The best places to go When you’ve got to go

‘‘When we travel, we don't really think about loos until we actually need them and then they become really important.’’ Rhys James

Fresh cut flowers, art, architecture, music and even attendants make for a memorable toilet stop.

Since public toilets often get a bad rap, AA Traveller decided to find out which toilets scrubbed up the best and why.

And scrubbed up are the operative words - cleanliness was at the top of list of rating points for travellers.

Top of the list were the awardwinning Friedensreich Hundertwasser-designed toilets at Kawakawa.

‘‘When we travel, we don’t really think about loos until we actually need them and then they become really important,’’ AA spokesman Rhys James said.

Other towns with write-homeabout loos include Ashburton, Cheviot, Geraldine, Kaikoura, Picton, Taihape and Waiouru.

The Taupo Superloo featured highly, as did the Cambridge Superloo, which has since closed its pay-for-use facility. The public toilets in Gordonton, Matamata, Piopio and Tirau also got a mention.

The Taupo facility is open from 8am to 5pm and requires a 50-cent entry free. It was one of the first user-pays facilities created for travellers, but a bonus is a free wifi signal beaming in from nearby.

There are also showers, lockers and towels for hire.