Doing Laundry in Ireland

... or just book a place that has a washing machine - works for us.

We did laundry in Kenmare, and it was very easy. There were staff there to give us change, (euro coins) and we were also able to purchase detergent.

Here's what I posted in the France forum yesterday. We were only in Belfast and Dublin so I can't speak to smaller towns or villages.

"We've been to Europe for 3 trips, all about a month long and we research places where we can drop the clothes off and pick them up the next day (or sometimes same day). I use Google mostly, then someone on the forum recommended also emailing the hotel, to see if there's a place nearby to drop the laundry off at. This was great advice. One of the hotels we stayed at in Dublin this summer, partnered with a take out service and we dropped the laundry off downstairs the night before and the next afternoon it came back washed/dried/folded. Was about 20E and that was for about a week's worth of clothes for my wife and I. This was a different service than having the hotel do it.

I just had this problem and it's not as easy as some are letting on. We were staying in hotels and the places that did laundry were only open from 10-4, which didn't work as we were on a bus tour that left before and returned after that.

There is however a new-ish service called Revolution Laundry which are washing machines and dryers put in various places - the one we used was in the parking garage for a grocery store in Kinsale - and it worked well for us. The only downside is both washers were occupied once we arrived but we did our shopping and came back and one was free. They take cards and cash and use their own detergent. There's a website that shows you locations of various washers. It's not perfect but since normal laundromats weren't an option this was a lifesaver for us.

We sometimes book a lodging that has a washer/dryer included. This works fine. There are some nuances, though. Often, the machine is a combination washer/dryer. The dryer may not be the same as we see in the US. There may not be an enormous gas or resistive electric heating element that heats the clothes dry. Rather, the machine works more like a heat pump, slowly warming and dehumidifying the clothes. This saves a huge amount of energy; but, cycle times are long and load size must be small. Overfilling can result in a disappointing experience.

BTW - if you're googling for a options, the best term to use might be "launderette" rather than "laundromat" as it is in the US.

I have also used the Revolution laundry machines. Worked good. Have to use at least 3 15 minute cycles to dry. They have a website that tells you the locations. As above in parking lots of convenience stores and grocery stores so they are outdoors but open 24/7 so don't have to rely on open hours.

Rick Steves guidebooks list local laundromats in most places. You can check the websites for these places to confirm hours and prices. Or use Google to search for one closest to your accommodations.

We stayed in a B&B where she offered to do laundry for us. She did two loads and charged us 15GBP which was worth it to us! So worth asking.