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Where CAN"T you drink the water?

As my travels take me to areas away from the popular tourist areas, I'm trying to find areas in Europe where either the water is NOT safe to drink OR the water is safe but really tastes TERRIBLE. This will help me decide where to go.

As an example, in Akureyri, Iceland, I remember the water was safe to drink but it had a terrible sulfur taste.

TIA

Posted by
6407 posts

The water may have tasted bad in Batalha, Portugal, because I recall that I was filtering my water. I have always brought along a filtering water bottle when I travel because I'm picky about the taste of water, and I do not like purchasing bottled water for environmental reasons. Other than that, I can't recall a place where I didn't care for the taste of the water.

We were advised to not drink the water in Istanbul and Ortigia Sicily. In Ortigia, I believe it was related to old pipes.

I like "World Nomads" for that kind of information.

Posted by
225 posts

The only place I've been unable to drink (safe) water was in Barcelona, where the tap water tasted so strongly of chlorine that I only drank bottled. But that was over ten years ago now.

Posted by
20087 posts

Except for small villages in poor countries, i think you will have trouble finding water that is "unsafe". But because of my profession and the rules and regulations that I had to follow for over 40 years in professional practice, I still cringe when i see utility work going on and see how the plumbing is laid. Even though "safe" not up to US standards that enusre safety so I tend to shy away from the local water in most of Europe. But I do realize thats mostly my hangup.

Posted by
1513 posts

It is a good plan not to drink tap water when you travel. Not all water is potable or may be perfectly alright for locals to drink, since they grew up with the "culture" LOL. Filtered bottled water is your best bet. You can also use club soda for your contacts. I drank a lot of lemon tonic when I was in Europe.

Posted by
8202 posts

I have visited 83 foreign countries and lived in two.

As a general rule, you can drink the tap water in Northern and Western Europe. Also, in some Eastern European countries you can probably drink the water. We recently visited Romania and our guides provided bottled water, indicating we should not drink the tap water.

We did a tour of China and were told that it wasn't a good idea to drink the water. We were told that that the government didn't want to hurt the companies that provided bottled water, so they wouldn't spend the money to upgrade the water systems.

On our tour of Ukraine and Russia we didn't drink the water.
I think we were able to drink the water in Japan, but not in Indonesia, Malaysia or the Philippines. Australia and NZ no problem.

South America, we were told not drink the water. This is largely the case in third world countries, including Egypt, where you wouldn't even think of drinking the tap water.

Posted by
5350 posts

In western Turkey, in some of the cities on the RS tour, there were hotels that had signs indicating that you should not drink the water. This included some quite modern, business style hotels.

Posted by
20087 posts

I drank the water in Ukraine, and most of Eastern Europe. Didnt kill me. Might have I guess. Russia? No way. I stuck to bottles. Even in countries where the water is "safe" it can suck, so someone will hand you bottled water.

Posted by
2978 posts

We've been traveling internationally for many years - both business and personal travel - and have routinely gotten into the habit of purchasing bottled water wherever we go. For us it's just not worth the risk of getting sick while overseas ... as minimal as that risk may be in many places.

Posted by
20087 posts

Robert, that is really the best advice.

You go to beautiful old cities where the plumbing was put in at the turn of the century using lead at times. The water supply lines are below the sewage water lines so any leak makes its way to the loose joint that is, because of the flow of the watrer, sucking, not spraying the line also feeds a 80 year old tolilet that has been backed up for years and sucking water down the line becuase the old building is not vented. .... yuck....

I did drink it when I had to drink it, but it was always the last choice.

Posted by
8948 posts

There are plenty of places in the US where I wouldn't drink the water. Its hard to generalize about a whole country.

Posted by
3471 posts

Ortigia in Sicily.
It had a salty taste and the host told us we should buy bottled water……..but not until two days after we asked her about the weird taste. (Rolling eyes……)
It was potable, but horrible.
We had been boiling it anyway, which is what I always do in Italian apartments until I determine if it is ok to drink.

Posted by
406 posts

When we were in Albania this summer our food tour guide told us to drink bottled water re: aging pipes. Our hotel gave us free water everyday, so if they give it for free I usually take that as an indication not to drink tap water as well.

Posted by
1106 posts

I drink bottled water in Europe, but it's because one can get tasty sparkling mineral water pretty much everywhere. It's one of the little things I love about being in Europe.

Posted by
4847 posts

Reminds me of that scene in Slumdog Millionaire where the kids have a job filling water bottles with tap water and then carefully replaced the bottle caps ...

When I travelled the world for a living, I drank Coke and beer. Oh and really hot tea. Still got really sick in Lima, I think I accidentally got some water in my mouth while showering.

Posted by
5350 posts

Oh dear, I'm going to Lima this summer. Maybe I'll take sponge baths....

Posted by
6407 posts

We were told to watch out for bottles in Istanbul that had been refilled with tap water. Water was so cheap that we just purchased it at small stores.

Posted by
8028 posts

We were told to watch out for bottles in Istanbul that had been refilled with tap water. Water was so cheap that we just purchased it at small stores.

Reminds me of a scene in a movie (Slumdog Millionaire?) where they are filling water bottles, but know enough to use super glue on the lid so you get that "snap".

But in the EU, taste may be more an issue than safety in some places, especially seaside or remote areas. (Some Greek isles come to mind, Sicily a couple places) Testing and regulations are excellent across the EU, but more remote areas see more infrequent testing, and then any time you get off a central water system (water from a private well, for example, in a rural area) there could be issues.

We don't worry about it too much, usually drink bottled water anyway when out, and in the room, mainly for the taste, not a concern over safety.

Posted by
14955 posts

Drinking tap water in northern and western Europe I knew was safe since the first trip there in 1971. I remember being told by a Swedish young woman then about her getting water from the well in her family's summer home in north Sweden. As a city boy I had no idea regarding that type of water , so thinking American , I asked if that was safe, (bad move) , only to be screamed at when she said: "this water is safer than what you have in America !"

Regardless, I buy bottled water anyway in Germany and France, mostly "stilles" as opposed to carbonated, but less often and depends on when. There are grocery shops in Paris where the price of a 1.5 Liter bottle is 50 cents, depending on the brand, obviously.

Posted by
27962 posts

I hate buying water in plastic bottles (though you sort of must do that in restaurants in some countries), but I've had to buy bottled water in these places over the years--for safety reasons unless otherwise specified:

Istanbul and Bursa (same true throughout Turkey, I would assume)
Ukraine
Albania
Skiathos, Greece (very brackish water, but supposedly safe)
Washington, DC (I live there and depend on a filtering pitcher because the local treatment leaves a very strong taste)

I drank the water in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1972 and only later read about the very high risk of picking up giardiasis there, which I had succumbed to. As far as I know, that problem still exists. I haven't read that it's an issue elsewhere in Russia.

I don't worry about water that tastes odd as long as it's safe. I can use it to brush my teeth, at least. I'm sure I've encountered a few cities where there was an off taste, but I don't remember where they were.

I assume Mr. E is correct about the pipes in many old neighborhoods, but I've spent a huge amount of time in Europe off and on since 1972 and have only once had a digestive problem that might conceivably have come from water contamination (if you don't trust the infrastructure in Munich and Ljubljana). For me, avoiding that risk by buying plastic bottles of water when restaurants don't force me to isn't justified. YMMV.

On my most recent trip I was served water in glass bottles on some occasions. Sometimes it was tap water or filtered tap water rather than a sealed bottle. Maybe there's a move from plastic to glass in some places.

Posted by
8948 posts

Water anywhere can have mineral or microbiological content that is different enough from what you're used to, and taste funny and cause upset stomachs. Natural minerals like sulfates, iron, chlorides, etc, can vary and cause taste issues. The pipes and plumbing anywhere including your home are not sterile. That pristine well you're drinking from can be too close to the septic tank or the fuel storage tank to be good. So it's like food safety - you have to trust people to know what they're doing. Use your judgement.

CDC publishes guidance on food & water on countries specifically to advise travelers about the general conditions in each country. They have people who track and research this kind of stuff all the time, not just a CYA thing.

Posted by
32348 posts

Frank II,

There were a couple of places where the water was probably safe, but had a terrible taste. Two locations that come to mind are island of Hydra and Gefyra (both in Greece).

Posted by
7915 posts

Not Europe, but as we've been in Vietnam for two weeks, it’s another “Don’t Drink the Water” country, at least for Westerners. Every hotel has provided a daily plastic bottle of water in the room (wish they weren’t plastic), and there are occasional 5-gallon (or so) jugs of water for filling up a reusable bottle. Getting ice tea has been out of the question, unless it’s confirmed that the ice was made from filtered water.

Prices are super-cheap in Vietnam, so getting basic bottled water isn’t expensive, and there aren’t designer varieties like Voss, Perrier, or San Pellegrino here anyway.

Posted by
1339 posts

I think Stan has given the answer I'd go with. It's the same for "Europeans" visiting the USA. Whilst the water there is mostly nominally "safe", according to their own lax rules, in some places it can still taste rank, smell odd or contain minerals which won't kill you but will give you an upset tummy if not used to them.
In the EU, I'd mention Malta. Even its tourist board recommends drinking bottled water. Yes, what comes out of the tap is meant to meet EU standards. But ...

Posted by
1031 posts

Am I interpreting this correctly, OP? Are you predicating your travels purely on avoidance of bad water?

Posted by
16235 posts

Am I interpreting this correctly, OP? Are you predicating your travels purely on avoidance of bad water?

No, knowing where the water tastes bad or shouldn't be drunk will help me decide which water filter I pack.

Posted by
1739 posts

I try to avoid using individual plastic bottles of water as much as possible. It's horrible for the environment.

I don't think there's anywhere in Europe where I didn't drink the water, and I've never had a problem.

In Mexico, Central America, Southeast Asia, and South America I didn't drink tap water. Some places have big dispensers in the lobby where one can refill cups or bottles. This was the case in the Galapagos, for instance. In Hoi An and in Hanoi, Vietnam, the hotels provided a bottle of water per person per day, which was nowhere near enough. In Hoi An, we bought a large bottle of water from a shop and refilled our insulated water bottles from that. (We did see someone selling large bottles on the street that had clearly been refilled, so even from the store, we were careful to make sure the bottle had not been previously opened.) In Namibia, our guide brought a big container of water for us to use to refill our metal water bottles (that he provided). If we were someplace where he said it was okay to drink the tap water, we did so.

I've also used a Lifestraw bottle and, more recently, a LARQ bottle if I think it might be iffy.

My rule is that if there are warnings about drinking the water, or if the plumbing infrastructure is clearly not great (e.g. can't flush toilet paper), I don't drink the tap water, but individual plastic bottles are still a last resort for me.

Taste hasn't really been an issue for me, but if it were, I'd probably see if my LARQ bottle improved things, or, again, I'd buy a big bottle and refill my LARQ from that.

(BTW, in North America, a lot of bottled water is just bottled tap water, although, of course, the tap water tends to be safe anyway. But I'd rather have it from the tap than have water that's been sitting in plastic for who knows how long.) https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2021-09-28/bottled-water-is-really-just-tap-water