Water Bottles
 

We (2 adults, 2 late teens) are planning a 22 day trip to Scotland (Edinburgh, Highlands, Skye), N. Ireland (Antrum Coast), Wales (North) and London (last 4 days)....and will be doing some easy going walks/hikes....we are walkers and usually carry a water bottle with us...my question...should we pack our bottles for refilling along the way or should we just expect to purchase bottled water daily...which does start to add up when you multiply by 4 people<BR>thanks.....

A woman I work with went to Egypt with her family a few yrs. ago and took along 1 lg. suitcase filled with nothing but bottled water.

Just fill your bottle from any tap.

jj- if you're only doing easy hikes in populated areas, i would say take your bottles and fill them as you go. Water is usually available in pubs, cafes, restrooms etc. if you don't mind drinking the local variety. If you're going to be in remote areas where there is no way to get water except out of a ditch, you'll just have to plan for that and carry extra. Personally I don't see any reason to buy bottled water.

Antrim

Don't waste your money on bottled water - the water in all these places if perfectly fine/safe - just the taste may vary.

Last time I was travelling in the UK I took along a plastic water bottle with a built-in filter. This one is put out by Rubbermaid, costs just a few dollars, and holds a pint or so. The reason I took it is that some of the little B&Bs I stay in have pretty old pipes and the tap water tastes rather metallic. This bottle did the trick, filtering out any metallic taste. The filter is replaceable, too, but one of them did fine for a few weeks' stay; much cheaper, obviously, than buying bottled water at every stop, and you're more likely to drink all the water you need. I use one of these bottles stateside, too, whenever I'm travelling, because you never know what the local tap water's going to taste like, and even some water fountains don't have filters.<BR><BR>Q.P.

Q.P., THAT is a great idea! Thank you!! Where can you buy them - anywhere? Like Wal-Mart, maybe?

FYI - While in Europe last week, I noticed that few people walk around constantly drinking water from a bottle as we do here in the US. <BR><BR>Of course, if you are hiking, then it would be necessary to have a water bottle. But, for normal sightseeing walks we hardly ever saw people with bottles. <BR><BR>As an aside, while on the train from Nice to Paris, I took out my bottle from my bag to take a sip because it was hot and I was thirsty and I didn't want to walk down to get a drink at the bar. Shortly after, I noticed the French gentleman (we spoke a little when I took my seat) across from me take a small cup out of his bag and just barely take his water bottle out of the bag to pour a small amount into the cup. He sipped from his cup and then put it away. The bottle was never in full view or placed on the table. I thought this was interesting.