You’re traveling, thirsty, and wonder: can I just use the tap water in my hotel room? 

Short answer: It depends.

In recent years, dozens fell ill from a norovirus outbreak at a New Zealand resort, wedding guests blamed the water for ruining their celebration at a four-star resort in Mexico, and more than 500 visitors got sick in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. 

So before bad water ruins your trip, let’s break down what makes hotel water so unpredictable… and what you can do to be safe, wherever you stay.

Instead, each country sets its own drinking water standards. For example, the U.S. has the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) and the EU has the EU Drinking Water Directive (DWD).

But even in developed countries, where water is regulated by the government, water quality still varies widely based on location, infrastructure, weather, maintenance, and more. 

Think of hotels like fast-food chains: the sign out front might be the same, but walk inside and the experience can be wildly different. 

Some are spotless. Others? Not so much.

One hotel might have modern plumbing and filtered water on every floor. The next might have rusted pipes, old fixtures, or stagnant water lurking in underused rooms.

And in remote or developing regions, the risks go up. Hotels may rely on private wells or local water sources that don’t meet international safety standards, and have little testing, regulation, or oversight.

Even in places with “safe” or compliant water, these hotel-specific factors can quietly compromise what flows from the tap:

1. Unused guest rooms can turn pipes into petri dishes.

Water in unoccupied rooms can remain stagnant in pipes for days or even months, creating a breeding ground for bacteria like Legionella, E. coli, and other harmful microorganisms. 

2. Complex plumbing systems create hidden risks. 

To provide water to dozens, hundreds, and even thousands of rooms and fixtures, hotels often have sprawling, multi-level plumbing networks. Dead-end pipes and low-flow zones can invite contaminants to accumulate. 

Plus, that complexity makes water quality harder to maintain and contamination easier to miss. 

3. Occupancy patterns can affect water safety.

Hotels experience fluctuations in occupancy rates throughout the year. During off-season or low occupancy periods, water may sit in pipes for extended periods, leading to stagnation and potential contamination. 

Remember, you can’t see or smell what’s building up behind the walls. 

4. Some hotels use multiple water sources.

Some properties—especially abroad—combine sources like municipal water, well water, or desalinated water. That makes monitoring harder, and consistency feel almost impossible.

5. Old buildings = old pipes. 

Lead solder was common pre-1986 and can still leach into drinking water, even if the water itself is clean at the source.

6. On-site treatment systems aren’t always well maintained.

Some hotels use their own water softeners or water filtration systems. But filters expire. Systems break. And upkeep can take a back seat, especially when staffing or budgets are tight.

7. What you see isn't what you get.

Water can look and taste fine even when it’s harboring invisible contaminants like PFAS, disinfection byproducts (DBPs), or trace pharmaceuticals. Your senses aren’t enough to judge safety.

Some of the most common contaminants found in hotel water can include:

• Lead – Often from old pipes and solder, especially in hotels built before 1986.

• Chlorine + DBPs – Chlorine is used to disinfect, but it can react with organic matter to form dangerous DBPs like trihalomethanes (THMs) and haloacetic acids (HAAs). These chemicals have been linked to asthma, reproductive harm, and even cancer with long-term exposure.

• Bacteria and Parasites – Organisms like Giardia, Legionella, and Cryptosporidium thrive in stagnant water and under-maintained plumbing systems.

• PFAS – Often found near airports, military bases, and industrial areas, these cancer-linked “forever chemicals” resist breakdown and can build up in the body over time.

• Pharmaceuticals – Traces of medications can enter water supplies from leaky sewer lines or recycled water systems.

And that’s just scratching the surface…

324 contaminants have been detected in U.S. tap water supplies. And here’s the scariest part: compared to many other countries, U.S. water supplies are heavily regulated.

Now that you know the risks, here’s how to protect yourself: 

1. Ask the front desk if the hotel filters or treats its water.

2. Check municipal water reports before your trip. When traveling in the U.S., enter the zip code you’re traveling to here and get a free water quality report.

3. Smell and inspect the water—chlorine smell, cloudiness, or odd taste are red flags.

4. Avoid water from unused rooms. Consider requesting a room with recent occupancy.

5. Check the gym. It may have bottled water or filtered water that’s safer than the tap.

6. Boil water overnight using the room’s kettle—let it cool for safer drinking. (Just be sure the kettle is clean!)

7. Skip the ice unless you’re sure it’s made from filtered water.

8. Keep your mouth closed in the shower if you’re unsure of the water quality.

9. Watch what the locals do. Are they drinking the water?

10. Bring a Clearly Filtered Water Bottle or Filtered Water Pitcher to remove harmful contaminants on the go.

So yes—hotel water can be a risk. But now you know how to spot the red flags, stay safe, and travel smarter.

Tap here to shop our entire collection of best-selling, advanced filtration systems, including a variety of convenient filtered water bottles, dedicated to your health and safety. 

While most filters remove just a handful of contaminants, ours target up to 365+ dangers—including those found in hotel water. 

When you’re far from home, that kind of peace of mind is priceless.