When you’ve got to go, you’ve got to go. But when you’re caught out in public – be it on an outback road trip or in the middle of a city – the pressure intensifies, and finding a public toilet that is clean, stocked and accessible can become painfully difficult.
So, what makes Australia’s best public toilet, and where can we find it? We posed the question and, in the comments and on Twitter, Guardian Australia readers shared their picks.
Some it seems are only in it for the architecture; others are looking for pristine cleanliness.
Alan444 pointed to an “architectural wonder” in Sydney.
In Sydney there is an architectural wonder at Georges Heights, near Frenchys Cafe: louvred timber that is open and airy while angled to maintain privacy in a bushland garden setting. Quite the thing for sitting on the throne.
Murgatroyd7’s favourite is in Brisbane.
The public toilets in Brisbane City Hall are beautiful, 1920’s black and white art deco. Go check them out people, they’re a hidden gem.
Hannibalcrackers likes the old pissoir at Sydney’s Dawes Point:
There is a magnificent Victorian pissoir at the north end of George Street in Dawes Point, Sydney. Convenience and comfort as long as you’re a bloke.
TheOldBotanist praised the custodians of a public loo in a regional Victorian town.
Perhaps not the prettiest, best located or most spectacular, but the consistently cleanest public toilets I’ve ever seen - and I mean spotless, odourless, functional, no rubbish – are in the Victorian Mallee town of Walpeup, associated with the very pleasant Walpeup Wayside Stop Community Park.
Bluebec picked the mid-city restrooms outside Melbourne’s GPO on Elizabeth Street – but they’re not the most accessible.
The narrow stairs are annoying, but the toilets themselves are spacious, clean, and sufficient enough that I’ve never needed to queue.
The added bonus of the sitting area where you can redo your makeup or hair is also a really nice touch (and so old-fashioned).”
On Twitter, Pat Armstrong praised the “amazing 80s po-mo [postmodern] toilet blocks” hidden around Sydney’s Darling Harbour, including one under the Pyrmont Bridge. “Every time there’s public works there I fear they’ll be ‘upgraded’ out of existence.”
They’re not in fancy places but there are three amazing 80s po-mo toilet blocks hidden around Darling Harbour: one under Pyrmont Bridge, one at the Pier St overpass, and the last one… I forget.
— Pat Armstrong 🔆 (@poisontofu) January 20, 2022
Every time there’s public works there I fear they’ll be “upgraded” out of existence pic.twitter.com/u2ylYi3rvi
For commenter Choppernoodle, what matters is the upkeep.
As a bowel cancer survivor and therefore user of toilet amenities at a moment’s notice, I just send out a big thank you to all of those who work hard to ensure that any toilet amenity is clean. I can’t tell you how much it means to desperately need a loo and find one that, though shabby, is at least clean. Thank you from the bottom of my heart (or the heart of my bottom!).
Then of course there’s the quirkier loos, particularly those with an unbeatable view.
Alan444 recommends stopping at Devil’s Kitchen campground on the Great Ocean Walk in Victoria. “There was a truly fabulous dunny built up on stilts at the edge of the forest overlooking the amazing Southern Ocean,” he says.
Pickaname_Anyname has another in Victoria, at Macalister Springs on Mount Howitt.
Single occupant with a Perspex front that looks out over a wilderness valley. The absolute definition of loo with a view.
Used to be better before they installed the Perspex and it was just a drop dunny without a door, although you now don’t need to deal with cold swirly winds while your pants are ‘round your ankles.”
For a scenic option in Tasmania’s south-west, try the high camp hut at Mount Anne, tweeted Tim Lyons. “[It’s] a long drop toilet with a Perspex back so you can sit (back to the door) and overlook the wilderness including Lake Pedder from most of the way up the Mountain.”
This photo does not do it justice, but at the Hut on Mt Anne in SW Tasmania has a long drop toilet with a Perspex back so you can sit (back to the door) and overlook the wilderness including Lake Pedder from most of the way up the Mountain. Picture of hut as well pic.twitter.com/ooOVqyKldS
— Tim Lyons (@Picketer) January 20, 2022
Or you could visit the loo at Old Pelion Hut loo on the Overland Track in Tasmania, suggests Thorn001. “Been there for more than 100 years, no door, long drop, looks straight out [at] the mountains. Gold standard.”
For ElstonGunston, you can’t beat the harbour views from a restroom on Sydney’s Cockatoo Island.
A few years back I was camping on Cockatoo Island. I went into a mens there and was perplexed by the 4 foot high step up to the urinal … Never seen a urinal set up so high before.
Take the step up and you have the best view of the Harbour Bridge from the west.
Finally, not forgotten were the toilets that, while often unremarkable, were found just in the nick of time.
Ivymantled says a number of toilets have been “thoughtfully installed” along the Larapinta Trail in the Northern Territory.
Through 11-12 days of trekking over mountains and through gullies and canyons – even such basic facilities are appreciated.
As Realto put it: “The best public toilet is the one that’s easily found when you’re desperate. Bonus if there’s a vacant stall, more points if it’s clean, stocked with paper and handwash soap.”
