or Shower Method | Cost: FREE
If we don’t have too many clothes to wash and there is a sink available, that is our to go option. Using the shower, in the same way, will also do. We can definitely see this method being used a lot by backpackers to wash their clothes.
How it works:
All you need to do is plug the drain of a sink and fill it with hot water. Add detergent or soap and put clothes in to soak. All that’s left to do is rinse them and put them to dry.
You can plug the drain with a universal plug, or even a sock or plastic bag.
The Washing Machine Method | Cost: FREE at Airbnb or for £1-£4 at hostels
Airbnb – along our journey we were lucky enough to stay at many Airbnbs which provided washing machines amongst other facilities.
How it works:
Follow the instructions on the washing machine. There may be times when you won’t understand the language in which the instructions are written, so that’s when Google Translate comes in handy.
Or if you have a friend who can help, that’s maybe even better, as you are sure the translation can’t go wrong. This is exactly what happened to us in
It was all in Chinese characters. Lucky enough, our friends from Hong Kong guided us through. 🙂
Hostels – some hostels provide washing machines and for a small
The Laundromats Method | Cost: £1-£5
These self-service laundry facilities are another option for when you are in need of a washing machine. But this time you must leave your accommodation in order to use them. You will be able to find these coin-operated machines in all big cities and even in smaller towns.
And honestly, we weren’t expecting to find so many along the way.
It is usually not our first option, because it is not free of charge, but from time to time we would go and spend a few pennies to save time on washing and drying. Especially when most of our clothes needed washing at the same time.
How it works:
Put your clothes in the washing machine, insert the coins in the coin-slot, select the washing cycle according to your needs, press the start button and just wait for the washing cycle to come to an end.
In the meantime, you can read a book, meditate, go for a walk, take advantage of the free Wi-Fi (which most of the laundromats offer), or just mix socially with other people who are also waiting for their clothes to be washed.
The Laundry Service Method | Cost: £2-£5
Both hotels and hostels, will most often provide an optional laundry service in exchange for a fee.
How it works:
Drop your dirty clothes off with the staff at the reception and you will get them back clean and smelling fresh within maximum 24 hours. Usually, the clothes are weighted and the fee is determined by the number of kg your clothes weigh.
Where There Is Water, There Is Hope Method | Cost: FREE
Even if you’re hiking, camping or sleeping in a car, with no access to the facilities mentioned above, there is still a way. Backpackers will find a way to wash their clothes and any source of clean fresh water (e.g. river) will do.
How to use:
Go down by the river or use the source of fresh water that is available to you and
Use a really small quantity of soap or detergent (if you really have to), give them a good swish, rinse, thoroughly wring out each item of as much water as possible and…Voilà!
However, do check your whereabouts and make sure that you are causing as
Drying time
Now that our clothes are clean, we want to dry them. So this is what we usually do to dry our recently washed clothes:
1. If the weather is good and there is space outside for our clothes, that is our to go option. We will usually use what is available on the spot to hang our clothes on. If there is no place we can put them to dry, then we will use our own rope with hooks. We have to adapt,
Cost: FREE
2. If the weather is bad, we will just hang them inside the room. This only applies if we stay in a private room. Because we always carry a rope with us and if the accommodation doesn’t provide a drying rack, we will just use our rope as a clothesline.
We will stretch it between two points across the room, above the ground level and hang our clothes on it.
Cost: FREE
3. When staying in a dorm, we just hang the clothes by the hangers (if any provided by the hostel), or just leave them hanging on the edge of the bed and on the stairs of the bunk beds.
Cost: FREE
4. Drying machine.
Cost: Free or £1-£4
So, do backpackers wash their clothes!?
As a final answer and based on what we’ve seen while
IMPORTANT: Always separate white clothes from coloured clothes to prevent bleeding.
Also, do remember that the prices listed above will vary depending on different factors, such
How about you!?
Have you ever used any of the methods above? Can you recommend any new ones? Feel free to share your questions and advices in the comments section below.
