Toilet Index

Evidence not collected yet

Toilet paper

In Shanghai, look for staffed public toilets: over 2,600 give free toilet paper, and some are piloting paper inside the stall.

Toilet type

If you need a seat, look for the accessible toilet. Beijing guidance says it should have a seated toilet, a basin and a call button.

Fees

Expect no charge at railway stations, long-distance bus stations, passenger ports or airports: a 2001 national rule bans it, repeated for railways in 2018.

Evidence awaiting editorial review

Fees

Toilets in about thirty of the biggest SNCF stations are staffed and cost €1, the transport ministry said in 2023. Nearly 80% of station toilets were free.

Toilet paper

Bin wipes, cotton buds and sanitary products, even 'flushable' wipes: sewer authorities say they clog pipes. Toilet paper breaks down in water.

Good to know

Paris's automatic street toilets (sanisettes) are free. Most open 6am to 10pm; about 150 on main roads stay open all night.

Evidence awaiting editorial review

Toilet paper

Ordinary toilet paper can go down the toilet. The Federal Environment Agency says it is made to break up quickly in water and that most wastewater operators tolerate it.

Good to know

Deutsche Bahn station toilets are run by outside partners and usually cost 1 euro. At 15 very busy stations they cost 1.50 euro.

Paying in Berlin

Berlin's automatic public toilets are cashless: pay 50 cents by bank card, phone wallet or app. The 107 of 278 that have free urinals attached are free for everyone.

Evidence awaiting editorial review

Toilet paper

Put used toilet paper in the bin beside the toilet unless a sign says to flush. Thessaloniki's water utility wrote in 2016 that Greece formally does not accept paper in toilets.

Toilet type

Older public toilets may be squat. A 2013 Thessaloniki council survey found squat pans in 6 of its 13 public toilets and seated toilets in the rest.

Fees

Carry coins or a card at Athens' ancient sites. In April 2026 the Culture Ministry approved pay gates for the toilets at the Acropolis, Olympieion, Kerameikos and Ancient Agora.

Evidence awaiting editorial review

Paying

Carry coins. In Rome's inspection report of autumn 2022 (an older report, so check on site) only 34% of the public toilets were free. Card payment worked only at the underground tourist toilets (P.STOP) and the Fori Imperiali tourist infopoint, and change machines were rare, especially at metro and rail stations.

Toilet paper

Rome's 2022 inspection found toilet paper in 80% of inspections of open public toilets. The market toilets were most often without. Carry a small pack of tissues for the other 20%.

Good to know

Do not rely on a public toilet being open. Rome's inspectors found the toilets open in 61% of inspections and apparently abandoned in 24%, and opening hours were posted in only 7%.

Evidence awaiting editorial review

Toilet paper

Flush used toilet paper; do not put it in the bin. Yamanashi's official visitor guide says the paper provided dissolves in water and should go down the toilet, at seated and squat toilets alike.

Toilet type

Expect a seated toilet, often with an electronic bidet seat. Japan's national tourism body says squat toilets can still be found at some train stations and old-fashioned izakaya bars.

Good to know

On a bidet-seat control panel, find the stop button (a solid square, labelled 止) before pressing anything else. Since 2017 Japan's toilet makers have shared eight standard symbols: lid, seat, large flush, small flush, rear wash, bidet wash, dry and stop. Older panels may differ.

Evidence awaiting editorial review

Toilet paper in Cancún

In Cancún and Playa del Carmen, the water utility Aguakan asks people to keep used toilet paper in the bin rather than the drain. It says paper building up in the sewer can damage treatment equipment on the Yucatán Peninsula.

Good to know

Mexico City's airport passenger guide (uploaded in 2023) says its toilets are open 24 hours a day and include services for passengers with disabilities. Hours may have changed since.

Evidence not collected yet

Toilet paper

A Wrocław city article says the toilet should take only toilet paper, not wet wipes, which it names as the biggest sewer problem.

Fees

At Warszawa Centralna, the station page lists two 24-hour toilets. Other toilets are open 6:00 to 22:00 and cost 5 zł.

Good to know

Warsaw metro station toilets are outside the ticket zone, free, and open daily 6:00 to 22:00, according to the city.

Evidence not collected yet

Toilet paper

Expect no paper bin in public toilet stalls: a rule since January 2018 bars one, as water-soluble paper is in common use.

Toilet type

Seoul's tourism site says most toilets in the city are Western-style seated ones, though Asian-style squat toilets can still be found.

Good to know

A March 2019 newspaper found bins still in some park, rest-stop and office-building toilets despite the rule. Follow any sign in the stall.

Evidence not collected yet

Toilet paper

In the Madrid region, flush only toilet paper. The regional government says it dissolves; wipes and other solid waste go in the bin.

Wipes

In Catalonia, do not flush wet wipes, sanitary pads, cotton buds or condoms. Use the bin.

Paying

The operator ONE HUNDRED says its entry fee is usually 0.80 to 1.50 euros per visit. Young children enter free with a parent.

Evidence awaiting editorial review

Toilet paper

Flush used toilet paper, in moderate amounts. Taiwan's environment ministry says it breaks up in water and does not block toilets.

Toilet type

Public toilets mix seated and squat stalls. An October 2020 government count put seated stalls at about 44% in listed public toilets.

Good to know

Do not flush facial tissues, paper towels, wet wipes or sanitary pads: the ministry says they do not break up. Put them in the bin.

Evidence awaiting editorial review

Toilet type

Squat (alaturka) toilets are written into Turkish building rules. New public toilets at places of worship, intercity roadside rest stops, squares and parks must be at least half squat type, and at least a third squat in other buildings.

Fees

Istanbul's metropolitan municipality lists a toilet charge of 10 TL per person, VAT included, in its 2026 fee schedule.

Good to know

Do not flush wet wipes or paper napkins. İzmir's water utility says blockages mostly come from wipes thrown into drains, because they do not break down and settle in the line.

Evidence not collected yet

Toilet paper

Water companies say to flush only pee, poo and toilet paper. Wet wipes and period products go in the bin.

Paying

Most public toilets in Britain are free, but some charge a small fee.

Locked toilets

Some accessible toilets are locked and need a RADAR key. VisitBritain says keys open over 10,000 toilets in Britain and can be ordered online.

Evidence not collected yet

Toilet paper

Flush toilet paper and human waste only. The EPA says nothing else should go down the toilet.

Toilet type

Accessible stalls have a seated toilet. US federal ADA standards set the seat 17 to 19 inches above the floor.

Good to know

Away from park toilets, pack out used toilet paper. Joshua Tree says to pack it out; Olympic says to carry a zipper bag (page last updated 9 March 2017).