What's up with Italian toilets?

Welcome to the world.

The squat toilet is where you find out if you can still recover from a deep knee bend without hands (they never have grab bars where you need 'em). If you find that you can't, it can get interesting.

I have found the "squatters" in Italy, Germany and France. They take some getting use to but when you gotta go.......

They're called the "Persian version" and are often encountered in southern Europe.

Hey Pat, what cities were you in? I'll be in Italy next week for the first time. Should I start doing squat exercises to get ready?!

I remember them at the train station in Pisa and in Albergo Beretta in Varenna. I thought they were called Turkish toilets.

They're not as common as they used to be but it's hard to believe anyone could travel very much in Italy and not have encountered them. Come to think of it, though, my mother (who travels in a bit more upscale fashion than I do,) was equally surprised to hear of them. But, really, if you stray off the four-star hotel and restaurant route, you're going to find them. Good opportunity to also recommend just keeping a bit of toilet paper and wet wipes with you.

I wear a belt just to hook on a wall for the turk toilettes. But really, even a bus station in the lowest state of the American States Union has proper toilets better then these things. Its not my fault that I have to crap. How do Europeans deal with this, and why have they for so long.? We Americans, that spend zillions of dollars into European towns very year, want sit down toilets at the train stations..

Francis - and this is in all seriousness: A firm belief in good bodily health by using the right posture.

Pat, It's really surprising that you haven't encountered the "porcelain footprints" style of toilet yet, especially as you've lived in Europe. They're quite common in public washrooms, even in some of the northern parts of the continent. The other style I've seen quite often is a normal toilet, but with no plastic seat (a bit "chilly" when first sitting down). Cheers!

That is surprising that you never encountered this before. I've never seen one in a hotel but have found 'em just about everywhere else I.E. Gas stations, bars, restaurants, train stations etc. I've never heard 'em called Persian Version. Like that!

This is the toilet at the San Pietro train Station, which is not far from the Vatican. http://i51.tinypic.com/x0te21.jpg
http://i52.tinypic.com/f00wg3.jpg

Yes, I too encountered the "no TP in Toilet" in Costa Rica and Mexico... Also, there was a very pleasant gentleman outside the toilet facilities at the Florence train station that took a few coins and gave you a packet of tissues to use the very clean squat toilet. I camp often and attend many festivals here in the NW - often have to squat on a port-o-potty.. Not a horrible experience so long as it is clean and they have the hand cleaning stuff available. Ah... the joys of travel

We have encountered them and my wife just says"I can hold it"

Maybe I was just lucky. I was stationed in the AF in Germany in the mid 70s, and although poor as church mice, my wife and I traveled a good deal. Being dirt poo, we stayed in the cheapest of hotels and ate in the most basic restaurants. We traveled through most of Europe then and have returned every other year as an anniversary trip. Never found the Turk toilets till the last Italy visit. We'll know now. OK, so I get that they're out there, how are they intended to be used? Is the user expected to squat that low? Certainly they can't be used at standard height?
Inquiring minds want to know, or, er maybe not.

Also many toilets in italy do not have toilet seats. Be prepared to hover either way. I just got back from a 17 day trip, I did not see the hole in the floor. But I have heard about them.

The ones I've encountered all have rails on the side to hold onto. I guess there are some that don't have the rails and that would pose a problem but, basically, just squat over the hole and do your business. It takes some getting use to and they are not as clean as having a regular toilet so if you can hold it you may want to look for a regular bathroom. As someone else mentioned, most public bathrooms don't have toilet seats so you still have to hover and aim. Start doing your squats now to work up those thigh muscles and you'll be fine. Donna

Hi Pat. This brings back memories! We encountered these toilets on both of our trips to Italy; my husband had no problem using them but I couldn't. My leg muscles are simply too weak due to health problems but I did encounter them in different places & we laughed every time we saw one. It also seemed to me that for a woman wearing pants, it would be difficult to use; she'd have to get partially undressed & by the looks of some of the stalls, I wouldn't want my pant legs to touch any part of the stall as many were quite dirty. I could handle the toilet with no seat but not the porcelain hole in the floor. Luckily they're few and far between.

Only ran into a true "squat" toilet on the ferry from Amalfi to Capri. A hole in the floor with water rushing through it. Luckily, I didn't have to use it. But my question is, how do you keep from falling over and crapping and peeing into your pants gathered around your ankles?

I saw the squat toilet in Varenna and Stresa. I'll take them any day over the toilet we had in our room in Hallstatt. Although it had a normal seat, there was a weird platform type thing at the top where your "business" gathered before the flush. Saw these somewhere else in Europe but cannot remember where. Yuck!

Throw this into the mix. A few decades ago when I lived in Italy, IF there was any toilet paper in these hole in the floor toilets it was probably tiny, loose sheets that were like wax paper on one side and sandpaper on the other. That added a whole new dimension to the experience depending on what your business was and the condition of certain parts of your anatomy . . .

Apparently you have never camped. We didn't find them a lot but to me the hardest thing was to try and pee on a moving train. We always tried to go before we took a long train ride but sometimes it wasn't possible because of long lines and quick connections. It's what we were willing to do to be in beautiful Italy, but it can be disconcerting.

Very common all over Asia but I've encountered them in various places in Europe too. Gives your thigh muscles a workout ... The trick is to squat as low as you can, but try to hold up your trouser legs at the same time and keep still for as long as possible!

Andrea, You mentioned the "squat" toilets in Varenna. Are you referring to the public washrooms near Albergo Olivedo? That's one place where I encountered that style. Regarding the other type you mentioned in Hallstatt, one of the Hotels in Milan uses those also, so I know what you're referring to. As I recall, "flushing" was a bit of a complicated process involving several valves.

Finally, we're discussing the gut issues of travel.

Italian toilet stories are one thing, but we checked into a hotel in Greece that had one of those "universal language" signs over their very modern toilets, which seemed to indicate that it was forbidden to put your used toilet paper into the toilet. Our first thought was "No, we must be wrong, that can't be what it means." So we went out to ask the girl at the desk, and before we could open our mouths she said, "Yes, that's what the sign means. You have to put it into the trash basket. Sorry!" Seems that the town's sewer pipes were so ancient and decrepit that even toilet paper would block them up. When we departed that otherwise very nice hotel, we left a big tip for the maid!

We ran into that in Germany. There were no signs saying not to flush the paper but there was a good amount of used paper in the garbage cans. The place was so foul smelling it was hard to use. It must have been people who are use to not flushing the paper and didn't know it was okay.

Tom, regarding the "no TP in the toilet" rule...this is widespread in much of the world, especially just about anywhere in rural Mexico. It's not specifically a matter of clogging up ancient sewers, but more about the design and cost of primary sewage treatment. Much of the capacity (and subsequent cost) of sewage treatment plants is due to the handling of, um, "solids," so if you can eliminate the solids load on the plant it's less expensive.

You mean you're supposed to squat !?!? I was told those footprints where foot rests so you wouldn't mess us your shoes when you sat in the hole.

I also encountered the "hole" in the train station in Pisa. Funny.....all of the sudden i didn't have to go. I guess i was scared straight in a manner of speaking.

"Being dirt poo..." Pat, that's called a Freudian Slip - something you DON'T want to do in a Turkish Toilet LOL! Andrea - I, too, have experienced the 'shelf' toilet (in Salzburg, I believe). A bit disconcerting...;-) NOW you know why companies sell those female urinal funnels...(and for those interested, start at WhenYaGottaGo.com. I started with the 'Travel Mate', but you do need a lot of regular practice with it...and it's the smallest. My current fave is 'GoGirl', but now that I've seen 'The Whiz' I'm gonna have to try that one, too. The first and last ones will accept tubing - they sell medical-grade, very pliable, tubing - to make them easier to use with bottles, collection bags, etc. When you're in a wheelchair, kayak, a tent and it's -17F outside, or stuck on a tarmac for 9 hours with a non-functioning toilet, you'll understand why...)

"No paper in the toilet" was the rule everywhere we visited in Greece and Turkey. Also, regarding squat toilets, they are ubiquitous in Japan, though usually western style toilets are also available. We were told that Japanese women prefer the squat-type. They believe it's cleaner, because there's no body contact. I guess there's a strong tendency for people to prefer what they are accustomed to. As for me, with my bad knees, I'll echo Jack's wife.

Speaking of cultures that prefer squat toilets, I have often followed (for instance) Japanese tourists in the restrooms at Yosemite, etc., and found perfect little shoe prints on the seat...There must be plenty of 'dang those stupid Western toilets - I nearly broke my neck when I lost my balance and fell off' blogs somewhere in the www...

The "no paper" rule is fairly routine in most of Greece including the larger cities. I found it quite easy to "adapt" to this requirement, so it wasn't really a problem.

I found the "hole in the floor" toilets in smaller Italian train stations and public restrooms in some hill towns in Tuscany. I always carried a small package of kleenix and some hand wipes...just in case! And yes, I saw many toilets that had no seat.

I've never used a squat toilet but I don't know why so many are complaining about them. Seems like half the public toilets I've used, some woman has crouched above the seat and left pee on the seat. Really? Lift the seat and pee, or wipe the pee off the seat. (This is a personal campaign/vendetta for me.)

Yes it is a hole in the ground, just don't take a misstep. Buon Viaggio!

The only one I've actually seen wasn't in Italy, it was in Paris in a little cafe where we stopped for lunch not far from the Eiffel...great for a picture but I'd rather wait until I returned to the hotel...lol

I first encountered these holes in the ground in a youth hostel and couldn't figure them out myself, either. Now that I'm 58 years old it seems appalling that the population that can no longer do deep bends (and then recover!) is not served by these public toilets!

Karen, you and me need to be buddies. You hit on my biggest pet peeve. Women peeing on the toilet seat and leaving it. Disgusting! It happens in the US as much as over here. Only "hole in the floor toilet" I have ever seen in all of Europe was in a really large tourist type restaurant in the middle of downtown Milan of all places. It is very common in Greece to not put your used toilet paper in the toilet. When Greeks travel, they tend to bring this habit with them, so if you are going somewhere that is popular with Greeks, you may encounter these smelly trash cans. In Germany, it is extremely common to have a "shelf" in the toilet. It is more common to have one, than to not have one, though I believe hotels have moved away from this style, to make their guests happier. Germans like to inspect this part of their life, to see if they are in good health or not. One is expected to use the toilet brush if needed and not leave a "message" for the next user, if you catch my drift.

The problem isn't the squatting, as it keeps us oldies in shape, but it's keeping the bottom of the pants legs rolled up high enough while squatting and then jumping off the foot rests quickly before the flushing water engulfs your shoes. That's if you're a woman. Men have a certain advantage.

40+ posts and still going strong. Why do the toilet threads get all the posts??
(must be a gut issue)

I used a squat toilet in the train station in Monterosso in October. Just had to take a photo with my iPhone! The restroom was pretty clean and I didn't mind it. We got on the train to Siena and my husband came back from the restroom and said, 'well, you'll never guess what I saw in the restroom' and proceeded to tell me he lifted the toilet lid and there were the train tracks. We had lots of laughs and a good story from that trip.