After living in Barcelona and traveling across Europe, I’ve realized that tap water isn’t always readily available.
In the States, if I just want something to quench my thirst and don’t really feel like paying $5.00 for an orange juice, I order a glass of water. Europe, however, is a whole new ballgame with the relationship between water and language. My general rule of thumb after numerous travels became that if I drank the water out of the sink all throughout Morocco and didn’t get sick, first world Europe shouldn’t pose a problem to my immune system.
Still, when you order water in Europe, waiters bring out classy looking glass bottles and charge anywhere between two and five Euros for a small taste. When you ask for “tap water” in English, many waiters simply don’t understand and maintain that they don’t carry the “Tap” brand of bottled water. Even if you can get your waiter to understand what you’re trying to say, occasionally the management still doesn’t allow tap water to be served to guests.
So, for budget travelers looking to spend money on fun life experiences instead of what should be free water, learn how to ask for tap water in the local language.
A few of the local ways to say “tap water”:
Spanish: Agua del Grifo
French: l’eau du robinet
Dutch: leidingwater
Danish: ledningsvand
German: Leitungswasser
Czech: vodu z kohoutku
Hungarian: Csapvíz
Italian: acqua del rubinetto
