Toilets Abroad: How to survive
Toilets abroad vary so much. If you dislike the public toilets in the UK, you will be extremely grossed out by most of the toilets around the rest of the world. As mentioned in the Backpacking: The Reality of the Nomadic Lifestyle post, the toilets are not always something you would think about when it comes to travelling.
If you travel in non-western countries (particularly Asia) or even away from civilisation, you better have a good squat! Our sit-down toilets with toilet seats are luxury and we didn’t even know it.
If you really want to go into a lot of detail about specific toilets, check out the toilet inspector website where people upload reviews about all different types of toilets. The reviews range from public toilets, hotel toilets, restaurant toilets and everything in between.
You can search for the country town, type of toilet and it gives ratings based on odour, cleanliness, running water, hand washing facilities, toilet paper, hand dryers, floor state, and an overall rating.
You can also become a member and upload your own reviews with photos if you wish. I personally did not feel the need to use the website because when you need to go, you need to go. I’d just find the nearest facilities and hold my breathe if needed. BUT if you are a bit more picky about where you do your business, this website might just be what you need to scout out a highly rated toilet.
Here are some of the main differences I noticed about the toilets when travelling:
China: Pristine streets, disgusting toilets.
Most public toilets are a hole in the ground with allocated foot placements, or a trough. You MAY be able to find a sit-down toilet but it will either be classed as a disabled toilet or an ‘elderly’ toilet. If you want to use this, be prepared to queue separately, for pee/poo to be all over the seat (if you’re lucky enough to get a seat), and to be shouted at in Chinese for using their ‘special’ toilets. I would strongly advise to hover/squat over these toilets anyway…so it may be worth sucking it up and going to a hole in the ground toilet straight away.
Asia
Some of the toilets we went to basically may as well have not had walls or doors as they covered the area between your knees and lower chest when standing. Obviously you then have to squat and everyone can see everything (no idea who designed those cubicles!).
Also, to flush you usually use a hose at the side of the toilet to fill a bucket and tip that into the toilet, or just directly hose the area down if it’s more of a wet room style toilet. If you are in a cubicle next to someone, you probably will get wet.
Toilet paper is to be put in the provided bin rather than in the toilet due to a poor/non-existent sewage system. This means that if it isn’t emptied regularly the smell can build, flies accumulate, and you may feel light headed from trying not to breathe properly.
Occasionally some people were sat next to the toilets and were expecting a tip or payment to use the toilet facilities. I have no idea if that was a legit thing or if they were just trying to scam tourists out of money. I would have paid if I didn’t have to navigate my way around piles of waste and hold my breath for a dangerous amount of time. (My lung capacity definitely increased during my time in Asia…look at the positives right?!)
Top Tip
Spray your t-shirt/a scarf with something that smells nice and put that over your face when waiting for and using the toilet. It makes it a slightly more pleasant experience.
The rest of Asia was pretty similar but I would say that China was the country that stood out as being particularly bad. It’s a great place to explore but the toilet game is definitely something that can be improved.
In a way it was good to start here because it prepared me for the rest of the time away- I felt like I could tackle any toilet situation that arose including not having any toilets.
What if there isn’t a toilet?
There are times on hikes or when camping/sleeping in the wilderness when there isn’t a toilet anywhere for miles. The problem with this is that because it’s so hot you have to stay hydrated which means drinking plenty of fluids, which of course means needing to pee more (and maybe poo if you drink a lot of coffee).
You may be staying overnight on the side of a road without toilets. That means either holding it all night and morning until you reach the next toilet (it could be hours!) or sucking it up and going in the wilderness.
Digging a hole was often too much effort…and sometimes there isn’t even a bush or tree to hide behind.
We figured out that if you open the front and back door of the car it provides a little bit of privacy…a DIY toilet cubicle. Just make sure there are no other people around that may walk past or pop over for a chat. #Awks.
Here are my top tips for squat toileting (Warning! not for the feint-hearted):
- If possible wear no shoes or wear flipflops/ shoes that are easy to wash (in case your aim isn’t great)
- Pull your waistband back /keep clothes out the way- there’s nothing worse than having to walk around with a stain/smell on your clothes
- Try and aim down a slope, not to the side or upwards- fairly self explanatory
- Don’t pee on rocks/stone/pebbles- there will be a lot of splash-back!
- Watch out for nettles and thorns if you are squatting in a bush/ patch of foliage
- Check for snakes or anything else that might bite your butt!
- Try to relax- if you are tense you might be waiting a while for the flow to start
- Carry a packet of tissues at all times- you don’t want to be drip drying or using a leaf with your bare bum exposed to the world
- Carry baby wipes at all times in case your aim isn’t great/ there is splash back (if you’re bursting the pressure might be quite high and you cant always control these things!)
North America
Even in western countries there are differences, for example in North America there are huge gaps between the doors and cubicles so people can see everything if they’re looking from the right angle.
Composting toilets
These are quite popular in places such as North America and the Australian outback where low maintenance is preferred. They stink. It is basically a toilet seat on top of a big hole in the ground and all of your waste collects in the pit and decomposes. Now imagine a pit full of waste in a confined space in the 30 degree heat with flies everywhere. You will never forget the smell!
I used a composting toilet inside a house which required the addition of soil in different quantities and to turn a handle to mix it all up. This helped reduce the smell and definitely took a bit of getting used to!
All in all, something as simple as using an English toilet becomes a luxury and you learn to really appreciate a good sewage system!
Do you have any other tips for toileting abroad or weird experiences?