Travel tip #2 - laundry

Call ahead to your hotel and find out what amenities they have available to you. Many hotels have a washer and dryer available to guests for their laundry. Of course none of us PLAN on spending our vacation doing laundry, but it is very hand to know that you can wash a load of jeans or shorts if you need to. I typically do at least one load each trip (sometimes due to unplanned spillage). Keep you eyes open for laundry coupons that do not specify a size (such as Tide), use these coupons to grab the travel size detergent to take on your trip. If you plan on staying in a timeshare or condo that has secured laundry facilities, you are likely to do a few loads. In that case, I suggest you grab a box of Purex laundry sheets. You don't have to take the whole box, just pull out what you think you will need, and throw them in a Ziploc type bag. By using the sheets, you don't have to worry about your detergent spilling all over your clean clothes in transit. If you are flying, be sure to put these INSIDE your luggage because they may flag as a "paste" in the scanner and cause you delay for inspection.