Travel Guides Road Trips
Maddie Brown
Whether you’re getting to your destination by airplane, train, or car, going to the bathroom is an inevitable part of traveling. Luckily, many forms of transportation have toilets. This amenity is incredibly convenient for travelers, especially in cases of emergencies.
It’s not news that making a pit stop is more common on a road trip, as a car doesn’t have a toilet. Tracking down a bathroom during your drive can be a hassle, especially if there aren’t any public restrooms close by. Finding a bathroom in New York City, for example, may be fairly easy, but you may not be so lucky in other places. Constantly going out of the way to find a bathroom could add time to your trip and cause stress.
For easy bathroom access, one TikToker has suggested using a DIY toilet in the car. In the video, a toilet seat is placed over the car seat. A trash bag is placed underneath to cover the surface, while foam pieces elevate the makeshift seat. The whole thing is secured with tape. Then, the toilet hole is filled with salts from a cut-up unused diaper. Febreze and a yellow liquid is added to mitigate any foul smell. Finally, a toilet paper roll is placed on a clothing hanger and hung from the grab handle. Despite its originality, this hack has sparked controversy, with many TikTokers adamant about not trying this trick.
Alternatives to the TikTok toilet hack
@paul_vu_95
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TikTokers weren’t so impressed with the road trip toilet hack, and you can probably guess why. One person wrote, “Nobody is pooping in my car.” Someone else remarked, “Put in the whole car is going to stink.” Another user said, “A built-in toilet in the car. What are they gonna think of next?”
If using a DIY car toilet isn’t your cup of tea, there are plenty of alternatives for relieving yourself on a road trip. Of course, gas stations are the go-to pit stops. Fast food restaurants are another option, with some joints deemed cleaner than others. In a Technomic Consumer Brand Metrics survey (via Restaurant Business Magazine), customers rated various chains in regards to the cleanliness of their bathrooms. Culver’s and Chick-fil-A made the top of the list, with reviewers noting that the restrooms are well-kept. Think twice about stopping at McDonald’s or Popeyes, as they came in much lower on the cleanliness scale. Supermarkets, book stores, department stores, and coffee shops are also safe bets for bathroom breaks.
Unfortunately, you won’t always have the luxury of a perfectly tidy restroom when traveling. If you’re driving in a rural area far from public restrooms and Mother Nature calls, you may have to lower your expectations and settle for the closest outhouse … or even a bush. In these scenarios, the TikTok toilet hack may come in handy. But to each their own, as this unconventional portable potty is certainly not for everyone.
