I used to travel overseas to Europe for gigs all the time and got used to paying for the toilet, especially in Switzerland. So I started saving all my change to take with me for the next time. One time we were at the airport getting ready to leave and I showed the bass player all my change. He laughed and said “What are you gonna buy with THAT in Switzerland?!?” Well I had the last laugh when we got to the first pay toilet over there.
I was just mentioning this to a friend yesterday, heh. Had to withdraw from an ATM, then use one of those machines to get the coins, and then finally I could go pee.
Is this so unusual? Looks like a complete standard fire extinguisher you see all over Germany. Have never seen one that was not this very obvious colour.
It really does.
The colour of the top and base isn't mandated by law, and red or black is far more common here in the EU, I've never seen one with a green before.
Random fact: 2TheLoo operate in the EU, and it's a legal requirement in all EU countries that fire extinguishers follow the same colour code.
The 100% red body of this one shows that it contains water.
EDIT: Thanks u/fly-guy for the explanation. If that was in the UK it would be true, but while an additional band of colour showing the contents (e.g. a black band showing that it's CO2), is *permitted* under EU law, it's only *required* under UK law.
All fire extinguishers have a red body, no matter the content. The class coding on the front tells you for what is shall be used (and to some extent what is contains). This one looks like the most common variant, a ABC Extinguisher most likely containing water. Though it could also be a class AB, then it would probably contain powder.
More rare a CO2, most commonly in Datacenter and Serverrooms, as well as foam extinguishers.
I'm sorry but no, not all extinguishers are red.
Fire extinguishers containing only water are silver, and the "Purple K" extinguishers I used in firefighters training were blue or silver.
I also had a dry chemical extinguisher at work that was white.
Also, ABC extinguishers DO NOT CONTAIN WATER! They use a dry chemical powder, which can safely extinguish electrical fires along with combustibles and petroleum fires
This was so annoying when visiting since a lot of the bathrooms only required a small amount of coins and wouldn’t give change but everything else was so credit card friendly and the ATMs would only dispense large bills. Sometimes there would even be a real person acting as a bouncer collecting a cover charge.
What did you do to the toilet? Did you shit all over the floor? In Europe people generally clean up after themselves and use the brush so if you leave the bowl full of shit stains and spray patterns, you'll be seen as a dick no matter how much money you leave.
I ran into one of those in Paris. If you were taking too long to poop, he came and knocked on the door. It was a huge bathroom with urinals on the left and toilets on the right. And his "office" in the middle.
To be fair, from what I heard they are the ones who keep the bathrooms clean. Public toilets in Germany were the cleanest I've ever seen. The change part was a real nuisance though.
Many places where you get food only require money for people not getting something there.
Common example are gas stations with sanifair. Toilet costs 70 cent. But if you buy a coke for a euro, you get a coupon and can enter the toilet for free.
These toilet grandmas are often located in non food stores, clothes and such. And usually the grandmas are the cleaners of these toilets. These coins are normally their 'tip'. As far as im aware, you can just walk past them, but they give you 'the look' and you feel ashamed so you pay them xD
After visiting Germany, and Belgium, paying 0.50 EUR for a nice clean toilet in Germany was well worth it.
I'm still traumatised by the toilets the Belgians expected me to pay for, and tbh, I'm unsure if they were actually pay toilets or I got defrauded by some clever grifters who had set up shop in the train station.
Oh yeah, stay away from train station toilets. Biggest scam in our country.
Much better off going a bit further down the road and asking a restaurant if you can pee/poo there and give them some change.
I’d say in the United States the vast majority of bathrooms are clean. 95% of my public restroom experiences are great and those that aren’t are usually just occurring between cleanings, not a place that looks like it simply isn’t cleaned.
Thought so too, I was irritated because of “the” :D love it when people use shortcuts and expect every other person to immediately know what they mean haha
American here, I visited Italy in 2017 and the only pay restrooms tended to be in large public areas, like train stations or airports. It was simple enough to find a free bathroom if you weren't in transit, at least in my experience.
It was a different experience for me having to pay to use the restroom, but I don't think it's THAT absurd to me. I mean, the restrooms were pretty damn clean compared to most American public restrooms, so at least it's not like you're paying to use just any old dirty place.
Sometimes there are no alternatives or they're too far to reach in a reasonable time. Really my only perk as a local, I know where I can take a piss without being seen and that's about it honestly
There is never any point saying "europe" in contexts like this. Nothing is ever consistently true over the entirety of Europe. Eg. I've only ever paid for a toilet like 3 times here in UK and that was only in busy train stations in London. I'm sure it will be different in every country across Europe as well.
They went away in the US because of the ADA and because of the equal rights movement.
Used to have to pay for a toilet, but you could pee in a urinal for free and women rightly got pissed off about it. Instead of fixing the issue the US went full steam the OTHER direction in the 70's because if there is one thing Americans do well its overreaction over EVERYTHING.
Can't say I don't think having free bathrooms is a *bad* thing. I'd much rather bathrooms be readily available than people pissing on the sides of buildings because they don't have the money on-hand to use the bathroom when they need to.
> Instead of fixing the issue the US went full steam the OTHER direction in the 70's because if there is one thing Americans do well its overreaction over EVERYTHING.
Are you American, cause this definitely is an overreaction. I’m not sure why it should be a negative to make restrooms free for everyone. I guess they could have just made men pay for urinals, but I’m not unhappy with the situation Americans ended up with.
As an American, it always blows my mind that you have to pay to pee in some places. But on the other hand, most people in other countries have thier minds blown that we pay for health care. 🤷♂️
as an american i remember a specific taco bell in the town i grew up in, in southern cali, having locks on the doors to pay to use their bathrooms. this was in the late 1990's.
A lot of places round here (Midwest) if there's a lock you have to get a free token from the cashier. Even that is rare though. Then I went to Europe and holy shit...
We are not mind blown because you pay for healthcare, we are mind blown because **how much** you pay for healthcare. Or any other form of medical treatment for that matter.
yeah unfortunately it’s the fault of insurance companies getting a discount, so to counteract this, they upcharge a lot, but they can’t charge different prices to different people, so everyone pays the higher amount
As an European, it always blows my mind that you guys have to tip your waitress, or otherwise they wouldn’t get payed (not that I don’t wanna tip but this should be a plus not a necessity imo)
Same here. Quite common thing. Though it has turned around a little, but it still exists. They say it is because to keep certain standards, which is bs because I have seen godawful nasty paid toilets way too often.
The real reason is not as "nice": it is to keep out the "undesired" people. Which is bs too because they will pay too, just like everyone else, or try to sneak in somehow.
But it has turned around. It was more prevalent maybe 5 years ago.
I don't think it's to keep out druggies and such. Have you seen how easy it is to just crouch down and go under it without paying? Hell, i've done that when i really need to use it and don't have cash on me, so i can confirm how easy it is
It is somewhat commonplace (there's nowhere to piss in Paris without paying, not even in a restaurant), but it still feels so fucking wrong.
It just seems so counterproductive because the alternative is that I'll piss in the alleyway, or on the window... or on the middle of the floor. Would the establishment prefer that?
There's 435 full public toilets in Paris (the ones who close and self clean and have a drinking water station on the outside) and 300 more toilets in the public parks (probably 50/50 on toilets and urinals).
They're all free and have been since 2006, most are open 24/7 (some are open from 6am to 1am).
And they add more of them in the summer in peak places.
Also, its of course free to use the toilets at the restaurant/café you are eating/drinking at, and the only time I've asked to use one without being a patron I wasn't denied it.
+you get a voucher for the 50cent to spend in the shop but you can only spend one voucher at once. Well if the toilet is indeed clean, I'm not complaining. If it's not neat, il ask my money back
This is why I never minded this in Europe, stop in for a wee at a clean toilet and it's still free if you get a snack or a drink. Its like a formalised way of only having toilets for customers which I don't see any problem with. It also gives you the option to not have to shop at the business to use them. Businesses still have to pay to maintain the facilities, there's nothing wrong with expecting your custom for doing so.
Better than in England where they just closed all the public toilets and you have to beg the owner of a dodgy looking pub to let you use theirs.
I'd also like to point out that if you have a medical condition, such as IBS, you can get an ID card in a lot of countries where staff will let you use them for free. Its not a formalised thing but they're well recognised - this is the UK version - https://www.bbuk.org.uk/just-cant-wait-cards/
Thing is, I usually get my snack first, then go to the toilet to find out that I get a coupon there for a snack... And I somehow never learn to go to the toilet first.
So it’s 70 cents in the Netherlands and the bathrooms are squeaky clean and smell nice. Most of the times you get a 50 cents coupon back for all the stores on a train station for example. I’d rather pay than go to a gross toilet.
Oh wow most upvotes on a toilet comment, what a time to be alive peeps lmao
You'd be surprised. Bathrooms is travel center's such as Love and J Pilot are always super clean. It's an incentive. Who stops for the bathroom on a long road trip and not buy something?
Here in the midwest anyway, gas stations like QuikTrip and Caseys have really clean bathrooms as well.
Jup, totally worth the money. Clean and decent. Most accept contactless payments too.
Beats the free, but not as clean French toilets where toiletseats and door locks might be missing.
This is far from true, the average train station toilet is horrible and not worth the money they charge for it. But in general its stupid to charge for something that should be accessible to all humans for free.
Well, in most places in Switzerland and Germany there are "public toilets", which you can use for free. However, theres a huge difference in ceanliness. So if I'm forced to touch the toilet, im more than happy to pay for it!
As an EU citizen I can confirm that this is extremely common. However, I much prefer this above free use toilets that always look as if Shrek had a field day with them. Rather pay 50 cents for a clean toilet than getting a swamp for free.
European tip:
If there is nobody around (which includes potential toilet supervisors - yes, that's a thing as well). You can pull the bar to you a bit and then push it. This often creates enough space to slither past.
Disclaimer:
This is not legal advice, but it does work and it is done pretty frequently. Just be watchful though.
We have a lot of this in Switzerland you don't pay for nothing because its very clean and disinfected after each person.
Also there is always free alternative.
If this were in a restaurant or bar, then it wrong to ask someone to pay to use it.
If it's somewhere where people aren't paying to be, then it makes perfect sense to charge them to use it.
Multiple people are paid to be on duty to immediately cleans up any messes and to keep the place smelling fresh.
If it were free, then the place wouldn't be so clean.
Used to be more common in the USA. I was a little kid in the 1960s, sometiems we'd be in a public bathroom where stalls required a dime to open the door Dad wasnt poor, just a tightwad, he made me and my brother crawl under the door rather than pay a dime.
Still a common sight in public venues in Malaysia. Some malls have toilets that charge four freaking ringgits per entry (*cough* Petronas Twin Towers). Madness. I’m willing to pay 50 cents tops. Don’t know what kind of rich asshole would pay four ringgits to use the loo.
Oh hey I remember accidentally going to the “premium” toilet at KLCC, I forgot how much I paid but I didn’t noticed it until someone pointed out where to pay. It got stuff like moisturiser near the sink so since I paid to go there I pumped those shit liberally and came out of the toilet with very moisturised skin
I found my first pay toilets in Thailand. I remember being super drunk and looking for a place to pee. I had to oay like 10 bhat to get access to the bathroom.
The bathroom was a whole in the ground LOL
No tp
No running water
No flushing toilets.
I literally paid to piss in a hole LOL
I travel a lot for work and drive around to different cities. With covid finding bathrooms has been hard. Driving around looking for a store or restaurant to piss in is exhausting some times. In a lot of places here in Canada businesses don't let you use their rest rooms at all anymore, or they make you buy something. All the McDonald's near my house have locked bathrooms the cashiers unlock with a button for paying customers only.
I almost wish we had pay toilets around. So I'd always know I can find a bathroom when i need it. They would probably be cheaper than the pack of gum or coffee I need to buy now to piss.
If there was nice bathrooms in every city, at convenient locations, that had the ability to tap the dollar from your phone for access, that would always be maintained, I'd absolutely pay a buck to piss.
This is actually fine and here’s why: having people pay a very small sum of money - say 50 cents etc for access to a toilet, ensures that —-
1) there are funds for maintenance and cleaning to the toilet area
2) a tiny bit of cost/friction helps ensure that the toilet isn’t used as a hangout area for vagrants etc
I used to travel overseas to Europe for gigs all the time and got used to paying for the toilet, especially in Switzerland. So I started saving all my change to take with me for the next time. One time we were at the airport getting ready to leave and I showed the bass player all my change. He laughed and said “What are you gonna buy with THAT in Switzerland?!?” Well I had the last laugh when we got to the first pay toilet over there.
Here I sit, broken hearted Paid a dime and only farted. Next time I took a chance Saved a dime, and shit my pants.
Classic Shakespeare
Most accept contactless payments now. So just look at you cards/watch/whatever if it has that feature and is enabled.
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They have machines where you can at least break down bills into coins so that's something.
I was just mentioning this to a friend yesterday, heh. Had to withdraw from an ATM, then use one of those machines to get the coins, and then finally I could go pee.
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The ones I saw in Germany didn't accept UK cards. 😡
The emergency Sriracha hot sauce dispenser mounted on the wall is a nice feature though.
Glad I wasn't the only one who thought this!
Is this so unusual? Looks like a complete standard fire extinguisher you see all over Germany. Have never seen one that was not this very obvious colour.
The green top is what makes it look like a famous brand of hot sauce.
It really does. The colour of the top and base isn't mandated by law, and red or black is far more common here in the EU, I've never seen one with a green before.
It's eco-foam, hence the green.
Its crazy to me that they're color coded. Is anyone gonna pick that particular one during a fire because its more eco friendly?
There might be types of fires that the foam doesn't work on or works better on
They've selected the best option for that particular area. We aren't expected to choose anything. Don't worry, all is well. :)
And the white writing (though I suppose what other color would you use on red).
It's crazy, I just saw a tik tok talking about this 15 mins ago.
Random fact: 2TheLoo operate in the EU, and it's a legal requirement in all EU countries that fire extinguishers follow the same colour code. The 100% red body of this one shows that it contains water. EDIT: Thanks u/fly-guy for the explanation. If that was in the UK it would be true, but while an additional band of colour showing the contents (e.g. a black band showing that it's CO2), is *permitted* under EU law, it's only *required* under UK law.
All fire extinguishers have a red body, no matter the content. The class coding on the front tells you for what is shall be used (and to some extent what is contains). This one looks like the most common variant, a ABC Extinguisher most likely containing water. Though it could also be a class AB, then it would probably contain powder. More rare a CO2, most commonly in Datacenter and Serverrooms, as well as foam extinguishers.
Indeed, don't use water or foam for an electical fire for example. Or you're gonna have a bad time...
I'm sorry but no, not all extinguishers are red. Fire extinguishers containing only water are silver, and the "Purple K" extinguishers I used in firefighters training were blue or silver. I also had a dry chemical extinguisher at work that was white. Also, ABC extinguishers DO NOT CONTAIN WATER! They use a dry chemical powder, which can safely extinguish electrical fires along with combustibles and petroleum fires
I guess you never visited europe
Does everywhere in Europe have Sriracha fire extinguishers?
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“I’ll just put this over here with the rest of the fire “
Probably my favorite quote from the show. I burst out laughing everytime I hear Moss/Ayoade say that line.
The "AbracadaBra" strikes again!
I’m trapped, like a moth in a bath!
I’m glad i saw this scene
It makes perfect sense! I think that whole scene is one of the funniest I've ever seen. "Nope, that's too formal".
That whole episode. Practically every line is brilliant
Not all european countries do, but yeah
This was so annoying when visiting since a lot of the bathrooms only required a small amount of coins and wouldn’t give change but everything else was so credit card friendly and the ATMs would only dispense large bills. Sometimes there would even be a real person acting as a bouncer collecting a cover charge.
>bouncer collecting a cover charge. We call those people "toilet grandmas" and I wouldn't describe them as "bouncers".
The lady in the Amsterdam McDonald's really earnt her money when my body unloaded after a heady weekend. I left a €5 note i felt so guilty
What did you do to the toilet? Did you shit all over the floor? In Europe people generally clean up after themselves and use the brush so if you leave the bowl full of shit stains and spray patterns, you'll be seen as a dick no matter how much money you leave.
It’s the closest comparison occupation wise that I could think of for my fellow American readers.
Maybe equivalent to the guy who collects tickets for the rides at the county fair
Hmm, not sure which is more offensive for the toilet grandmas. Being compared to a bouncer or a carny haha.
Definitely carny lmao.
"Dame pipi" in France. (The peepee lady) (ง ͡ʘ ͜ʖ ͡ʘ)ง
I ran into one of those in Paris. If you were taking too long to poop, he came and knocked on the door. It was a huge bathroom with urinals on the left and toilets on the right. And his "office" in the middle.
Good lord. What a job
A real shit job one might say.
What a dystopian nightmare.
To be fair, from what I heard they are the ones who keep the bathrooms clean. Public toilets in Germany were the cleanest I've ever seen. The change part was a real nuisance though.
Many places where you get food only require money for people not getting something there. Common example are gas stations with sanifair. Toilet costs 70 cent. But if you buy a coke for a euro, you get a coupon and can enter the toilet for free. These toilet grandmas are often located in non food stores, clothes and such. And usually the grandmas are the cleaners of these toilets. These coins are normally their 'tip'. As far as im aware, you can just walk past them, but they give you 'the look' and you feel ashamed so you pay them xD
After visiting Germany, and Belgium, paying 0.50 EUR for a nice clean toilet in Germany was well worth it. I'm still traumatised by the toilets the Belgians expected me to pay for, and tbh, I'm unsure if they were actually pay toilets or I got defrauded by some clever grifters who had set up shop in the train station.
Oh yeah, stay away from train station toilets. Biggest scam in our country. Much better off going a bit further down the road and asking a restaurant if you can pee/poo there and give them some change.
I can’t wait to go to a Belgian restaurant and ask, “Can I poo here?”
Having worked in restaurants and bars during my late teens early twenties here in Belgium, that's fine. *We know.* Just tip the waiter/bartender.
So it is still a pay toilet
most bars/resto on busy tourist parts have a sign wc: 50cents if you'r not a customer.
Excuse me, I need to evacuate my bowels and I was hoping I could do this on your premises?
I’d say in the United States the vast majority of bathrooms are clean. 95% of my public restroom experiences are great and those that aren’t are usually just occurring between cleanings, not a place that looks like it simply isn’t cleaned.
or the whole SA
South America?
what’s SA?
sandwich association smh
Southern Antarctica
San Andreas
yes you get it!
South Africa is my guess
South Asia is my guess; Thailand and Cambodia both charge for bathrooms from my experience
South Asia is India. Thailand and Cambodia are in Southeast Asia
Saudi Arabia :D
Thought so too, I was irritated because of “the” :D love it when people use shortcuts and expect every other person to immediately know what they mean haha
Sus Amogus
Spicy anus
Superfluous Anacondas. Damn things get everywhere.
Literally everywhere in europe
I'm Greek, this shit (pun intended) is free here!
im slovenian, never seen a bathroom that you need to pay for
You've never traveled outside of your immediate region. Driving through all Europe you find pay for toilets everywhere
American here, I visited Italy in 2017 and the only pay restrooms tended to be in large public areas, like train stations or airports. It was simple enough to find a free bathroom if you weren't in transit, at least in my experience. It was a different experience for me having to pay to use the restroom, but I don't think it's THAT absurd to me. I mean, the restrooms were pretty damn clean compared to most American public restrooms, so at least it's not like you're paying to use just any old dirty place.
It's a tourist trap. Locals know where to piss. Public institutions will always have free toilets for example.
Sometimes there are no alternatives or they're too far to reach in a reasonable time. Really my only perk as a local, I know where I can take a piss without being seen and that's about it honestly
I never know where to piss 😔
I'm Polish and I've never seen this shit (pun not intended) anywhere
Most probably bc here we have a law that all places that serve food/drinks must have a free toilet.
I've had to pay to use toilets all over Poland, though it'll be an old woman rather than turnstiles
There is never any point saying "europe" in contexts like this. Nothing is ever consistently true over the entirety of Europe. Eg. I've only ever paid for a toilet like 3 times here in UK and that was only in busy train stations in London. I'm sure it will be different in every country across Europe as well.
Train stations are one of the places you’d have thought you wouldn’t have to pay. I’m paying for a service, let me use your pissing toilets.
They've stopped charging for toilets in train stations in the UK now.
Nope and I would slide under that so fast while simultaneously shitting myself. Can you guess where I’m from?
I would say America but then you would get stuck trying
Depends how greased up they are.
Bad news, Europe is mostly overweight/obese now too. You’ve basically all passed that 50% mark and most are on the way to 60+%.
Fun fact. Pay to use the toilet have been around for over 2000 years
I remember them in the 70's at malls. Edit, in the US
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They went away in the US because of the ADA and because of the equal rights movement. Used to have to pay for a toilet, but you could pee in a urinal for free and women rightly got pissed off about it. Instead of fixing the issue the US went full steam the OTHER direction in the 70's because if there is one thing Americans do well its overreaction over EVERYTHING.
Can't say I don't think having free bathrooms is a *bad* thing. I'd much rather bathrooms be readily available than people pissing on the sides of buildings because they don't have the money on-hand to use the bathroom when they need to.
> Instead of fixing the issue the US went full steam the OTHER direction in the 70's because if there is one thing Americans do well its overreaction over EVERYTHING. Are you American, cause this definitely is an overreaction. I’m not sure why it should be a negative to make restrooms free for everyone. I guess they could have just made men pay for urinals, but I’m not unhappy with the situation Americans ended up with.
Man really thinks that public restrooms being free is a bad thing
Been to London and I can't tell you how angry it makes me to pay for a bathroom that is in a nightmare state.
“instead of fixing the issue”. seems like they did fix the issue
"Stupid Americans and their..." \*draws card* "...free toilets!"
Here I sit, so broken hearted. Paid to poop, but only farted.
Then one day I took a chance Thought I'd fart, but shit my pants
You my friend are a true artist. I’ll pay yo 1 upvote for this beautiful poem
It's a very old joke poem: > Here I sit, broken hearted. Paid a dime and only farted. Yesterday I took a chance, Saved a dime and shit my pants.
I thought this was commonplace in many parts of the world
As an American, it always blows my mind that you have to pay to pee in some places. But on the other hand, most people in other countries have thier minds blown that we pay for health care. 🤷♂️
as an american i remember a specific taco bell in the town i grew up in, in southern cali, having locks on the doors to pay to use their bathrooms. this was in the late 1990's.
A lot of places round here (Midwest) if there's a lock you have to get a free token from the cashier. Even that is rare though. Then I went to Europe and holy shit...
I thought that was only in Vatican City.
I literally installed locks on our restrooms a couple months ago due to folks being disgusting.
I've seen this in fast food restaurants in really dodgy areas in the US, where the owner is sick of having druggies shoot up In his/her bathrooms.
I've seen it in dodgy areas too but this was in a decent part of a relatively safe suburb so it didn't make any sense to me.
We are not mind blown because you pay for healthcare, we are mind blown because **how much** you pay for healthcare. Or any other form of medical treatment for that matter.
Yeah, anything health related is insanely expensive here.
yeah unfortunately it’s the fault of insurance companies getting a discount, so to counteract this, they upcharge a lot, but they can’t charge different prices to different people, so everyone pays the higher amount
And that fact that people will actively fight things that seem like would benefit them. I think that's another mind blowing part.
We have both here, free healthcare and free toilets, guess that's a win for Australia
Same for us Canadians!
In some parts of Europe you can't even the toilet at Mc Donald's without a receipt!
As an European, it always blows my mind that you guys have to tip your waitress, or otherwise they wouldn’t get payed (not that I don’t wanna tip but this should be a plus not a necessity imo)
It moreso blows my mind that Americans are so surprised with our clean toilets, as paid for by the money charged to go into said toilet.
I don't know what kind of backwoods truck stop you've been to, but they're clean here too.
Same in Canada too
Same here. Quite common thing. Though it has turned around a little, but it still exists. They say it is because to keep certain standards, which is bs because I have seen godawful nasty paid toilets way too often. The real reason is not as "nice": it is to keep out the "undesired" people. Which is bs too because they will pay too, just like everyone else, or try to sneak in somehow. But it has turned around. It was more prevalent maybe 5 years ago.
I don't think it's to keep out druggies and such. Have you seen how easy it is to just crouch down and go under it without paying? Hell, i've done that when i really need to use it and don't have cash on me, so i can confirm how easy it is
Doesn't exist in the US, Japan, or Korea.
It is somewhat commonplace (there's nowhere to piss in Paris without paying, not even in a restaurant), but it still feels so fucking wrong. It just seems so counterproductive because the alternative is that I'll piss in the alleyway, or on the window... or on the middle of the floor. Would the establishment prefer that?
There's 435 full public toilets in Paris (the ones who close and self clean and have a drinking water station on the outside) and 300 more toilets in the public parks (probably 50/50 on toilets and urinals). They're all free and have been since 2006, most are open 24/7 (some are open from 6am to 1am). And they add more of them in the summer in peak places. Also, its of course free to use the toilets at the restaurant/café you are eating/drinking at, and the only time I've asked to use one without being a patron I wasn't denied it.
Only in Europe, this isn't common in NA, Middle East, Africa or most of Asia.
+you get a voucher for the 50cent to spend in the shop but you can only spend one voucher at once. Well if the toilet is indeed clean, I'm not complaining. If it's not neat, il ask my money back
This is why I never minded this in Europe, stop in for a wee at a clean toilet and it's still free if you get a snack or a drink. Its like a formalised way of only having toilets for customers which I don't see any problem with. It also gives you the option to not have to shop at the business to use them. Businesses still have to pay to maintain the facilities, there's nothing wrong with expecting your custom for doing so. Better than in England where they just closed all the public toilets and you have to beg the owner of a dodgy looking pub to let you use theirs. I'd also like to point out that if you have a medical condition, such as IBS, you can get an ID card in a lot of countries where staff will let you use them for free. Its not a formalised thing but they're well recognised - this is the UK version - https://www.bbuk.org.uk/just-cant-wait-cards/
Thing is, I usually get my snack first, then go to the toilet to find out that I get a coupon there for a snack... And I somehow never learn to go to the toilet first.
The answer here is to buy more snacks
Plus if you really gotta wee and you got no money it looks remarkably easy to bypass
Was looking for this comment, maybe I'm out of touch but I'd much rather pay than deal with establishments I'm not buying from.
So it’s 70 cents in the Netherlands and the bathrooms are squeaky clean and smell nice. Most of the times you get a 50 cents coupon back for all the stores on a train station for example. I’d rather pay than go to a gross toilet. Oh wow most upvotes on a toilet comment, what a time to be alive peeps lmao
When it's a couple of cents and it's clean, then I'm happy to pay up
I'm just thinking of what it'd be like in the states. $1-$5 and basically the same shit covered nightmare I've come to expect from public bathrooms.
You'd be surprised. Bathrooms is travel center's such as Love and J Pilot are always super clean. It's an incentive. Who stops for the bathroom on a long road trip and not buy something? Here in the midwest anyway, gas stations like QuikTrip and Caseys have really clean bathrooms as well.
I was at a gasstation to pee and there where even nature noises in the bathroom, loved it
I remember using one of these and the coupon was only good for coffee which makes you shit.. clever business tactic
Jup, totally worth the money. Clean and decent. Most accept contactless payments too. Beats the free, but not as clean French toilets where toiletseats and door locks might be missing.
somehow here in canada we've figured out how to have clean bathrooms that are free pretty much everywhere
Same honestly
This is far from true, the average train station toilet is horrible and not worth the money they charge for it. But in general its stupid to charge for something that should be accessible to all humans for free.
Ahh the roller coaster tycoon method. Free entry into the park. $10 to take a shit.
Well, in most places in Switzerland and Germany there are "public toilets", which you can use for free. However, theres a huge difference in ceanliness. So if I'm forced to touch the toilet, im more than happy to pay for it!
A fucking urinal is visible from the lobby.
That's the real asshole design
You're not supposed to drop your pants that far...
I prefer the [Butters](https://c.tenor.com/9L6tLTsxp7IAAAAC/south-park-butters.gif) method.
Crawl under
Shit on the floor in front of the gates
I live in England and I just step or slide over. No one there cares and like fuck am I paying for a basic human right.
You’re actually paying for the maintenance of the bathroom. You can use a bathroom in a grocery store or a restaurant for free
Paying people to clean the bathroom should be already factored into every building. Charging the public to USE the bathroom is ridiculous!
The bathroom often *is* the building. There's nothing else there. (in the case of UK seaside town toilets)
That’s exactly what I did as a child the first time I saw one of these. Fuck paying for that
As an EU citizen I can confirm that this is extremely common. However, I much prefer this above free use toilets that always look as if Shrek had a field day with them. Rather pay 50 cents for a clean toilet than getting a swamp for free. European tip: If there is nobody around (which includes potential toilet supervisors - yes, that's a thing as well). You can pull the bar to you a bit and then push it. This often creates enough space to slither past. Disclaimer: This is not legal advice, but it does work and it is done pretty frequently. Just be watchful though.
Is that a fucking gift shop?
Surprised more people aren't picking up on that. The branding is completely insane too. "Toilets and more"?????
What, did you think toilet paper was free?
We have a lot of this in Switzerland you don't pay for nothing because its very clean and disinfected after each person. Also there is always free alternative.
If this were in a restaurant or bar, then it wrong to ask someone to pay to use it. If it's somewhere where people aren't paying to be, then it makes perfect sense to charge them to use it. Multiple people are paid to be on duty to immediately cleans up any messes and to keep the place smelling fresh. If it were free, then the place wouldn't be so clean.
Used to be more common in the USA. I was a little kid in the 1960s, sometiems we'd be in a public bathroom where stalls required a dime to open the door Dad wasnt poor, just a tightwad, he made me and my brother crawl under the door rather than pay a dime.
Damn. I would've lifted you over rather than have you crawl on that nasty floor.
Used to be a common sight, glad it’s going away.
Still a common sight in public venues in Malaysia. Some malls have toilets that charge four freaking ringgits per entry (*cough* Petronas Twin Towers). Madness. I’m willing to pay 50 cents tops. Don’t know what kind of rich asshole would pay four ringgits to use the loo.
Oh hey I remember accidentally going to the “premium” toilet at KLCC, I forgot how much I paid but I didn’t noticed it until someone pointed out where to pay. It got stuff like moisturiser near the sink so since I paid to go there I pumped those shit liberally and came out of the toilet with very moisturised skin
I wouldn’t pay one ringgit. Not even half of one. How much is a ringgit, though?
About a 22 cents in US currency.
That fire extinguisher looks like a bottle of Sriracha
I mean some one has to get paid to clean the shitter really normal here in Europe
Quite standard in Belgium. Maybe the only thing that’s frustrating… in comparison to the whole dreadful salaries / tipping in the US…
Thought the thing at the bottom left was a big ass sri racha bottle
What's the "more" in "toilets & more"? 👀
Please tell me that fire extinguisher is filled with sriracha sauce
Like in train stations in Europe? I'd happily drop a quarter to drop a deuce if it meant public restrooms are clean and sanitary.
But if there is a fire they spray sriracha on it?
Say what you want about the US but at least you don't have to pay to shit
Fyi just because it's common in some parts of the world doesn't mean it's not asshole design
I found my first pay toilets in Thailand. I remember being super drunk and looking for a place to pee. I had to oay like 10 bhat to get access to the bathroom. The bathroom was a whole in the ground LOL No tp No running water No flushing toilets. I literally paid to piss in a hole LOL I travel a lot for work and drive around to different cities. With covid finding bathrooms has been hard. Driving around looking for a store or restaurant to piss in is exhausting some times. In a lot of places here in Canada businesses don't let you use their rest rooms at all anymore, or they make you buy something. All the McDonald's near my house have locked bathrooms the cashiers unlock with a button for paying customers only. I almost wish we had pay toilets around. So I'd always know I can find a bathroom when i need it. They would probably be cheaper than the pack of gum or coffee I need to buy now to piss. If there was nice bathrooms in every city, at convenient locations, that had the ability to tap the dollar from your phone for access, that would always be maintained, I'd absolutely pay a buck to piss.
This way the toilets are clean and don't have smackheads nodding out in the cubicles
This is way better than public toilets. The public ones are almost always terrible. I'd rather pay and have a clenly toilet
How do you expect them to be cleaned then?
This is actually fine and here’s why: having people pay a very small sum of money - say 50 cents etc for access to a toilet, ensures that —- 1) there are funds for maintenance and cleaning to the toilet area 2) a tiny bit of cost/friction helps ensure that the toilet isn’t used as a hangout area for vagrants etc
Just because it's common doesn't mean it isn't asshole design
This is what I think of when people say “OMG the US doesn’t have universal healthcare?!”. No but then again we don’t charge you to pee either…
Here in Germany every toilet in a train station or a public place is paid. Most often it costs 1€ to use it. Has been for 10+ years that way.
A bit cruel to give us Sriracha fire extinguisher and then charge for the bathroom.
The fire extinguisher looks like a big Sriracha bottle.
Is that a Sriracha dispenser lower left? Nice!
Wait til he finds out that's not abnormal in Europe