When it comes to family travel, there are the endless adventures, beautiful memories, and…a mountain of dirty laundry. Whether you’re cashing in your award points and miles or traveling for kicks, the laundry struggle is real! During our epic 7-week trip around Asia and the South Pacific, we a family of four became experts in one often-overlooked travel essential: laundromats. With the sun cranking up the heat, these little oases felt like lifesavers (or should I say clothes-savers?).
What Are My Top Picks?
Best Overall:
- Guest Laundromat at Hilton Tokyo Bay Hotel.
Best Value For Family:
- Sukatto Coin Laundry in Sapporo local neighborhood.
Best Resort Surprise:
- Laundry at Hoshino Oirase Keiryu resort.
Best for Solo Traveler:
- Compact Coin Laundry at Mitsui Garden Hotel Sapporo West.
Best Overall: Guest Laundromat At Hilton Tokyo Bay Hotel
What We Loved:
- Built-in cashless payment system
- Automatic detergent and softener
- Most spacious laundry room we’ve experienced
- Easy instructions in both English and Japanese
- Powerful machines
What We Didn’t Love:
- “Guest Laundry” was not clearly labeled in the hotel.
The laundry facilities are located on the B2 floor of Hilton Tokyo Bay, one of the most popular family hotels for visitors to Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea. Why does this laundromat deserve a “Best Overall” award? Two words: credit cards.
That’s right, swiping our way to more points while the clothes spun in blissful cleanliness. If you’ve ever used a laundromat in Japan, you know how much of a hassle it can be to gather coins. But not here! Hilton Tokyo Bay offers a cashless payment system on all washers and dryers. Simply download the “MiniAquaPay” app from Google Play or the Apple App Store and follow the straightforward instructions, available in both English and Japanese. The system supports a wide range of payment methods, including Discover, American Express, Mastercard, Visa, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Alipay.
Unlike most laundry facilities, detergent and softener are automatically added, so there’s no need to bring your own or deal with leftover products. It’s a hassle-free experience! The machines are powerful, offering a generous 5KG capacity for both washing and drying. The dryers are especially efficient – our clothes were completely dry in just 60 to 90 minutes. The only drawback? The guest laundry facility isn’t well-advertised. Without checking the hotel directory, we might have missed this hidden gem entirely.
Best Value For Families: Sukatto Coin Laundry In Sapporo
What We Loved
- Open from 6 AM to 11 PM daily.
- Convenient coin exchange machine.
- Automatic detergent and softener included.
- Powerful machines with great capacity.
- Cozy atmosphere with Japanese manga and ample space to relax while waiting.
- Close to convenience stores.
- Clear instructions in both English and Japanese.
- Located in a local neighborhood, so fewer tourists.
What We Didn’t Love
- An 11-minute walk from our hotel (Mitsui Garden).
- Cash only.
After arriving from Seoul, we found ourselves with a mountain of dirty clothes – one of the joys of traveling with a family of four! We planned to use the hotel laundry, but it was ALWAYS occupied and only available between 3 PM and 9 AM. Unfortunately, that didn’t really work with our schedule. So, we searched for nearby options and found quite a few in Sapporo. Sukatto Coin Laundry was the closest, and honestly, it exceeded our expectations. The laundromat had plenty of machines, even during peak hours, and being open from 6 AM to 11PM was a huge plus. We decided to drop by at 7 AM to beat any crowds and avoid the mid-day heat.
Though it operates on a cash-only system, there’s a handy coin exchange machine that breaks down 1,000-yen notes. And like the Hilton Tokyo Bay’s laundry, all the machines come pre-loaded with detergent and softener, so we didn’t have to worry about buying any ourselves. What really stood out was the power of the machines. They were much more efficient than those at the Hilton. Our clothes came out perfectly dry after just one 60-minute cycle.
We loved the cozy atmosphere, complete with Japanese manga, newspapers, and Wi-Fi and the ample space to relax while we waited. Another reason we rated it so highly is that it’s very user-friendly since both the website and on-site instructions are clearly labeled in English and Japanese. And last but not least, its location, slightly away from the main tourist area, meant there were fewer tourists competing for the washers.
The only drawback? Being cash-only. Make sure to keep a few 1,000-yen notes on hand. We hadn’t exchanged any foreign currency yet, so finding a place to swap our US dollars for yen at 6 AM turned into its own little adventure!
Best For Solo Traveler: Coin Laundry In Mitsui Garden Sapporo West Hotel
What We Loved
- Conveniently located next to the public bath.
- Compact, making it perfect for a quick wash and dry.
What We Didn’t Love
- Cash only, with limited cashless payment options.
- Small capacity.
- Limited opening hours.
- Always a queue (not of people, but of clothes piling up).
If you’ve traveled in Japan before, you’ll know that most Japanese-owned hotels come with laundry facilities, and Mitsui Garden Sapporo West is no different. True to Japanese style, the laundry area is small and efficient. It brought back memories of my childhood, using those classic Japanese-brand washers – small in size, low in power. We loaded it up with cotton t-shirts, pants, and shirts, but quickly realized we had overloaded it. After feeding coins into the machine four times, the clothes were still damp. The process was frustrating. We started at 3 PM, and after over three hours, our laundry was still wet. Meanwhile, others started arriving, and soon, piles of clothes began to build up. The whole experience quickly turned stressful. In the end, we brought the half-dry clothes back to our room and let them air dry overnight.
On the bright side, the laundry is conveniently located right next to the public bath, so you can start a load after your shower – if you can snag a machine. The 2-in-1 washers take both coins and some cashless payments, which could be a huge time-saver – if they’re available. Ultimately, the small capacity makes this laundry best suited for solo travelers looking for a quick and easy wash.
Best Surprise For Families: Laundry At Hoshino Oirase Keiryu Resort
What We Loved:
- Spacious laundry room with at least three washers and dryers.
- Detergent and softener provided.
- A comfortable bench for waiting.
What We Didn’t Love:
- Coin-operated machines with no cashless payment option.
- No folding table.
- Limited capacity.
- Instructions only in Japanese.
While the family-friendly Hoshino Resorts Aomoriya Hotel didn’t have laundry facilities, we were pleasantly surprised to find a full laundromat at Hoshino Oirase Keiryu Resort. They didn’t skimp on the details – though simple, the machines were efficient and a great convenience for families, especially after a day of outdoor adventures. The laundry room is fairly spacious, and having a bench to sit on while waiting was a nice touch. However, we were caught off guard by the lack of a folding table, and the fact that the machines were coin-operated, which is quite common here. While using the washers and dryers is straightforward, the instructions are only in Japanese, so having Google Translate handy will make the experience smoother.
Final Thoughts
Laundry may not be the most glamorous part of family travel, but it’s definitely a necessity. After trying out several laundromats during our summer trip to Japan, we’re excited to share our top picks:
- Best Overall: Guest Laundromat at Hilton Tokyo Bay Hotel
- Best for Families: Sukatto Coin Laundry in Sapporo
- Best Resort Surprise: Laundry at Hoshino Oirase Keiryu Resort
- Best for Solo Travelers: Compact Laundromat at Mitsui Garden Hotel Sapporo West Hotel
Each of these spots stood out for their convenience and quality, making laundry on the road just a little bit easier.
