How many times has this happened to you: you've packed enough for your business trip, with a couple of spare changes of clothes as backup, but suddenly you're being sent off to another city for a surprise set of meetings.

Being a no-nonsense type, you don't need or want the full hotel laundry service, with your socks tied up with little bows and everything presented in tissue paper or plastic wrap. You just want stuff washed and dried so you can pack it away in your suitcase to get to your next destination.

You probably (and we certainly) resent paying those extortionately high laundry prices: $5 -- or more! -- for a pair of socks or a t-shirt, when you need four days' changes of clothes washed? Nobody wants to try getting that past accounting these days.

But at the same time, you don't want (or don't have the time) to have to find a laundromat and sit there for an hour or more while your stuff is washed.

No, hotels need to offer reasonably priced "wash and dry" laundry. A hotel laundry bag full, chucked in the washing machine and dryer, shouldn't cost the earth. We'd be prepared to pay $10 or even $20 for that, if it came back folded ready to be packed.

(Though we'd probably roll it first before putting it in the suitcase.)

The laundry situation is a big part of why we find apartment hotels so convenient: with a washer and dryer in your apartment, your clothes are done in the time that it takes to sort yourself out some dinner and watch a bit of TV.

Even guest laundry rooms, seen much more often in mid-range hotels than anywhere at the higher end, are a reasonable option. (Top tip: if you're seriously busy, see if there's a junior staffer at the hotel who's happy to do your laundry while you're in meetings all day, in exchange for $20.)

What's the worst hotel laundry rort you've encountered? Where's the best business class hotel for practical things like getting your washing done?

Or have you found a decent washing service that does hotel pickups? Give praise where praise is due -- or name and shame! -- in a comment below.