Best laundromat you’ve visited?

Speed Queen 24 - Warsaw, Poland - a short walk from the Chopin Boutique B&B. Cleanest laundromat I've ever experienced anywhere. Ordered in English from a centralized kiosk. Price was reasonable; wash + dry in just over an hour. There is a Costa coffee a few steps away. Walked by the Warszawa Powisle cafe/bar on the way back - harder to find than was expected.

I haven't found any wonderful laundromats, but have used two that were decent. I usually try to wash my clothes in the shower or sink, but when I travel with my friends and three of us are sharing a room, it really is better for us to stop at a laundromat about halfway through the trip.

We went to "Prague Andy's" Laundromat in Prague. This was in 2019, but as far as I remember, there was comfortable seating and magazines to read while waiting on the wash or dry cycle to complete. In Bruges in Sept. 2023, we went to "Laundrette by Marcel". It was about a five minute walk from our hotel and while not huge, it was clean and I believe the detergent was included in the price for the wash.

In April, we were in Bayeux, France. I went to the Lavomatique in the center of town, and was alone at first. I was a little confused trying to figure out how to pay; and then get the detergent from a different machine. The instructions were extra confusing, but I assumed it was because I don't have much/any laundromat experience. A young local French gentleman walked in and spoke perfect English, and explained the system. We chatted a bit, he'd just returned home from a trip; then he left because the locals don't sit and wait; they return when the machine is finished. A little while later a family on vacation from Canada came in. They too were confused by the machines; so with my recent expertise, I shared all I knew about this laundromat's operations! So we spent a hour or two chatting; sharing experiences; talking about other travels; while washing and drying. During that time, a lady came in speaking French. She too, had a real difficult time figuring out the machines, (so then I realized it was more than just me not understanding laundromats; this signage was confusing everyone) so again I got to share my newly learned expertise! The entire time was filled with friendly, chatty interesting people in a really charming town in France.

We went to "Prague Andy's" Laundromat in Prague

So have we. Multiple times. It's always been a cosy and relaxing experience and is very close to where we stay at Hotel Anna in Vinohrady.

In the middle of old town Rovinj Croatia there is a very modern self service laundry. In the floor is a round glass insert and you can see down to the ancient ruins below! I tried to copy the link but if you google "Rovinj Self Service Laundry" you can see it. One of the two in the old town.

It was last fall in Sarlat, France. The owner was there and spoke wonderful English and knew several of the Rick Steves' guides. It was clean. I wish I remembered the name. I know it was slightly up a hill on the opposite side of the historic center from our hotel. I remember I walked down to where the Sat. market was setting up to get a coffee while the washer was runnin.g

we were in Bayeux, France. I went to the Lavomatique in the center of town,...

LoL! I've been to that same laundry. I don't have any good laundromat stories, it's a regular visit here at home and I've been very fortunate that my hotels have laundry facilities.

In Orvieto this spring we used the self service Lavagettone. Cleanest laundromat I’ve ever experienced. Easy to use machines and washers and dryers large enough to handle everything in one load. Only drawback is that it’s tiny. There was no one else there when we went early one morning, but if there had been more than a couple other people we would have had to wait.

Added bonus is there’s a great cafe across the street. You can sit at a table outside the Blue Bar with an eye on the laundromat and enjoy an excellent cappuccino and morning pastry. The proprietor is funny and personable and may even sing for you.

We were at a campground last summer in Iceland and I met a very nice local and we chatted while we did our laundry. There was only one washer and one dryer, so we shared. We talked about the vacation differences between the US and Iceland, and she told me stories about their various camping adventures. Best of all, while we were sitting there, we could see a big waterfall that was across the road from the campground.

Nerja. We were there in 2014, had just driven to Frigliana and back and stopped for gas before returning to our hotel. Gas station, car wash, convenience store, bar, cafe, and a bounce house for kids. Talk about a guaranteed money-maker. Laundromat was great - clean, included detergent, newer appliances. Why yes, I will have an espresso while I do my wash.

Not lovely but in Berlin, there was a laundromat, that was spotlessly clean and yes you paid by credit card. It was so clean that every person I texted the photo of the inside told me it was the cleanest laundromat ever. And yes, it was filled with young travelers from all over.

Visiting my own city's laundromat makes me nostalgic.

In Orvieto this spring we used the self service Lavagettone.

I thought of one we saw in Orvieto, too. Unfortunately, I had already handwashed all of our clothes and laid them all out on our large patio in the hot sun when we happened upon this place with others looking for a laundromat.

I need to research nice laundromats for our next trip and move away from the nightly handwashing.

We’re a family of four and after years of renting apartments with laundry facilities, I’m no longer prioritizing the laundry facilities. We’ve found that most apartments have tiny washers that fit maybe 4 outfits. So we’d need to do a load a day to keep up. Most apartments advertise a “dryer” which is actually a metal drying rack. Or the dryer takes 4 hours to almost dry clothes. And you have to hang them afterward to completely dry. Doing laundry every night in the apartment is no longer of interest.

Instead I will gladly take the clothes to a laundromat and spend an hour or two having breakfast while ALL my clothes get clean at once for 15€. Or pay a little more and drop them off at a service. As so many have described, laundromats can be a fun way to meet fellow travelers and locals.

I love going to laundromats in Europe. The signage is consistently good, and it's fun to figure out the little quirks of each place. I also enjoy chatting with the locals or other travelers who come in, and if it's empty, I enjoy the break from traveling. A recent favorite was the laundromat in Canterbury. There was room to fold clothes, soap and coins were sold if needed, instructions were really clear, and the attendant was professional. Bonus, I talked with a local who told me her favorite places to eat and a good clothing store.

I'm another traveler who enjoys using laundromats.
I nearly always have fun conversations with locals or other travelers, and it's a nice break from sightseeing. It's about the only chore I like doing while traveling. I cook happily at home but never when traveling.

We loved the SB-Waschsalon on Oderberger Str near Hotel Kastanienhof in Berlin. They've got a variety of equipment sizes. We rolled our carry ons down the street and placed all of our clothes, except for what we were wearing, in one gigantic washing machine load! It took a few dryers to handle all of the cleaned clothing. It saved a lot of time and only used one morning of a free day between 2 tours. We liked being able to contact the owner for help and several locals were helpful as well.

Frania Cafe in Krakow is, as described in Rick’s Eastern Europe Guide, 10th edition, “an inviting cafe/pub with ample washers and dryers…” We ended up eating lunch there, and the food and coffee were very nice. The place charmed me.

I love this thread. My family makes fun of me because I have to visit a laundromat and grocery store in every city I visit.

Three of my favorites described below.

WASBAR in Ghent had food, drinks very comfortable lounge and great people watching from second floor window.. Only problem was the machines took forever.

I believe the one in Orvieto was already mentioned. I went there to dry our cloths that we washed in the machine in the room of the Affittacamere Valentina. It was a Sunday, so very quiet. While I waited a finely dressed man came it to collect his cloths from the dryer. He smiled and said buongiorno when he arrived and arrivederci before he left.

The second is in Paris, Laverie Pierre Leroux, was recommended by the Hôtel Signature Saint Germain des Près. It's clean, near a wonderful bakery and every single person says bonjour et au revoir when coming and going. I can’t wait to go back during our stay in July.

Early nineties, after three weeks of backpacking through Europe on an Eurail pass we stumble into Nice, France. Our pockets filled with francs and armed with a Rick Steves English-French translator book we locate a self serve laundromat. After a bit of frustration and a vivid, colorful use of the native language we managed to get the machines working. We slump ourselves into the only chairs in the place to wait.

Somewhere near the end of the spin cycle, in walks a young man with his bag of laundry over his shoulder. “Bonjour” he greets us with a nod. We excitedly wield our new found command of Francais with “bonjours” in reply. Look at us cavorting with the locals!

He selects a washer. In goes the laundry bag of clothes. What’s this? He’s taking off his shirt to through in the tub. Interesting. Wait. Is he taking off his pants? Well that’s bold but we Americans are such prudes. Yikes. He’s taking off his underwear too. I’m staring at the backside of a Frenchman in a laundromat. Considerate of my presence as a woman, he routes around in the dirty clothes extracting what looks to be a rather small kitchen towel to drape around his hips like some fig leaf on a statue. He casually strolls over to the magazine pile rummaging around for something to read. He then pops up on one of the dryers, leans his back against a wall and lights himself a smoke like it was any day of the week and he’s just doing his laundry.

We still talk about that day decades later. I’m still struck by that young man’s confidence and moxie. Needless to say, we always plan a laundry day every couple weeks when traveling now because it’s always an adventure.

It sounds as if all your laundromats were indoors. We've used at least 3 different ones that are washer/dryer sets outside--sometimes just in a parking lot, sometimes next to a gas station or a minimart (I think they were in Ireland, England and Germany). One was just a little lot in a small village in Germany. We had to drape clothes around the car to finish drying while other clothes continued to wash/dry in the subsequent loads. About a block away there was an tiny ice cream shop---thankfully with a w/c as it took us longer than we'd anticipated. There were 6 of us, so we had a few loads.

Scroll to the bottom. We used at least one like this, but a couple were more not as fancy.
https://www.wash-megroup.com/en-uk/

We encountered an outdoor laundromat at a gas station in Germany (I think, could’ve been France). It was an unmanned gas station in the corner of a giant parking lot (rare) at a big grocery store. There were a couple of stacked washers and dryers, and a vending machine that sold whole pizzas! What more do you need?

I went to a party in the basement of a laundrette once, maybe 2009, 2010. That was great. I think it was something to do with Human Shield Records (Peter Mangalore RIP, gone too soon).

The only self service laundromat I've been to is the one in Bayeux that has been mentioned. It was an ok experience but the only people who came in when I was there were other visiting Americans, no locals.

My favorite laundry services were in Prague and in La Tremblade, France. Both times I dropped my clothes off in the morning and did my sightseeing during the day and returned late afternoon to pick it up - washed, dried, and folded and at a very reasonable price. That was about 10 years ago so maybe not so reasonable now but definitely worth what it cost then to have it done for me. I usually try to get apartments with a washer whenever possible so I don't have to hand wash in sinks - not my favorite thing. Sometimes the washer also serves as the dryer, which is fine when I have several hours to wait for it to dry. Usually just a washer and hang up the things to dry.

We’ve done a lot of sink-washing over the years, but our recent trip to Spain made me a big fan of laundromats, kind of. Most of our RS trips have included a point where the hotel will do laundry and our one long river had that option as well. I don’t think I’m that picky, but we don’t always get the results that we’re hoping for. So, this trip was 28 days and I decided to tackle self-serve laundry.

In Barcelona I used the LavaXpres (Passatge d’Elisabets 3). It’s clean and very popular, but I didn’t have to wait too long and there were interesting shops and coffee places in the area. It was coin only, but there was a change machine available. It didn’t accept credit cards when I was there. It did sell soap and there were directions in multiple languages. There were about 6 chairs and enough room to fold clothes.

I was going to use Laverie in Bayonne, FR ( on the Best of Basque Country) but the directions were only in French and my brain wasn’t up to that the day I was there. It’s located at 8 Place des Basque, across from the TI. Another couple on the tour did use it and said it was fine.

My final laundry adventure was in San Sebastián. I used Garbimatik at San Lorenzo 6, right near the Brexta Market, with plenty of coffee shops nearby. It is small and very popular, but people were friendly, so there was conversation during the wait. It doesn’t have many machines and there was kind of a juggling act between get a washer and a dryer. I think there were 3 chairs and 1 table for folding. This was another one that was coin-only, but there was a machine that would change bills. There were directions and it did tell you how long wash and dry took.

Well, I’m loving all these stories of favorite laundromats and I don’t know that I have a favorite, but I’ve been to three or four in my travels and the most fun was the one in Coimbra Portugal

I was there, putting in my laundry in the washer along with my laundry Soap sheets and started the machine up, there were some gentlemen giving me some tips in Portuguese and then I look at the huge letters above the washer that said everything‘s included and that means the soap too. so my laundry got really clean.

What was wonderful about my time there Is the pasteis de nata and café leite I had at a great and welcoming little shop just two doors down.

Cherished memory

Another favorite Laundromat memory: Vernazza, 2018. I was feeding coins into the machine when I realized my money wasn't registering....and I was hearing odd clunking sounds. I looked under the machine and saw a big pile of coins on the floor. Apparently there was a hole! I moved my clothes to a different machine, and helped myself to the euros on the floor. Just as I finished, the laundromat attendant showed up and I was able to tell her that perhaps there was an issue with that particular machine.

Visted multiple https://waschsalon.de/ in Germany. All were good. Instructions in English, credit card or cash. Soap for purchase. Carts. Folding area.

I know the some travelers don't like to spend time doing laundry. I am an early riser and find I usually have spare time in the morning before museums, etc. open. Like the OP I prefer a lighter bag and don't mind laundry and coffee a couple of times during a multi-week trip.