Free "Wash & Fold" Laundry with Platinum Level

[LRene]

You couldn't PAY me to send any of my clothes to the wash & fold. My DH, on the other hand, loves that perk, but his stuff comes back looking like it was wadded up in knots and dried. Like others said, be sure to sort your clothes and only send darks separate from whites. By the looks of some clothes, they don't keep them separate. Some of the ships will bring you a small metal basket that you can use instead of the bags if you ask for it.

 

One of my Plat friends made a point on our last sailing. There's no way they wash your little bag of clothes by themselves in those big washers. She speculated that they probably have mesh bags and they put your stuff in maybe a numbered bag and wash it with other people's clothes.

Another reason I won't be sending my clothes.

 

For me, the Plat perks I like the best are (1) priority embarkation/debarkation in most ports (NOT San Diego which is a joke) and (2) the concierge line at the Information Desk.

[Sailfish]

A friend of mine made a suggestion that I will try on our next cruise. She recommended that I write Special Instructions on the bag and "gentle" or "cold" cycle with a red marker from home. She said that when she did this, her clothes came back in great shape. But if the people doing the laundry don't fold up the clothes right out of the dryer, they will end up looking pretty bad.

[halos]

Here is my experience concerning this perk. First of all, the laundry service is ideal for whites and everyday wash and wear. I have sent laundry to be done on a couple of ships since this service became free for Platinum members, and I can tell you that if you send off more delicate items, those that might require cold water, for example, it may not be returned in the same shape you sent it! The detergent they use is heavy duty stuff, and fine for things like cotton tee shirts, mens underwear, gym clothes, jeans, etc. But for things like nice shorts and tops, bras and bathing suits, or permanent press pants and shirts, trust me when I tell you that they may come back bleached out, shrunken, old and used, etc.

 

I appreciate the service very much, but now I know to be more careful with things like my nightgown or my good pair of shorts; I only send off dirty clothes that I know will withstand hot water, heavy duty detergents, and large industrial dryers. I accidentally sent off a new bathing suit that came back somewhat bleached out, and pilled all over. And my husband accidentally put in a couple of my bras that came back all mangled and deformed!

 

Bottom line is anything that can be washed in hot water and dried on high is going to come out looking great; anything else should be taken home! The service is limited to wash and fold only. They do not press or iron anything and although the service is fairly fast, leaving it for your room steward in the morning instead of at night, will be best.

 

What you said is very important!!!

I'm not Platinum, but used the wash & fold service once and my stuff came back wrinkled as all get out. Wouldn't use it again for anything but underwear...wasn't happy with it.

I prefer laundry service on other lines where your clothes are washed perfectly, ironed and brought back on hangers.

Does CCL even offer this???? Or do they just offer wash & fold (I'm not talking about as a free service, I mean if you are willing to pay for it)

[JoeSmooga]

We've had two experiences with wash and fold as Platinum cruisers, both on the Triumph. In both cases the service itself was fine... all the clothes came back nicely folded in the bags, but then again, we didn't pack the bags full. I think this may make a difference, as one time I jammed a bag completely full (probably should have used two bags) and they came back all folded in one bag... I will say that was the one time where I thought there were more wrinkles.

 

As stated, we used the service on the Triumph on two separate cruises. The first time our steward told us to put out as many bags as we wanted everday, and there was no need to fill out the laundry form. We put it out in the morning and it was returned that night while we were at dinner. Second time around the room steward told us that we could put it out in the morning but it wouldn't be back until the next day after 5PM. Gave me the excuse of "there more Platinum users on this sailing, so there's a lot of laundry". Also, the first day we had our laundry returned as we had not filled out the laundry card (we were told specifically on the previous Triumph cruise that it wasn't needed and all we needed to do was write Platinum on the bag along with our name and room number). Honestly, I think I ran into a room steward with an attitude, but we did what he asked and received out laundry back clean, albeit the next day.

[gsb]

Think its great. One of the best perks.

Good way to come home with clean clothe:) s.

[Sailfish]

I believe, like everything else about cruising, it all comes down to the specific ship and its staff. Some ships do a better job than others. Rules and procedures apply to one ship and not to others; there's a lot of inconsistency, but you get what you get!

 

Therefore, on my cruise next month, I plan to pack light and take full advantage of free laundry service. I have a feeling more and more people will be sending off their dirty clothes to get cleaned or using the self service laundry aboard Carnival ships thanks to airlines imposing a fee for more than one checked bag.

[ala-kat]

One of my Plat friends made a point on our last sailing. There's no way they wash your little bag of clothes by themselves in those big washers. She speculated that they probably have mesh bags and they put your stuff in maybe a numbered bag and wash it with other people's clothes.

 

I was wondering about that cuz I KNOW they are not going to take my one bag and wash it all by its lonesome. So, there has to be a way to keep everyones laundry separate.

 

With that being said, I wonder if they pay attention to bags with all light/all dark/mixed and group them together?

[Cruise-Crazy]

Priority embark..... IMHO......the regular lane is faster..... didn't mean to burst your bubble.

I have never waited more than 15 minutes for the VIP check in PLUS you have a nice lounge to wait in. :)

[Sailfish]

I have never waited more than 15 minutes for the VIP check in PLUS you have a nice lounge to wait in. :)

 

Just curious: which ports have the nice lounges? I have yet to go to a port where there was one for Carnival ships. But then again, I have not been to all of them, so I was just wondering...