Sri Lanka, squat toilets ?

[cloggedup]

I'm going there soon, & it's only just occurred to me that they might have squat toilets !
My knees are bad, I sometimes need a walking stick, & using one is a nightmare. I've always hated them, even when I was physically fit.

I have a Shewee, but I don't think a Shepoo has been invented.

Any advice, please ?

Unless you’re going to the back of beyond, you’ll be fine. There may be some that are a bit grim in public places so I’d take some wipes so you can sit down if you need to.

I doubt that they’d have squat toilets in a hotel for foreign tourists (assuming that’s where you’re staying), but you might encounter them while out and about. Just make sure you poo at the hotel!

Thank you, we're doing tourist stuff.
But are you saying that all tourist places have Western loos ?
Quite happy to wipe a seat in S.L. as I would in U.K.

Toilets are normal toilets, most normal, some a bit grim as anywhere abroad.

FWIW I only seen one squat toilet in a week touring round, and there was the option of a normal toilet in a cubical too.

First post nails it. We’ve gone a few times and I’ve never had to use a squat toilet.

We are just back from two weeks and managed to find clean, western toilets everywhere but did research options first. At the airport there's some squat toilets but if you carry on walking there's western ones very clean after. We had a private driver and we didn't need to but you can also say to them. We kept driving times to 2 or 3 hours so used hotel toilets which were all western and very clean. We were in some very rural areas but as long as you research it, it's fine. One time we had a 4.5 hour drive along a rural route where all the toilets on the road would have been squat but I asked AI and it found a hotel you could have lunch half way by a lake just 5 minutes off route which had excellent toilets. If you have a driver they will know as well.

Not Sri Lanka but we went to Borneo last year and I was expecting this. In the end I think everywhere we went had a mix - even the roadside places. E.g. squat toilets and one ‘western’ obviously the more touristy places had more / all western ones.

i don’t think I used a squat one at all - or at most once.

Went for two weeks earlier this year. My third visit. Wonderful wonderful country. Didn’t encounter a single squat toilet. Even on beaches or in small restaurants.
Are you travelling to somewhere which is off the tourist trail? Might be different infrastructure there.
Are you with a guide? Just let him know.
Have a wonderful trip in beautiful Sri Lanka.

i went in Feb. There were squat toilets in places (eg airport) but there was always also a normal toilet and I just always waited to use that in those circs

We Travelled around and it was a mix of western and squat toilets. Some of the train stations (if you plan to do the Kandy-Ella train) are squat only

We did the Ella (Demodera) to Ambewella train, went in first class, that toilet was western but no soap or toilet paper, clean at start of journey. AI reckoned second and third class were squat toilets. Best to take gel.

If you have to squat, don't have your phone/wallet in the back pocket of your trousers! There is a risk, that locals using european style toilets will stand on the rim/seat and then squat, it's pretty obvious if one has been used in that way.

We came across some fairly horrible squat toilets in Sri Lanka, the worst of which was at the Elephant orphanage at Pinnewalla. I was really really desperate for a wee, but when I was faced with hovering over a hole filled with bubbling brownness, I found the inner strength to hold on for another half hour until we got to a restaurant 😂

Thanks for the help everyone.
We're on an organised tour, usual tourist spots, so I'll keep my fingers crossed.
Or possibly my legs !