North America's most amazing and, at times, amusing toilets
As any experienced traveller knows, you can tell a whole lot about a place by its bathrooms.
Whatever you prefer to call them – lavatory, loo, bog, khasi, thunderbox, dunny, washroom or water closet – toilets are a window into the secret soul of a destination.
So, wherever you’re reading this, we hope you’re sitting comfortably.
San Francisco
Alcatraz,
If you were a guard at Alcatraz high-security prison, you had to have a head for heights, even during your toilet breaks.
Arctic Canada
Tundra toilet,
The orange sail around this alfresco Arctic potty in Canada’s far north is not there to protect anyone’s modesty – it’s there to prevent people’s posteriors from being frozen solid to the seat.
California
Bodie Ghost Town,
There might not be any riches remaining in the old gold-mining town preserved in Bodie State Historic Park but the restroom is a gem.
USA
Mt Shuksan, Washington,
Facilities at Mt Shuksan’s Sulphide Glacier base camp offer a grand vista of Mt Baker on a clear day, but they can be a bit breezy when the weather comes in.
Canada
Outhouse, British Columbia,
In British Columbia, Canada, this impressive outhouse features an automatic flush, powered by the moon, which washes all waste away twice a day.
USA
fotofoto Gallery, New York,
When you’re exploring the fotofoto Gallery in Huntington, New York, the exhibits don’t stop just because you’ve gone to the restroom
USA
Tonto Trail, Grand Canyon National Park,
Limited privacy is the trade-off for sensational views from the hot seats of these composting campsite toilets on the 112km (70 mile)-long Tonto Trail
USA
Art Deco restrooms, Miami Beach, Miami,
The Art Deco restrooms at Miami Beach break the surface like a submarine coming up for air.
See more porcelain pews with fantastic views, audacious attention-seeking urban outhouses, and eco-thrones made from sticks and stones in all sorts of wild settings.
A visit to Nyungwe National Park, where it’s possible to hike through the thick forests to share time with one of our other nearest relatives, the chimpanzee.