Public Restrooms

How easy is it to find public restrooms around the city?

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To be honest, I usually ended up going into small café or bistro.

I first went in one in a moment of urgencies :-) expecting to get a really sour look from the waiter/owner but they all were pretty nice about it.

I think it would be impolite to try to sneak in but I always asked them if I could use their washroom and had no mean look from any of them.

Around the sites and in the city center, you%26#39;ll always find public washrooms also.

no worry

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it is a lot easier to find places to use the restroom in Paris than in New York

you can go into any cafe -- if you are embarrassed about using the loo without ordering -- well grab a coffee at the bar or whatever (since cafes have many people on the sidewalk at tables, coming into the building to use the can does not immediately suggest you are not a customer anyway)

there are free booths on the street -- you get about 15 minutes before they automatically open -- these come in very handy

there are public restrooms with small fee in the Tuilleries and in most parks

and then there is always McDonalds

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My experience was a bit different. We did lots of walking covering lots of ground and I often found myself almost to the point of no return before we eventually found a restroom. The museum pass came in quite handy as we could easily duck into any of the spots covered by the pass just to use the facilities. I did duck into a Starbucks once, but I was not comfortable just using their restroom and leaving so I bought a coffee. (And I must say that though a Starbucks fan at home, after several days of Cafe Creme what I had a Starbucks was NOT coffee!! Ha!)

There are very nice restrooms by the Eiffel Tower, which we also revisited a time or two just for that purpose. I learned very quickly that at every meal stop to make sure I made a pit stop before leaving (whether I need to or not!) as I never knew how long it would be before I%26#39;d have another opportunity.

Having said all that, I will add that I am a huge water drinker. Always carry it with me; always drinking; so that I%26#39;m sure contributed to the issue!

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The public toilets on the street are good and free now. Department stores are a favorite stop for me.

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I like department stores restrooms too, Suzanne. They tend to be super clean and, as an added benefit, it doesn%26#39;t cut into the shopping time:)

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Make sure you take care of things B4 you go to the Jardin des Plantes. Its a huge place with no restrooms unless you pay 7E and go into the zoo or pay an entrance fee to go into one of the museum buildings. On the other hand Jardin du Luxembourg has a number of restrooms. Train stations used to be good, but haven%26#39;t used them in quite a few years. One trick is to find a really busy cafe, then make it look like you%26#39;re coming in from one of the tables outside and sneak in. The waiters are usually too harried to notice. At the Deux Magots, for example, there is a lady down with the restrooms who takes tips, so you could go in the side door and pay her, so it%26#39;s not too impolite or taking advantage. One time we were desparate near Notre Dame (even tho there%26#39;s supposed to be r-rooms someplace nearby). We went into the nearest cafe but there%26#39;s big sign right near the front door that says restrooms for patrons only--so don%26#39;t even think about it. I%26#39;ve heard there%26#39;s r-rooms under/near the Madeleine.

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www.paris.fr/portail/Solidarites/Portal.lut…

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If you are near Notre Dame there are toilets in the garden that%26#39;s in the back of the cathedral. McDonalds has accessible toilets that you don%26#39;t need to pay for. Department store toilets I found to be clean enough.

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%26gt;%26gt;%26gt; The public toilets on the street are good and free now. %26lt;%26lt;%26lt;

Way back in the good and smelly old days of ancient Rome the emperor Vespasianus decided to place amphorae at strategic intersections of the streets of Rome for the comfort of the male population. (Women had to find other ways to take care of calls of nature.)

Some centuries later the streets of Paris were sprinkled (no pun intended...) in an equally discriminatory fashion with green painted facilities where men could relieve themselves. These odoriferous green chalets were nicknamed %26quot;vespasiennes%26quot; in memory of the aforesaid emperor.

Some decades later a mayor of Paris by the name of Jacques Chirac decided to replace these vespasiennes with the automatic self-sanitizing loos that are now found all over the city. (Back then they were not free.) To honour this far-sighted gestureand preserve the memory of the soon to be ex-president of the République Française I propose that these facilities be henceforth and forever known as %26quot;chiracquiennes.%26quot; :-)

(I don%26#39;t believe I am the first person to suggest this...)

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Toilet is huge issue for me. I need to go to the toilet so often. Small bladder, I guess. Public toilets are hard to come by. At they are free now.

Mc Donald%26#39;s, there are quite a few in Paris (St Michele (2) Rue Revoli (1) Champs Elysee (1) Les Halles/Chatelet (1).

Also Starbucks: St Germain/Odeon/St Michele (2-3)

Rue Pyrimide (1)

Department stores also have toilet you can use.

Some Metro stations such as Odeon also has one. Also, I see that there are some in the touristy areas.

Mc Donald%26#39;s used to have a code on their toilets so you have to buy something to get that code or wait for someone when they get out of the toilet and you hop in. Usually Mc Donald%26#39;s are so popular and crowded that it should be no problem. Strabucks still have code on their toilets.