Doing laundry in Iceland doesn’t have to eat into your travel time—or your budget. With a little planning, you can stay fresh on the road, pack lighter, and enjoy more of the country’s hot springs, waterfalls, and coastal villages. Here’s how to use Iceland laundry services easily, plus how Ourhotels.is can help you keep on top of your washing while exploring West Iceland.
Iceland is famously remote and sparsely populated, which means laundromats aren’t on every corner like in big cities. In many smaller towns, your best options are hotel laundry services, guesthouse machines, or a local self-service laundromat that keeps limited hours. That’s why it’s smart to think about laundry when you plan your route—especially if you’re driving the Westfjords or the Snæfellsnes Peninsula.
Ourhotels.is makes this much simpler by offering convenient laundry options at key stops in West Iceland: Hvítá Inn in Borgarfjörður (near Borgarnes), Stykkishólmur Inn on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, and Ísafjörður Inn in the Westfjords. By timing your laundry days around these locations, you can travel with fewer clothes and still feel fresh.
At Hvítá Inn in Borgarfjörður, close to Borgarnes and the main Ring Road, you can plan a laundry stop between Reykjavík and the north or before heading out to the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. This is a great place to wash and dry your clothes while you relax after a day of exploring the hot springs, lava fields, and waterfalls of the Borgarfjörður region. Ask at reception about available machines, detergent, and drying options—staff can point you to the most efficient way to get everything clean before you continue your road trip.
If you’re exploring the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, Stykkishólmur Inn is a perfect base for both sightseeing and laundry. Stykkishólmur is a charming harbor town with restaurants, museums, and boat tours, so you can easily combine a laundry session with a relaxed evening in town. Many guests use their stay here as a “reset” point: wash clothes, repack, and get ready for the next leg of the journey. Check with the inn about self-service machines or laundry services, and consider doing a single large load instead of several small ones to save time and coins.
Further north and west, Ísafjörður Inn in the Westfjords is ideal for longer trips where laundry becomes essential. The Westfjords are wild and remote, with long driving distances and fewer services, so having a reliable place to wash and dry clothes is a real advantage. Plan at least one night in Ísafjörður, drop your laundry early, and then head out to explore the fjords, hiking trails, and local cafés. When you return, your clothes can be clean and dry, ready for the next stretch of your adventure.
To use Iceland laundry services efficiently, keep a small laundry kit in your bag: a few travel-sized detergent packets, a lightweight laundry bag, and maybe a short clothesline or a handful of pegs. Even if you use machines at Ourhotels.is properties, having your own detergent and bag makes sorting and carrying clothes easier. If machines are busy, you can always hand-wash a few essentials in your room’s sink and hang them to dry overnight.
Timing is important. Try to do laundry in the late afternoon or evening, after check-in, when you’re done exploring for the day. This way, you’re not waiting around during prime sightseeing hours. At Hvítá Inn, Stykkishólmur Inn, and Ísafjörður Inn, you can start a load, then relax in your room, enjoy dinner, or take a short walk while the machines run. Always check posted instructions on the machines—many are in English as well as Icelandic—and ask staff if you’re unsure about settings or payment.
Because Iceland’s weather can be wet and windy, relying on outdoor drying isn’t always practical. Using dryers at your accommodation is usually the fastest and most reliable option. If you prefer air-drying, hang clothes in a well-ventilated area of your room and avoid placing wet items directly on heaters. In many cases, a short tumble-dry followed by air-drying overnight works well.
When planning your itinerary, think of laundry as part of your route: perhaps your first wash at Hvítá Inn near Borgarnes after a few days in Reykjavík, another at Stykkishólmur Inn after touring Snæfellsnes, and a final refresh at Ísafjörður Inn during a longer Westfjords loop. By using Ourhotels.is locations as your laundry hubs, you can travel lighter, stay comfortable, and focus on what you came for—dramatic landscapes, quiet fishing villages, and the unique charm of West Iceland.
For many travelers, having easy access to laundry is the difference between overpacking and traveling smart. With well-placed inns like Hvítá Inn, Stykkishólmur Inn, and Ísafjörður Inn, Ourhotels.is helps you keep your suitcase simple and your clothes fresh, so you can enjoy Iceland without worrying about running out of clean socks.
