Let’s talk about a hotel closet.  It’s not ideal. 

Never enough hangers (why?!), rarely enough space, and usually lacking the lighting you need to safely put an outfit together. 

I ALWAYS, without fail- unpack my entire suitcase upon checking into a hotel. (also when arriving home from a trip, but that’s a different level of neuroticism we can discuss at a later time.) 

I. Hate. Living. Out. Of. A. Suitcase. 

The jumbled mess of wrinkled clothes, spilled products, and tangled cords is enough to send me into an anxious spiral.

I also have a hard time getting up early- (I’m a night person and I love a comfortable bed) so I need to streamline my morning routine to avoid being late. Removing the worry of wrinkled or otherwise compromised clothing helps me to get going faster and with less waste of precious morning energy.

I’ve perfected the hotel closet game in 2 steps:

Press. & Organize.

1. Press/steam anything from your suitcase that became wrinkled in transit and USE THE CLOSET AND DRAWERS to organize your stuff. (maybe give them a wipe down first) There is typically a steam iron in most hotel rooms or rental homes, but if there isn’t this travel version is PERFECT – it acts as either an iron or a steamer and has dual voltage for worldwide use! I even use it at home when I’m not in the mood to drag out my bigger steam iron. Check your hotel or rental home’s website to see if they provide in-room irons/steamers before you go. If not, bring one!

No one wants to look like a disheveled mess. (horror. think of the photos)

Steaming and organizing your clothing as you unpack is also a GREAT way to keep busy and stay awake if you’ve landed during the day in a strange time zone and need something to do to beat the jet lag sleepies.

A WORD OF WARNING: Not all irons and steamers are made the same. I’ve mucked up more than one precious blouse with careless hotel room ironing. If you’re using the hotel/rental home iron, follow these few easy steps to keep your garments safe:

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1. If there is a steam function, USE IT. Rather than risking an unusually hot iron surface melting your fiber blend blouse, use the steam function for less heat and more control with the same result.
   
2. TEST the steam function and iron face first in the air. Dump any residual water that was sitting in the steam tank and fill it with fresh water. Give the steam button a few pumps facing away from you and into the air to clear any calcium buildup that may be sitting in the pores. This will also kind of steam the iron face and make it easier to wipe away anything that might be melted onto the iron from a previous careless guest. Then wipe any residue off the surface of the iron with a bathroom hand towel.
   
3. If you’re using an ironing board, make sure it’s clean first. You don’t know if the guest before you used it as a table for their footlong Italian sub with hot salami and extra mayo. Make sure it’s clean so you’re not pressing anything icky into your clothes. Put a towel over the board to iron onto if it’s questionable.
   
4. Gently, gently, gently start to press or steam your garment. Go slowly and gingerly until you get a good feel for how hot the iron or steam is. Once you get a feel for it and you’re sure it’s all clean, have at it. But go slowly and gently at first! You have been warned!

Again, not all irons or steamers are the same and it’s very likely that the one in your hotel closet has vastly different heat and steam settings than your iron or steamer at home.

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2. Organize your toiletries into a makeshift vanity, set up your bedside table (and desk if you’ll be working), line up your shoes, and hang clothing immediately after it’s been pressed to keep any new wrinkles from forming.

I will reiterate that there are NEVER enough hangers in a hotel room closet. Never.

It’s usually possible to call the front desk to ask for more hangers in a hotel, but in my experience, they’ll bring you like, 2 more and then smile at you like they’ve done you an enormous service (ugh.. thanks? I guess?) And – if you’re in non-traditional lodging like an Airbnb or if your hotel has fixed closet hangers, you may be out of luck entirely.

Don’t be afraid to get creative and use a spare chair, a closet shelf, or a bedside table drawer to organize your clothes that don’t HAVE to hang to remain wrinkle-free. As long as the spot is tidy, visible, and accessible, it’s a winner.

To avoid hangerless woes, I find travel hangers to be infinitely useful.

They fold to a small size you can easily toss into the bottom of your suitcase.  Even outside the closet, they’re great to use around the hotel room to keep items off the floor or hang dry a wet bathing suit, at the beach to hang things out of the sand, and I’ll even put one in my carry-on in case I need to hang my jacket from my suitcase handle or change clothes in an airport bathroom stall during a layover.

*HOT TIP: If I have the luxury of a spare drawer available in my hotel room, I’ll designate it as a ‘dirty clothes bin’ I can throw things into as I undress to keep the room tidy and my clean clothes separated from the dirty.
If nothing else, I’ll park my empty suitcase in a vacant corner of the room or upright in the closet to use as a discreet laundry bin.

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