One of the reasons why people dislike camping is the issue of hygiene. The inability to get a decent shower, if at all, puts many people off. Many camping sites lack adequate shower facilities and the larger the camping site, the bigger is usually the problem. When I was younger, I used to go camping with my fellow Boy Scouts during the summer. The shower facilities in the camping area were limited, however it was possible to get a half decent shower given that we were just a group of 50 or so boy scouts.
Twenty or so years have passed since I left the Boy Scouts and that was my last experience of camping until a few months ago. It was actually in June of this year when I went to Hellfest, a popular metal festival that takes place in Clisson, France. The organizers said that about 130000 people have been to the festival and while not every ticket holder did visit the camping site, the camping area was already full the day before the festival started. As a matter of fact many of those who attended for the festival did not manage to find any camping space. These poor people had no alternative other than to camp on the side roads or any other free space they could find near the festival grounds.
No Five Star Shower Facilities at Festivals
Having so many people in the camping site and around it, one could only dream of having 5 star shower facilities. As a matter of fact I did not even consider using the shower facilities and so did my friends who were also present for the festival. My friends carried wet baby wipes to keep themselves clean, as do thousands of other festival goers year in year out.
Waterless Wash Kits as Alternative to Wet Wipes
The thought of not being able to properly wash myself at the festival came to my mind on more than one occasion and long before the festival date. Not being sure about the efficacy of wet wipes as a substitute for a proper shower, I carried out some research on the Internet a few weeks before the festival and it was then that I came across the terms “waterless body wash” and “waterless shampoo”.
My research brought me to the site http://www.chemistdirect.co.uk/ and the product Nilaqua Waterless Travel Wash Kit. This wash kit consists of a small box which contains a 65ml body wash bottle, a 65ml shampoo bottle and 2 wipe packets, with each packet containing 4 wipes.
The retail price for the Nilaqua Travel Wash Kit is £6.99, however Chemist Direct was selling it at £4.20 back in June. (At the time of writing the price is even lower as Chemist Direct is currently selling the wash kit at half the retail price.) Given the great price and the general positive reviews for the wash kit (in particular this review from Gallivant Girl) and the information in the official Nilaqua webiste (https://www.norinse.co.uk), I decided it was worth to try out the product.
Apart from buying the Nilaqua Wash Kit, I had also bought a set of wet wipes from a local pharmacy to take them with me to the festival as a backup. However the Nilaqua Wash Kit was just a fraction of the size of the wet wipes container and in the end I opted to leave the wet wipes at home. While I knew beforehand that the body wash and shampoo bottles were pretty small at 65ml, I never realized how small the wipes would be and how big would they get once expanded.
Using a wipe is simply a question of putting some body wash or shampoo liquid on the wipe and gently unrolling it until it is expanded to its original rectangular shape. At this point it is just a question of passing the wipe over the body while at the same time pouring more liquid on the wipe when it becomes dry.
After three days of cleaning myself with the Nilaqua Wash Kit, I must say that I was satisfied with the product. While I cannot tell whether or not the wash kit is more effective than conventional wipes, I did not feel myself dirty after 3 festival days in hot scorching sun. More important than that is the fact that I was not stinking at the end of the festival. Having said this, the Nilaqua Waterless Travel Wash Kit is not a real substitute for a proper shower. However it is a great invention for anyone who does not have access to a shower or bath for a few days.