As cold weather sets in, college students and renters use hotel "hourly rooms" as makeshift "laundry rooms," a trend becoming viral online (Photo/Sanqin.com)

Chongqing - As cold weather sets in, a viral trend is college students and renters using hotel "hourly rooms" as makeshift "laundry rooms."

The "Hotel Seasonal Laundry Guide" has been trending online recently. In these guides, netizens also shared why they opted for hotel laundry services, according to a report by Changjiangyun News on Sunday.

Some universities have limited facilities for college students, lacking washing machines in dorms or having too few, with no large-capacity washers for bedding and heavy clothing. In southern cities, without dryers, sweaters, down jackets, and blankets can take weeks to dry in autumn and winter.

Renters face similar issues. Meanwhile, dry cleaning a single down jacket can cost anywhere from tens to over a hundred yuan. In contrast, booking an hourly hotel room for 100-200 yuan ($13.82-$27.64) gives access to high-end commercial washers and dryers, resulting in fluffy, soft clothes—making it a budget-friendly choice.

Actually, earlier this year, the "hotel laundry" trend began on social media, with people bringing bags of clothes to hotel laundry rooms. Some even booked hourly rooms just for laundry.

In March, a woman surnamed Zhang, who was doing her laundry at a hotel, told Sanqin.com, "I needed to wash two loads, which took about two and a half hours, including drying. I booked a four-hour hourly room online for just over 100 yuan. I saw hotel laundry tips online and wanted to try them. Although JD Laundry offers door-to-door service for six items at 99 yuan, I calculated that I'd need to wash seven items to break even using the hotel method. It's a bit tiring trying to save this way." 

However, some netizens pointed out that online laundry services can take at least five days to deliver and cannot guarantee timeliness.

Meanwhile, Changjiangyun News reported that students have even started "group bookings," sharing an hourly room to wash multiple suitcases of clothes while enjoying a shower, tea, and a TV show together.

The media outlet cited hotel front desk staff saying that many students book hourly rooms to do laundry, and the laundry facilities are in high demand. "We're more than happy to welcome guests who come here just to wash clothes—it's still business for us," a staff member remarked.

On social media, a hotel even took the initiative, posting a video guide to show netizens how to use its laundry facilities.

Hotels are upping their game in laundry services to attract more laundry guests. Some offer high-end commercial washers and dryers, while others feature smart systems allowing users to book laundry services and track progress via an app. At the same time, some hotels provide extensive amenities, from clothes racks, laundry baskets, and detergents to extras like water, seating areas, and even shoe polish kits, lingerie detergent, and sewing kits, according to Changjiangyun News.