BOSTON, MA--(Marketwired - Nov 12, 2013) - One of the first things we learn to say in any foreign language is "where's the bathroom?" Clearly, the need to go is a common bond for cultures around the world. Fortunately, this universal necessity has been addressed with panache in many places, leading the travel experts at Cheapflights.com, the online leader in finding and publishing travel deals, to compile its list of Cool Loos You Can Use: Top 10 Public Toilets Worth Talking About. These are all spots where, when Mother Nature calls, you will have a one-of-kind experience when you answer.
Make your next pit stop an interesting one by checking out one of these five cool loos to make our list that offer great views, works of art, technological innovation and more:
- Graben Toilets, Vienna, Austria - It may feel like you're entering a subway station when you head toward these underground toilets along the Graben (one of Vienna's most famous streets), but these loos are actually lovely. Vienna didn't always have the best track record when it came to public bathroom options, but a proposal from Wilhelm Beetz helped change that in the late 19th century. In these bathrooms, which are near Kohlmarkt, you'll be treated not only to attractive toilets, but also to brass fixtures, marble walls and wood paneling, as well as some cool tile work. The men's side features waterless urinals -- Beetz's brainchild.
- Mount McKinley Toilet, Alaska, United States - This "potty" takes the word public to a new level. Perched 14,200 feet up on Alaska's Mount McKinley, this john stands on its own surrounded by nothing more than three wooden slabs and plenty of ice and snow. Hiking to this toilet won't be easy, and there's still more than 6,000 feet to go from here to reach McKinley's summit. Once you arrive, you'll be in for a bathroom break that will make you say 'brrrr,' after all, this loo is largely open to the elements. But the novelty of the experience and the view of Mt. Foraker you'll be treated to will do their best to help you forget about the wind and sub-zero temperatures.
- Hundertwasser Public Toilets, Kawakawa, New Zealand - Some visitors stop at the Hundertwasser toilets not to pee, but just to take pictures. Located along State Highway 1 in the rural area of Kawakawa on the North Island, these public toilets were designed by late artist-architect Frederick Hundertwasser. Built in the late 1990s, these bathrooms feature bricks from a former Bank of New Zealand building, a living tree, tile mosaics, curvy columns and walls embedded with glass bottles. The facility, which is topped off with a grass roof, is a can't-miss collage of colors and interesting materials. Hundertwasser died a few years after the bathroom was completed, making this his final project and only piece of work in the Southern Hemisphere.
- Pop-Up Toilets, Europe - When you gotta go, you gotta go -- and some European cities are taking this need for instant gratification seriously. Places like London and Amsterdam are curbing public urination with a futuristic solution -- toilets that emerge from the ground during the nighttime hours then retract and disappear during the day. A company called Urilift is producing these cylindrical lavatories that look like something out of "The Jetsons." They've started with walk-in urinals and have now moved on to pop-up loos with doors for the ladies. Other types of portable urinals have also been popping up across Europe for more than a decade.
- Daimaru Department Store, Tokyo, Japan - From the folks who brought us Toto, one of the world's high-end toilet brands, come the commodes of the Daimaru Department Store. The public bathrooms here are outfitted with -- you guessed it -- Toto toilets. The shopping destination has 13 floors, each of which has its own bathroom designed to match the floor's atmosphere. These aren't your standard toilets, though. They have everything from heated seats to sound effects (to mask typical bathroom noises), and they feature a self-cleaning mechanism, complete with temperature-controlled water.
The next five loos to round out the list are: Public Bathroom, Chongqing, China; Glass Bathrooms at Downtown Square, Sulphur Springs, Texas, United States; Chung Yo Department Store Bathrooms, Taichung City, Taiwan; Rothesay's Victorian Toilets, Isle of Bute, Scotland and Urquiza Public Toilets, Rosario, Argentina. To read the twinkling details on these in Cheapflights.com's Cool Loos You Can Use: Top 10 Public Toilets Worth Talking About visit www.cheapflights.com/news/cool-loos-you-can-use-top-10-public-toilets-worth-talking-about.
About Cheapflights.com, part of the Momondo Group
Momondo Group is an online travel media and technology company that is driven by the belief that an open world is a better world. The group now serves travel search and inspiration to over 13 million visitors a month -- plus 7 million travel newsletter subscribers -- via its Cheapflights (www.cheapflights.com) and momondo (www.momondo.com) brands.
Skygate began the sourcing of complex air-travel data in 1992, while Cheapflights pioneered the online comparison of flight deals for users in 1996 and momondo launched meta-search in the Nordic countries in 2006.
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