Can You Drink The Tap Water In Tokyo?

Deprecated: mb_convert_encoding(): Handling HTML entities via mbstring is deprecated; use htmlspecialchars, htmlentities, or mb_encode_numericentity/mb_decode_numericentity instead in /home2/thetoky7/public_html/wp-content/themes/acabado/functions.php on line 2119

You wake up in the early morning in a small hotel room in Shibuya after partying all night. Your head is throbbing, and your throat is screaming for fluids. You reach for your water bottle. Empty… You stumble around and find yourself in the bathroom, staring at the water faucet. The question is: To drink or not to drink?

The person in the example was me on my first trip to Tokyo. Did I drink the tap water? Yes! Did I fall ill vomiting with cramps and diarrhea? Thankfully not! So: Is it safe to drink the tap water in Tokyo? The short answer is yes. Tokyo’s water supply throughout the city is very safe, so you should not be worried about drinking the tap water. Millions upon millions do it every single day.

Is it Safe to Drink the Tap Water Directly, Unboiled And Unfiltered?

Yes, Tokyo’s vast water supply system is safe. In fact, before a single drop of fresh, delicious water is released into the system, it has to pass over 50 quality standards set by the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare. Some of which are:

• Harmful contaminants
• Toxicity
• Pollution

If the water contains any of these substances, it may lead to serious illness. It is therefore crucial that the water is tested very thoroughly. But the controls are not there merely to make sure there are no hazardous substances in the water; they are also in place to ensure:

• Clarity
• Smell
• Taste

This makes the water both safe and tasty!

Can I Drink Tap Water in Low-budget Hotels and at Public Access Points?

Yes. You can drink the tap water unboiled and unfiltered from metro stations, malls, drinking fountains in parks, convenience stores, public toilets and even a crummy little hotel room in Shibuya. Thankfully the quality of the water is decided at the source and not at each tap! I’m not saying contamination in such an enormous water supply system is impossible, but in general, it’s considered very safe, wherever you are.

Is it Safe to Drink the Tap Water In Tokyo All Year Round?

Yes, it is safe to drink Tokyo’s tap water during all seasons and also during the cold winter period from December to February. In fact, some claim it’s even safer than bottled water! The reason is that Japan’s regulations for public water supplies are more stringent than those governing bottled spring water.

How Does the Tap Water In Tokyo Taste Like for Foreigners? 

Well, it depends where you’re from and what kind of water hardness level you are used to. When specific dissolved minerals (calcium and magnesium) are at a high concentration, the water is deemed to be hard. If the minerals are at a low concentration, the water is considered soft. The water in Japan is soft, and the water in America and Europe is mostly hard. So if you for examples travel from America or Europe to Japan and drink the tap water, it might seem a bit off at first.

My personal opinion is that it tastes less. And I know! It’s strange talking about taste when it comes to water. Shouldn’t water be tasteless? It turns out you get so used to the water you drink every day that you don’t actually notice what it tastes like. So if you’re used to drinking hard water and then try some soft water, you will probably feel the difference!

I must admit I’ve bought bottled spring water like Evian a bunch of times when I’ve been to Tokyo. I know it’s not eco-friendly, but I couldn’t help myself because I used to think it tasted a lot better than the tap water. But one day I was sort of tricked:

Selling Bottled Tap Water in Japan!

That day I went into a convince store to pick up a bottle of water. I saw a new brand called Tokyo Water which I’d never seen before. It was a bit cheaper than the other brands, so I decided to give it a try. Halfway down the bottle I suddenly saw the label. It read: Water for life. Tokyo Tap Water Project. It turned out I had grown accustomed to the soft Tokyo tap water. From that day I decided to stop buying bottled water while in Tokyo. Safe and tasty water and also eco-friendly!

How Does It All Work?

First a disclaimer: I do not claim to be a water treatment expert! I’m just a Tokyo Tourist enjoying the tap water, and I’m really impressed with how they manage to supply over 13 million residents with safe and tasty water. Here you’ll see a chart of how the Misono facility (one of five treatment plants run by the Tokyo Waterworks) in Itabashi treats and refines its water.

The Misono facility has a daily treatment capacity of 300,000 cubic meters and utilizes standard procedures along with advanced treatment of ozone and biological activated carbon. According to Hashimoto the advanced system removes nearly all the dissolved organic matter that standard treatment systems are unable to catch. -www.nippon.com

When’s the Last Time Tap Water in Tokyo was Unsafe?

On 23 March 2011 12 days after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster (240 kilometers [150 miles] away from Tokyo) the authorities in Tokyo warned that very young children in the city should not drink tap water after it was found to contain twice the levels of radioactive iodine considered safe for infants. Tokyo’s water bureau said babies and infants under the age of one should not be given tap water, but the radiation levels did not pose a risk to adults.

The following day, 24 March 2011, the restrictions were lifted after new tests showed 79 becquerels of radioactive iodine per kilogram of water. The acceptable limit for infants one year and younger is 100 becquerels, while for adults it is 300. The restrictions lasted less than a day and the highest radiation detected was 210 becquerels per kilogram of water. About twice the limit for infants, but well under the limit for adults.

2015: Tap Water Contamination was Still Higher in Tokyo Compared to Other Cities in Japan

Testing conducted in February and March of 2015 found cesium in many tap water samples collected around Japan. While the numbers were fairly low it is still a persistent problem since tap water is used in some way in everything that is consumed. In the readings, Tokyo had higher tap water contamination levels than Fukushima City. -www.fukuleaks.org

Although this may sound alarming, the numbers were well within acceptable levels. In the following years, there have been some clickbaity headlines produced, designed to scare people. Like this one from Januar 2016: NRA’s data shows contamination level in Tokyo tap water higher than Fukushima by 24 percent There might well be higher levels of contamination in Tokyo than in Fukushima, but it’s still well within the acceptable limits!

Radiation in Tokyo is Negligible!

Just to put the record straight, I took the liberty to look up some of the latest radiation data from the World’s major cities.  I’ve also supplied URL’s to live sources so you can look it up yourself if you want to.

Want to learn more about the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster and its effects on Tokyo and Japan? Check out this article.

Do You Want to Dive Deep into the Waterworks?

If you are interested in learning more about Tokyo Waterworks, it’s 400-year long history and how it came to be one of the World’s most advanced water treatment systems with leading-edge technology you can check out Tokyo Waterworks Historical Museum. There’s no admission fee and there’s a good free audio tour as well. I haven’t been there myself, but the reviews are fairly good!

Conclusion

Drinking tap water in Tokyo is safe! Millions on millions do it every day! It may taste funny to us visiting from countries with harder water, but you’ll get used to it. The water’s well treated, and the radiation levels are far below acceptable levels. So, enjoy your water and remember to drink plenty during the hot and humid summer!