Where to find public water taps in the Netherlands?
We are wandering around the Netherlands (on foot, hitchhiking, and by bicycle). We aren't sleeping in campsites, but just putting our tent anywhere "in the bush". We are used to travelling this way in southern Europe but in the Netherlands we have trouble finding water (public water tap, public WC / street fountain) so we could get water for showering / laundry / cooking. Until now we have only found water taps in cemeteries which are not the best place to shower (in a "remote" conservative conservation area!).
In southern Europe we find water to shower and wash our clothes near churches (often there is a tap), public fountains in parks, downtown areas, cemeteries, free WC (on streets or at train stations). Or as a last resort public WCs in libraries or bigger supermarkets.
We do know about Warm Showers and CouchSurfing websites, but we prefer to be independent and spontaneous, without having to plan in advance, which would require quite a lot of organization / time / battery (because finding a plug is also quite a challenge: we found one in a car park today!) We also know about the app "hoge nood" but it's not available on iOS6.
Until now we could get enough water to cook by asking bars or restaurants, but not enough for laundry and washing ourselves.
Do you know some trick to find those precious water taps (an alternative to laundry-bathing in smelly/polluted rivers, will be highly appreciated!)?
Best Answer
The Netherlands certainly doesn't have that many public taps as other countries. Maybe also because the regular tap water is of very good quality.
But the recent years more and more taps are placed. Mostly to advertise against bottled water, and help people who use own (recycled) bottles.
I know of two websites / apps which have a map of taps:
- Kraanwatertappunten (iOS 6.1+ and Windows 8+)
- Dopper (iOS 4+ and Android 2+)
The last one also lists private people who make their home tap available to anyone coming by.
Another option might be to ask water at a farmer (they usually have outside taps) or at a camping site (and maybe pay a little). See for example the ANWB camperen app (iOS 6+ and Android 2.2+)
PS: Vitens is one of the companies placing taps, but they don't have a map available as far as I know.
PS 2: As Eugen said, note that camping is officially not allowed in public places.
Pictures about "Where to find public water taps in the Netherlands?"
Can you ask for tap water in the Netherlands?
Is tap water safe to drink in the Netherlands? Good news: tap water is totally safe to drink in the Netherlands, especially in Amsterdam where the tap water is often better quality than bottled water. In fact, Dutch tap water is the second highest quality in Europe, scoring 7.1 out of 10 in a study.How do I find my water taps?
This is pretty common unfortunately. Some restaurants do offer it for free, some give it for free when you ask but many prefer to sell bottled water.Is tap water free in the Netherlands?
You can drink water from the tap everywhere in the Netherlands. And it is much cheaper than buying bottled water in the supermarket.Can I Drink A Tap Water in Amsterdam?
More answers regarding where to find public water taps in the Netherlands?
Answer 2
2021 update:
There are now several websites and phone apps available, this is just one of them. Googling for 'water bottle filling' or 'waterflesje vullen' should find you more.
(I have no connection with the site, just the first I found on internet.)
2017 update answer.
In the last couple of years, a lot of 'get water' points have been added in the Netherlands.
Often you find points to fill your bottles in front of stations, outside restaurants and information centers in nature areas but also in the middle of villages.
I have not yet found a way to work out where to find the points, it seems that every region has its own system and own logic in where to place the water points.
Remember that wild camping is not allowed in the Netherlands and much of the country has very many people and very little nature so it is not just a case of law but also a case of common sense. The new water points are for daytime use, to re-fill the bottle you brought from home to keep you going for a while longer.
The water points are certainly no showers and no places to camp.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Susanne Jutzeler, suju-foto, Olga Lioncat, Meruyert Gonullu, Scott Webb