H20 in Euro... - TravelPUNK Backpacker College Student Budget Travel Message Boards!

trydieing · 04-26-2004, 01:44 PM

hey everybody...
well this question has been on my mind for a while now... What is the tap water in Europe like? Not a very important question for most, but all I drink is water... and beer

, and I was just wondering if it taste bad

or what? Because I plan on drinking alot of it, and I herd bottled water is very expensive... like more expensive then beer in most places.. I'm sure it veries town to town, country to country and etc. but any info will help thanx

***Beady*** · 04-26-2004, 02:13 PM

Whereabouts in europe are you going? Because some parts it's best to drink bottled and other parts its perfectly fine to drink tap.
I drank tap in Spain, Portugal, France, and Germany. But I didn't in Greece. But, I was on a very isolated island in Greece.
You can always pop into the tourist information places in these countries to double check when your there, but most places its ok.
Oh, by the way, the water in London and Kent, tastes pretty skanky...just to let you know. I've got used to it now, but it's taken me years....So, be warned if the water you taste is rank. But, is ok (on health levels)....

**joanofarc** · 04-26-2004, 02:35 PM

the tap water in germany is a-ok.

**ChasinJason1313** · 04-26-2004, 02:47 PM

beer is 90-95%water and alcohol kills buggies....problem solved

**tecia** · 04-26-2004, 02:52 PM

JW!!
Try great question!!!

i was wondering that myself!!!

**urOZm8** · 05-02-2004, 02:30 PM

I usually ask at the hostel before drinking it. In England I drank it all the time - no worries. The reception person in my hostel in Brussels said it was ok to drink - clean, just tasted funny. It was clear and I tried it - tasted like sh*t so I drank bottled

back home in the supermarket i worked at tourists asked me this question frequently, its an FAQ so dont be afraid to ask

**pinion** · 05-02-2004, 03:05 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by urOZm8@May 2 2004, 02:30 PM
back home in the supermarket i worked at tourists asked me this question frequently, its an FAQ so dont be afraid to ask

Asking if the water is ok to drink is probably a good habit to get into, especially in samller towns. Even though locals drink the water you could still get a bug b/c their immune system is used to it, make sure you look into that too.

The last thing you need on a trip is a stomach bug from bad water. They can be VERY nasty and last months.

Thats why you should just stick with beer!! Instead of a water bottle, bring a bottle of beer! People may start to call you an Alcoholic, but just keep telling yourself "Hey, I ain't getting a stomach bug!!"

**ashpunk** · 05-07-2004, 04:41 PM

What about something like this.... Water bottle filter system

Its what I was planning on getting... do you think it will do the job? Or will I have to drink beer all the time

**skidrage** · 06-19-2004, 04:37 PM

I think tap water is safe to drink everywhere in Western Europe, except for parts of Southern Spain and Southern Italy. I have had no problem with tap water in some of the bigger cities in Eastern Europe such as Prague, Budapest, and Warsaw. A couple othe rplaces to be careful with tap water in Europe are Greece and Belgium. Belgium was rated as having the dirtiest water in Western Europe last year, but I have had no problems drinking it.

**tecia** · 06-29-2004, 04:20 AM

this was one of my worries when i came and now i have had the water and it is great

I have heard about greece also and some of souther Europe but most is good

**blinkchick2134** · 07-12-2004, 01:51 PM

The tap water was ok in Germany, France, Switzerland and Spain when I was there. But I didn't drink more then when I was taking medicine or washing out my mouth, but it wasn't bad.

If you want to buy some bottled water, double check to make sure it is spring and not carbonated. I've made that mistake alot.

transfiguration · 07-13-2004, 06:59 PM

the water in scotland is some of the very best i've tasted in my life. even the water in the cities was good - which surprised me. although the best water was up on the isle of skye..... the odd thing is that because there's so much peat in their ground it's not uncommon for water to have a tint of color to it. that was hard to get used to at first.

it was also quite the shock flying from glasgow to london and immediately being subjected to their city water. ewwww

Revoltos · 07-18-2004, 01:36 PM

Thats very tue, scottish water, mainly the highlands has a tinge to it, scotland, wales and devon and cornwall are all soft water area's so the water does taste nice, takes longer to wash soap and that of your hands aswell. The midlands, Birmingham, coventry etc are supplied by wales so there water is fine aswell! I think spain is crap as they do somthing to it as they get alot of draught so might be worth drinking bottled water out there.