Is it safe to drink the water in Cancun?

[Mill]

Originally posted by: jjones

Originally posted by: Mill
Cancun has its own water filtration system, and all the nice hotels have a system on top of that as well. Drinking the water there is safe.

Just don't eat a taco from a street vendor in the ghetto area of Cancun. That sucked for about a week.

Mill, I'm not sure where you're getting this information from, but let me tell you, do not drink the tap water here. Cancun's water filtration is nothing like the States and while some hotel's do have their own filtration system, the upkeep and maintenance is highly suspect.

You may get by for a while drinking tap water here but sooner or later you will get sick from it. Drink bottled water anywhere you go in Mexico; the locals do not drink tap water and I don't suggest that tourists do either.

I was told the Hotel Zone had modern filtration for that area.

I read it here

And here

I'm sure it could be wrong, but I never drank the tap water to begin with -- just used it for brushing my teeth, but my resort had its own system.

The ResortI stayed at also had the same language in their welcome letter from the General Manager that the Hotel Zone has its own filtration system, and then that the hotels each individually had one on top of that. I'm sure you'd know better than me. I can't wait to go back!

 

[Mill]

Originally posted by: Muadib

Originally posted by: Aharami
i survived on beer and bottled water. i wouldnt risk it

You better listen to this man!! When I was there in January, my hotel had bottled water with every meal. We always took a few with us back to the room.

I'm sure the availability of bottled water varies on where you stay, but at our Resort they kept the fridge stocked with a minimum of 12 bottles, as well as beer, juice, soft drinks, etc. All of it was free, and any restaurant on property had bottled water as well and that was free. All of the little stores around the area of Cancun I was in had bottled water and drinks, so it isn't hard to avoid tap water. I only used the tap water for brushing my teeth and of course showering.

If you go down toward the areas that have very few tourists you will start running into lots of street vendors/stores and most people down there don't speak English very well at all. The damn street tacos were incredible, but I must warn you it wasn't worth getting sick over. The feeling is like none other. Every time I ate once I got to back to Oklahoma I was in pain. My stomach would cramp, and then I would have massive boughts of the evil D and severe cramping. I would start sweating and feeling fatigued as well.

Now in Morrocco on the other hand we didn't even risk showering. We were only there for a day and a half, but that place is just not worth risking.

 

[jjones]

Originally posted by: Mill

Originally posted by: jjones

Originally posted by: Mill
Cancun has its own water filtration system, and all the nice hotels have a system on top of that as well. Drinking the water there is safe.

Just don't eat a taco from a street vendor in the ghetto area of Cancun. That sucked for about a week.

Mill, I'm not sure where you're getting this information from, but let me tell you, do not drink the tap water here. Cancun's water filtration is nothing like the States and while some hotel's do have their own filtration system, the upkeep and maintenance is highly suspect.

You may get by for a while drinking tap water here but sooner or later you will get sick from it. Drink bottled water anywhere you go in Mexico; the locals do not drink tap water and I don't suggest that tourists do either.

I was told the Hotel Zone had modern filtration for that area.

I read it here

And here

I'm sure it could be wrong, but I never drank the tap water to begin with -- just used it for brushing my teeth, but my resort had its own system.

The ResortI stayed at also had the same language in their welcome letter from the General Manager that the Hotel Zone has its own filtration system, and then that the hotels each individually had one on top of that. I'm sure you'd know better than me. I can't wait to go back!

Yeah, the Hotel Zone does have a water filtration system but I have to be honest, I still hold that highly suspect. Maybe I've just been living here too long. I go to the resorts all the time (I know several general managers and such so I get free nights or deeply discounted) and I'll never drink the water. I use it to brush my teeth and shower, etc. but that's it. I'm not drinking anything that doesn't come out of a bottle, preferably a tequila bottle.

But what I said was true, you won't find a local getting tap water in even the poshest resort here. And if it's any clue, you won't find a drinking fountain anywhere in Cancun or its resorts. That's one of the things I always get a kick out of when I go back to visit the States. I'll see a drinking fountain and it just looks so strange to see something like that, even though I've used them all my life before moving to Mexico.