Laundry services on the Venice/Florence/Rome tour?

Excellent attitude and good thinking. Your Florentine hotel will likely have laundry service, by the bag and you may be able to request water temp. Items usually always make it back but I have lost a random sock among the multiple RSTs I’ve enjoyed. Best advice is to not choose items that need delicate or extra attention. VFR is a fantastic tour and 3 nights in each city is wonderful and gives you more time to experience where you are staying. Pack smart along with light, meaning keep your stuff as organized as possible and the transferring between cities will be a breeze. Enjoy yourselves!!

Over the decades I have found washing my own skin layers is easy and quick, everything is dry in the morning. Seriously soiled layers require finding a machine or hiring it out. I'm much more likely to hire a service these days. As you say, laundry could be a waste of time. However, there have been occasions when siting down with a bottle of wine and a book while the machines chew up our clothes has been exactly what we needed: a little vacation from our vacation .

We had ours done by the hotel in Florence, even though there was a lavanderia near the hotel. It was expensive, but worth it. But then you wont know your hotel until later. A tip is to have all your laundry ready to turn in as soon as you get to the hotel so they have max time to return it.

My online map shows lots of laundromats in Florence, some of them close to places that would be fun to visit while your clothes are doing their thing. For instance, the Lavanderia Manfredi is right across from the Mercato Centrale, where you could browse the displays and perhaps get a sandwich.

I'm going to suggest that you forego putting your clothes in a washer and then leaving them while you take in a sight or a quick meal. I have on several occasions seen individuals stop by a laundromat while I was doing a load of clothing, look into all the washers and dryers, and then leave. While I prefer to think the best of people, these folks may have been looking for unattended clothing to take. Stay with your things; washing and drying a load will take less than an hour.

Take clothes that are easily/quickly washed in your bathroom sink. Hang them up to dry and be done with it. Wear your clothes multiple times. Rarely do they actually get “dirty” after only a single day of activity...especially days of sitting on a bus.

If you’re not traveling solo, perhaps you could take turns guarding the laundry and going out sightseeing? I always think my laundromat visits will only take an hour, but not so....

Many hotels have a drop off service and the RS trips always have a least one opportunity for drop off laundry.

Consider the cost of checking your bag against the cost of the laundry service. I think you’ll find the service is less expensive.

As others have said, you can hand wash intimates and do a “good” wash once a week or so.

BTW, 5 tops, 3 bottoms, a sweater, a jacket and a raincoat is pretty much all you’ll need.

This is also a good question to ask your guide at your welcome meeting!

You'll get your Florence hotel about 30 days before travel along with your list of tour members and guide's name. Once the hotel is known people here might be able to give you specifics on laundry for that particular hotel.

Took this tour summer of 2017. I packed very lightly in a carry on and did my own wash in the sink. I brought only lightweight capris and Tshirts and mixed and matched. Never needed to dress up. It is a very busy nine days and you'd have to forgo something fun to use a laundromat.

We had the hotel do it for us at our Florence hotel since we were there for three nights and hotel had max time to get it back to us. A tip is to have it ready to turn in as soon as you get there.

Thank you all for the information. We will plan to do it in Florence.

On the VFR tour last November, we stayed in Florence at Hotel Loggiato dei Serviti. I used their laundry service for a few pairs of jeans. Gave the clothes to them in the morning, and by late afternoon, the clean clothes were in my room. Easy and fast.

Several people used a laundromat within walking distance of our Florence hotel (Hotel Centrale).
I packed enough underwear to last the whole trip, so I got by without using the laundromat. I washed a few items in my room, but they took two days to dry. The weather was warmer than expected, so we bought some lighter weight clothes in Rome at The Gap and Zara.