How to Avoid Bad Water While Traveling

When visiting areas with poor sanitation, take extra precautions when handling or drinking water.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Immersion Coils
• Plug Adaptors
• Travel Adapters And Converters
• Bottled Water
• Iodine Additives
• Drinking Straws
• Plastic Drinking Cups
• Water Purifiers
• Water Purifying Tablets

1. Consider the following safe to drink: commercially bottled water with an unbroken seal, carbonated drinks, beverages made with vigorously boiled water, and beer.

2. Order bottled water at restaurants and make sure the seal is opened in front of you.

3. Avoid ice and any drinks made with tap water, such as mixed drinks.

4. Don't use tap water when brushing your teeth. Instead, use bottled water, or add purifying tablets or iodine additives to tap water. You can also boil tap water for 20 minutes to make it safe.

5. Try not to swallow water when showering or bathing.

6. Consider nondisposable glasses and cups unsanitary; drink from original containers and use sanitary straws, or carry your own cups.

Tips & Warnings

• Consider any water in an unfamiliar area unsafe, unless you know otherwise.
• For boiling water, consider purchasing an immersion coil. If you are traveling to a foreign country, you may need to purchase a plug adapter and current converter to make it work.
• If you insist on forcing your body to adapt to the water, allow at least four weeks to adjust.
• Chlorine does not necessarily kill microorganisms in water.

on 8/13/2006 Free drinking water at motels is available by melting the ice from the ice machine dispensers. Clear ice is formed by filtered water. Yes, the water is filtered from the tap source. Otherwise, the tap water ice would not stay solid for any length of time and melt very quickly. Filtered chemical-free water is used to make ice in the machine and the water tastes good.

At the good motels, the ice machines are maintained and filters are changed often. Only in Orlando, Florida, we experienced poor tasting melted ice water at the motel. The melted ice water smelled and the shower water had a smell.

In New Orleans LA, Monterey CA, Lake Tahoe CA, Los Angeles CA, San Diego CA, Puerto Vallarta Mexico, and Negril Jamaica, we got some of the best ice drinking water. Check it out.