Are public toilets free, and where do I find one?
Short answer
Free and easy to find. Every subway station has one, and cafés and department stores are relaxed about it.
Subway stations are the reliable answer
Every subway station has a toilet, it is free, and it is usually outside the ticket gates — so you can use one without paying a fare or having a card.
Signage on the platform and in the concourse points to them, normally alongside the nearest exit number. Parks, department stores and public buildings are the other dependable options.
Cafés and door codes
Café toilets are often shared with the rest of the building and locked with a keypad. The code is printed on your receipt, or on a card by the till.
If you have not bought anything, asking is usually fine in a quiet café and awkward in a busy one. A subway station two minutes away avoids the question.
Paper, and the bin
Paper is normally inside the stall. In some older buildings there is a single large dispenser by the entrance instead, so it is worth a glance before you commit to a cubicle.
A few older buildings still ask you to put used paper in the bin rather than flush it, because of narrow older plumbing. Where that applies there is a sign saying so; where there is no sign, flushing is fine.
Good to know
- A few older buildings ask for paper in the bin rather than the bowl; a sign will say so
- Station toilets are marked on the platform signage, usually with the nearest exit number
Free, everywhere, and clean. Stations, parks, convenience stores and department stores all have one.
Free and common — on the street, in malls, offices, supermarkets and fast food places. Carry your own paper.