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Saint Petersburg Warnings or Dangers: Tap Water tips posted by real travelers and Saint Petersburg locals.
Tap Water
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Saint Petersburg Tap Water ReviewsTips 1 - 10 of 20  
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Tap Water: Bottled water is cheap
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  • By Dabs on September 11, 2003
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  • I don't know what the real danger is from the water supply here but I'm accustomed to drinking bottled water anytime I am away from the US or Western Europe. Bottled water can be bought at grocery stores, from the many street kiosks or restaurants. It's just not worth the chance of picking something up from the small cost of bottled water.

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    Tap Water: giardia in the tap water
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  • By Michael_D on December 6, 2004
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  • water is a serious problem - Saint Petersburg
    water is a serious
    problem
    by Michael_D
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    Most travellers are aware that water is often not safe in many places. St Petersburg is REKNOWN for its bad water and has hevay metals, impurities galore...the worst of which is Giardia. Giardiasis [gee-are-DI-uh-sis] is a parasitic infection of the small intestine. People get giardiasis when they swallow water or food contaminated with stool from an infected person or animal. People also get giardiasis from hand-to-mouth contact with contaminated surfaces or objects. the folklore is that boiled water or foods cooked by boiled water is safe. NO IT IS NOT!People get giardiasis by swallowing Giardia cysts, the infectious stage of the parasite. The cysts are not always killed by boiling. Rosinka(phoenetic) water is commercially available and reputed to be safe but I would even boil that.

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  • Website: http://www.astdhpphe.org/infect/giardiasis.html

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    Tap Water: Boil your drinking water
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  • By sennaya on February 13, 2007
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  • Water for St. Petersburg comes from Lake Ladoga and may contain some germs. Boil water to drink in a tea kettle or buy bottled water. If you are sensitive to water problems, use bottled water to brush your teeth and wash your food. Most locals boil their drinking water, but use the tap water for cooking and washing.


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    Tap Water: I've seen a lot of comments on...
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  • By Lalique on August 26, 2002
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  • I've seen a lot of comments on other's pages on water conditions in Russia in general and in St. Pete in particular. Majority warn that tap water is awful, undrinkable, etc. Well, I can't talk for everyone coming to St. Pete but my experinces were harmless to my health. Noone persuades you into actually DRINKING tap water but I think it's safe to brush your teeth using it. And bear in mind that the same tap water is used in preparation of food in every St. Pete restaurant and eating place, thus avoiding any contact with local water don't forget to take food from your home country, otherwise you'll die from hunger... :))))

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    Tap Water: Lake Water
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  • By sennaya on May 15, 2007
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  • Truck in Lake Ladoga, June 2006 - Saint Petersburg
    Truck in Lake Ladoga, June
    2006
    by sennaya, 1 more photos
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    This is Lake Ladoga where the drinking water for St. Petersburg comes from. A truck is out in the lake loading a jet ski. No water in St. Petersburg should be drunk without boiling. And there often are levels of metals such as lead that make it wise to consider bottled water for extended stays. People with sensitive health are recommended to sue bottled water for brushing teeth and preparing food. There is a proposal to create a national park at the lake.

  • Website: http://parks.karelia.ru/ladoga/4.html

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    Tap Water: Don't drink water
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  • By Soili on February 2, 2003
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  • Generlly speaking, my hair turned reddishcopper due to the impurities of water. We, the students in Helsinki, had been warned by others not to drink the water because of the giarrdia. We didn't, unless we were able to boil it first. Yet those who came from the UK a little later, they were carrying purifying tablets and seemed to be ok...

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    Tap Water: Water :
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  • Updated By keeweechic on June 21, 2003
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  • Tap Water - Saint Petersburg
    by keeweechic
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    Water : the quality of tap water varies widely in Russia. When I was there the colour of the hot water especially was not quite as transparent as one would like, in fact it was quite brown and hard (as far as trying to get a lather to wash my hair). I was using bottled water to drink and brush my teeth but I am told that the quality of water there is now very good. .

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    Tap Water: Do NOT drink the water...
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  • By polrbear on September 8, 2002
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  • Do NOT drink the water straight from the tap. Go to a local store and get bottled water. Ask for 'cheestaya vahdah', literally 'clean water' or 'pure water', to make sure you don't wind up with carbonated water. The water is safe for everything else - bathing, showering, etc., but don't drink it.

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    Tap Water: Drink only bottled water
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  • By cheekymarieh on September 7, 2002
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  • Drink only bottled water as tap water quality is poor. Also avoid ice in your drinks. Within the city bounds there is a warning about a parasite called Giardia lamblia which causes stomach cramps.

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    Tap Water: Do not drink anything from a...
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  • By feline01 on August 26, 2002
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  • Do not drink anything from a vending machine. The machines use a shared glass that everyone drinks from and then replaces. Dysentery anyone?

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