Portable Iron without ironing board

Consider that an ironing board is just a firm surface.

I frequently use a folded towel on a desk, or even bed, while traveling.

In all the hotels I have stayed in, either there is an iron and ironing board already in the room, or I can call the front desk and one will be delivered to my room.

As for long term apartment usage - consider the price of an iron vs how long you will stay there. If an iron costs $20 and you are there for 2 months then buy a new iron and consider the price as being the "Iron rental fee" of $0.33 per day, and leave the iron when you leave. I have done similar things before - even though it pains me to do so - and possibly you can expense it/claim on tax if you are on a business trip.

I just remembered the one and only hotel that I have stayed in a very long time ago that didn't have an iron or ironing board in it. But as it was located in Magnitogorsk in Eastern Russia (technically Siberia as it is just East of the Urals), it is an extremely out of the ordinary location. But based on the accommodation it would count as a 2/3 star hotel.

(warning - anecdote ahead)

There was this one time where I had staff wash my clothes and I needed them first thing in the next morning, so I wanted to pick them up that night. But the staff wanted to keep them overnight and were worried about them not being able to dry in time. Yet it was the middle of winter and -40° outside at night with humidity so low that I saw a laminated wooden table de-laminate. And if you had a bucket of water in your room it would virtually disappear before your eyes. I got my clothes from the staff and they were bone dry by the morning.

A hand held steamer like the fridja f10 might be the type of thing you are looking for. The manufacturer says it is suitable for suits. They don't have video of the F10 but they do have a videos of the f1000 working which they say is the same as the f10 only not portable. I haven't used these steamers before (bar a quick demo/test) but the company I work for does resell them, and the F10 has been popular since it we very recently starting to sell it.

for more info http://fridja.com

There is of course other handheld steamers on the market, but the f10 is the only one I know about.

In a pinch, I've used an oven mitt on my hand as a flat surface to iron against. For my uses, this was done on a hanging garment and only for spot ironing (removing a few wrinkles).

There were times when I faced similar issues. I find a cordless iron helpful(like Panasonic PAN-NI-WL600).

Reason

• I can use any available surface - a table top, a bed
• Since it is a proper iron, the results are decent

Cons

• The iron set itself is heavier to carry than a regular portable iron. (But I feel the tradeoff is worth it)

Warning: Ancecdote

The one time that I'd been caught without an iron and in desperate need of one, the hostel (1-star hotel) had an electric stove. I managed to iron out a shirt by sliding a small pot of near-boiling water on the shirt as it was laid out on a towel on the bed.

After mentioning this to a coworker he was unimpressed: his method of carefully laying the shirt under the mattress for the night required less effort and did almost just as good a job.

So now you have two life-hack alternatives: Use a hot pot (with a lid to prevent spills), or simply press the shirt under the mattress. Be sure that the shirt is perfectly flat under the mattress, though, so there are no wrinkles left in the shirt.