Mulling the maxims through the prism of the 13 days/13 pounds trip.
Ultralight travel means the traveler must commit to doing a certain amount of sink laundry (#6)
Indeed it does. Doing no laundry on a trip of a week or more (unless a bathing suit and tank top are the height of your sartorial needs) will leave you with a bag that is quite heavy - 20 pounds or more - in many cases. Not to exceed our magic carry-on comfort weight of 15 pounds is the goal. So some of the wardrobe must be washable in the hotel sink and, more importantly, able to be dried overnight.
Is it a hassle? Some will think so, but I can honestly say I never spent more than 10 minutes washing out my day’s clothing and sometimes I did two “loads”. Drying the clothing in a humid climate is more of a challenge. As I’ve mentioned before having more than one way to hang your clothing will help because you rarely know what you’re gong to get in the hotel room. Some have powerful exhaust fans which really speed up drying, some have no ventilation at all. A window may speed things up, but with high humidity this may not even help. Some rooms have balconies with little or no place to safely hang clothing, and most hoteliers probably frown on displays of drying clothes - so you have to be smart and sensitive to your environment. I always pack hangers. The ones that swivel and have notches are best, and don’t forget a cheap plastic pants hanger. The clothespin shower rod hooks are nice too. Unfortunately you can’t count on having a shower rod. Get a good clothesline. They’re out there, I just don’t have one. Curtain rods above the sliding doors to balconies were the best places I found to hang dry. Of course a hair dryer can help you in a pinch.
I did not take the plunge for a full-size microfiber towel for this trip (as a drying aid). My best advice remains to request an extra bath towel or two and use them to wring out your wet stuff.
For multi-stop trips plan your laundry around places where you’ll be staying more than one night. This takes all the urgency out of drying, assuming you have a couple of changes of clothing. What you’re wearing plus two changes (more than I took this time) is recommended. One last tip: be considerate of your hotel maid when hanging laundry. I try to make sure it’s out of their way. This also minimizes the possibility of it getting knocked down. If something is nearly dry you always hang it in the room wardrobe or clothing rack for the day.
A laundromat or hotel facility will obviously work as well, though you rarely find either in Europe. Both are plentiful in the US. You may still find that doing your own in your room is faster and more convenient.
My Stinkfighter Formula works well to odor-proof synthetics. You can also use Woolite, whatever you use at home, or any of the various camp/travel soaps.
One last benefit of doing laundry as you go: you’re never carrying much more than a days worth of dirty clothes in your bag.
Frank@OBOW