fragrance free accomodations?

Hi debjsd, I am in the same boat as you. I get an asthma attack and migraine from synthetic fragrances. Essential oils make my eyes burn something fierce!

My husband and I have traveled in Europe, Canada, South America, and Egypt. I have found that, in the many rooms we have stayed in, European hotel rooms do not smell like any fragrance. I have not had a room in Europe that bothered my allergies.

In Egypt, fragrance was used and gave me trouble the entire trip. I have also had trouble in Canada with a heavily fragranced room. Fortunately we were able to move to a different room that was acceptable. In SA, fragrance was used in the lobby area, but our rooms were, thankfully, free of fragrance.

So, although I don't have any specific recommendations, my experience tells me that you may be OK in Europe.

I'm fairly sensitive to fragrance but did not detect any in the hotel where I stayed on Orkney. Or actually the hotel was on Burray which is across a couple of Churchill Barriers from what they call the Mainland but still only about 30 minutes or less from Kirkwall. I stayed at The Sands Hotel on Burray but this only really works if you will have a rental car. My room was on the 1st floor and had a large window that opened. Some folks on the 2nd floor had an angled window in the ceiling so not sure how wide those opened.

I looked at your previous thread from February and at that point had no idea I'd be going to Orkney and Shetland in August. I LOVED Orkney. It was so interesting and the people were so very nice. The neolithic sites knocked my socks off.

This is NOT your question but I'm not sure what you decided to use for transport to Orkney? If you are flying, be aware that Loganair, the airline that flies from a number of locations in Scotland has a lot of problem with cancelled flights both due to weather on Orkney (or Shetland) and apparently due to maintenance/crew issues. Don't schedule yourself to tightly in case you have a flight delay.

Also (again, not what you asked for)...I'd definitely have a waterproof rain jacket with hood plus waterproof rain pants (or trousers for the British contingent here) for touring. Happy to give other recommendations regarding travel to Orkney if/when you are interested.

I can't make any recommendations but suggest you look to stay with smaller accommodation providers (B&B's, guest houses, Airbnb's) and ask your hosts in advance of booking what products they use when laundering bedding and towels and cleaning rooms. Explain your requirements to them and ask if they can help in this respect.

Friends of mine who did B&B hosting used eco balls in their washing machine, environmentally friendly cleaning products and never used air fresheners of any kind. As a small business they managed everything in house.

Larger businesses or chain hotels are likely to send laundry items to commercial premises where synthetic products would be utilised. They would also bulk buy cleaning products or have a centralised purchasing system in place and may not have much say in the supplies available to them.

•”Essential oils are ok in moderation but I get migraines from synthetic fragrance such as in laundry products or so called air fresheners.”•

Oh, I have that same reaction- instant sinus clogging that moves into a migraine if I can’t get away from it. I always try to stay at a hotel or lodging where the windows will open. That makes a big difference, along with hunting down any air fresheners and moving them outside the room door as soon as I arrive.

I would also bring along a few old pillowcases, so your face isn’t against the smell as you sleep.

If you are on Facebook you might want to join the Scottish Travel Society and ask your questions about fragrance free accommodation there. It's a very large group with members from all over the world and some are Scottish accommodation providers who may be able to assist you with finding a suitable place to stay. Others may have recommendations with regards their own experiences travelling through the country.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/ScottishTravel

I would recommend looking for small hotels (not part of chains) or better still B&Bs. You can then talk to the owners and ask whether their cleaning and laundry products would be suitable for you. I am sure if you explain you will find your accommodation provider will be happy to help.