Rick Steves Travel Store

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An inexpensive clothesline is the secret to traveling well.

I bought a Flexo-Line almost five years ago because of a Wirecutter article. It’s a 5-foot-long travel clothesline made of three braided rubber strands, with two cord loops on either end for hanging.

Since then, I’ve come to believe that drying things while traveling is an underrated necessity. It doesn’t matter if you’re fully prepared to do your own laundry or never wash anything, the need to dry things is universal. And as road trips become more popular, with cars and RVs as our mobile basecamps, a little organization in those small spaces goes a long way toward creating peace of mind.

It’s true that a drying rack can be easy to improvise. But for a moment, allow yourself to imagine not just a more practical world but one made more pleasant and sensory by the addition of a clothesline.

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Imagine pulling a bone-dry towel (not a half-dry, workable yet faintly odorous one) out of your daypack the next time you’re tempted by a summer swimming hole.

Also imagine the toasty feeling of warm gloves and socks, once wet from the rain, drying in front of a fire in your rustic cabin.

For me, that feeling of comfort and satisfaction is worth the extra 0.96 ounces this clothesline adds to my bag. You don’t need clothespins because the braided strands pinch the fabric to hold items in place. It can hold up to 12 pounds of wet supplies and stretch to 8 feet.

In rainy or snowy weather, bring this clothesline with you to hang gloves, windbreakers, socks, hats, and base layers. If you’re traveling by car (like most of us these days), string it across the trunk and hang up towels, kids sunglasses, or wet bandanas.

The braided strands pinch the fabric to hold items in place.

At the beach, use it to corral visors and hats, surf leashes and goggles, as well as your bathing suit that gets dipped in the ocean daily. It’s especially useful for two people, with double the wet things.

This clothesline is an exceptional tool in small spaces, both for organization and privacy. String it between two posts of any sort, hang your towel over it, and you have a small curtain.

Always knowing where your stuff is––hanging on this clothesline––keeps disorganization at bay as the world changes around you. Soon, a psychological calm settles over the daily routine of no routine. Not even packing cubes can top that.