Ever get sick from drinking the water?? I did (I think)

[dianna112198]

I just got back from a wonderful vacation at the Polynesian resort. It was absolutely the best Disney vacation that I have ever had in my life ( until the last day). The staff was friendly, the rooms were gorgeous, and the beauty of the resort made me look forward to coming home at night after a full day at the parks! However, the last night I was there I got really, really, REALLY sick...and so did the people across the hall from me and the people above my room ( I know this because you can hear right through the walls. They are very thin) I thought at first it was because I was dehydrated, but then my boyfriend got sick too ( and he had consumed ALOT of fluids when we were down there). It wasn't from anything I ate, b/c it's 3 days after I first got sick and I still feel icky. The only thing I can think of that would get so many people sick was from drinking TOO MUCH of the tap water from the Polynesian, and this is why: It was HORRIBLE! It smelled like toilet water and it tasted gross. My boyfriend (who never complains about anything) even commented on how bad it was. I was just wondering if anybody else has had this experience at any of the Disney resorts. I'm really hoping that it was something else (like a virus or something) because I never want ANYONE to have to go through what I did (and plus, it's cheaper to fill up a water bottle with water fountain water). As a precaution I would really, REALLY recommend bringing your own bottled water. But even though that happened the Polynesian is still my most favorite resort in the whole entire world!!

 

[Luv2Roam]

To prevent this, when I travel anywhere, I drink bottled water/drinks mostly.
Our first WDW trip, I scoffed at DH for paying $2.50 per bottle for drinking water. Well, by night seven I wasn't feeling so hot myself. I think my system was at it's limit.
Their water may not be bad, but your system isn't adjusted to it.
I have known people to get very ill from drinking tap water when visiting other parts of the U.S.
And consider too your eating, drinking and sleeping habits are a lot different when on vacation at WDW.

 

[LucyStorm]

Supposedly the water at WDW has a high sulfur content that doesn't always agree with people. I am really surprised that WDW hasn't done more about it, as it is a frequent complaint.

I haven't ever had a problem with the water, but I was never a big water drinker either until recently.

 

[Miss Park Avenue]

I couldn't help but post after reading this, It's soooo late! I want to go to bed but......

My mom, dad, sister, my two DD and I stayed at OKW in Jan 2001 and all but my dad got sick. Yes, five sick people in one vacation! I was affected the least but I was taking care of the baby and my dad took my four year old out while my mom and sister could not get out of bed. Finally on the last day, after countless calls to the front desk for clean towels and sheets, we took my mom, sis, and the baby to the er to get them checked out and the nurse there told us that even Floridians don't drink their own water! I'm sure some will write and say that they drink the water and are fine but we never touch the stuff anymore. It's worth it to buy the bottled then to go through what we did. The worst was when we got back from the hospital, not a half an hour goes by and the 4yr old started throwing up. She threw up all night and on our drive back home, we stopped at a er in Georgia and she was in the hospital for 3 days! My parents had to drive home, they were all still really weak and sick and my husband drove from home down to us. I had to send the baby home with my mom. My little girl nearly died. I shutter to think of what could have happened.

We thought about our water consumption on that trip. We did bring bottled water and I drank that mostly but I just grabbed tap water to use with juice for the baby's bottle. My mom and sister drank the bottled water too but used tap water for ice and made pina colatas with it. My 4yr old is a waif and has always gets easily dehydrated when she is sick. Ever since that trip we use bottled water for everything and ask for drinks with no ice. OKW has full kitchens and bottled water goes into the coffee maker, the ice cube trays EVERYTHING! We don't ever want to have to go through that again!

 

[BibbidiBobbidiBOO]

This comes up on these boards every so often. It is not Florida's water that tastes bad, it varies with the county and the source. Therefore, it is ORLANDO's water you are talking about . My water up here does not smell or taste like what they have at WDW. And it does not always smell or taste like that there, I think it depends on the timing of something.(???) Anyway, if the water was not drinkable, there would be signs everywhere advising you not to drink it(like in some foreign countries). I know when we travel to other states that the water is "different" and we usually avoid it. Orlando water is "different" than my water in N. Florida. We don't drink it(the taste is different), just use it for brushing teeth. If the water was truly bad, everyone would be getting sick and no one would like WDW!! Water is used to make ice, so many people are drinking it in some form.
Many people get sick from dehydration while at WDW, from the abundant viruses that are around, and I have heard of food poisoning there this year(I think it was at PO though).
If lots of people are getting sick in one resort, I would report it as there may be an outbreak of food poisoning or something that needs to be checked out(pool water etc)!

 

[DisneyHumbug]

My DD drinks bottled water whenever she leaves home, as her system is super sensitive and different water affects her. The rest of us drink bottled water at WDW because we think the water smells funny!!!

 

[Disneydenise]

I always use the Brita filter for water in FL. We usually refer to this illness as the Mickey Flu. We usually only get it if we are there for a full week. I guess its not our imagination. DH never gets it because he never drinks anything with ice or the water. The last 2 times I have been there I have been fine but I got thefilter and I use it for all wter consumption. DD finally started to use it and she was fine her last trip too.

 

[Miss Park Avenue]

I was thinking of getting those individual water bottles with the Brita filters in them to just fill with dinking fountain water. Has anyone ever tried those. They cost about $7, $6 if it's on special. Does it make the water taste better?

I know our family is a little extreme when it comes to the water issue, but I wasn't exaggerating when I said that my daughter almost died. it was a terrifying experience.

 

[dianna112198]

I have never tried that Brita water bottle thing, but it's only because I have never seen it before ( I don't think they sell it by me). I would be interested in finding out where to get it though because I am never drinking that water again.

 

[Kermit]

It's very possible to get sick from water you aren't used to when you travel. It doesn't mean that there is anything wrong with the water at all. It's just something different that your body isn't used to.

You can rest assured that the water at WDW is technically safe. It doesn't have any micro-organisms that would make large numbers of people sick. If it ever did, it would be all over the news just like it is when any municiple water supply is contaminated. The water is just different. Water varies regionally based on where the water comes from and how exactly it's treated. It's not possible to make all water taste "good" because of geography. In the case of central Florida, there is simply too much sulpher in the ground to ever completely get rid of the taste.

 

[angey77]

During our trip in May, my friend who is allergic to sulfur started feeling really rotten after filling up her water bottle all day with tap water. The rest of us were fine!

 

[jennymouse]

My DGD and I drank the water last year during our four day stay. We didn't get sick, throwing up sick, but I got what felt like a bladder infection. Feel like ya gotta go, but nothing, then burning. While there, I thought I might not have been drinking enough water, so I drank more. I still had the bladder infection symptoms until I got back home. I never did know exactly what that was all about.

 

[robinb]

Originally posted by Miss Park Avenue
I was thinking of getting those individual water bottles with the Brita filters in them to just fill with dinking fountain water. Has anyone ever tried those. They cost about $7, $6 if it's on special. Does it make the water taste better?

Yes! The water tastes better out of the Britta bottle. We bought one last year and bring it with us everywhere. The only disadvantage is that it's a little big, like a large biking water bottle. Just remember to change the filter at the start of your trip .

We're not sensitive to the water, but I prefer the taste of bottled.

 

[robinb]

 

[idontknow]

After figuring out what was making me sick on 2 separate visits, I thought it was clorine poisening. I never knew about the sulfer. I still think it was the clorine, though. Same symptoms as our dog had when he was swimming in a pool and drank a bunch of the pool water. The vet said it was the clorine. I use the bita bottles at home, but have never chanced it again in Florida. I always by a few large bottle of water and a small one to refill at the 7/11 we usually stop at. I also ask for "a little ice" in the drinks at the restaurants. (that has never bothered me) DH got sooo mad at me one year because I was soooo sick. We stayed at the Swan and had to pay extra for the really late checkout. I still ended up laying on one of the couches in the lobby for a couple of hours before we left for the airport. It really ruined our vacation, but atleast it was at the end of it. but, then again, I am usually the one to ruin our vacations by getting sick somehow. Who else has had an emergency gallbladder surgery in Celebration's hospital? We always joke that we are the Griswolds.

 

[Wonderlandmom]

Keep in mind that Sulfur(found in water) and Sulfa(as in the antibiotic drug) or two entirely different things !
Bladder infections on vacation are very common and usually a result of not going to the bathroom when you should(in line at WDW and you hold it), not drinking enough water, and wearing a wet swimsuit or shorts that got wet(rides). Not from drinking water.
The water in WDW tastes and smells bad at times, but it would not be offered if it was truely bad for you! Just bring your own or a filter if it disagrees with you. My water here is NOT at all like WDW. The state does not all use the same water supply. I know when we travel to various places in FL that each place is different.

 

[dianna112198]

idontknow I wish I would have known that you could pay to check out late. I got sick from 11:00 at night until 8:00 the next morning..and checkout was 11:00 am! I called the front desk and they let me stay until 12:00 no charge, but I would have definately paid for a couple extra hours (our plane didnt leave until 9:15 pm). We wound up sleeping in the lobby for 5 hours We were supposed to go to Animal Kingdom too that day. I was so dissappointed.

 

[phamton]

First off, the Walt Disney corp. has a whole section that deals with environmental quality issues related to their parks. They have a whole section on environmental quality & permitting.

I do know that all drinking water has to meet certain standards and must be tested regularly. The standards include bacteria, viruses & other disease producers, heavy metals, radionucleides, and all sorts of chemicals. http://www.epa.gov/safewater/hfacts.html


It's quite possible for people to develop perceived illnesses from drinking yucky smelling water. And the WDW illnesses must be due to the yucky water, not travel stress, excitement, too many hot dogs, thrill rides, or not washing hands before eating.

If you are feeling paranoid, you can stick to bottled water. The Brita sports bottle is only designed to remove chlorine, not other chemicals and certainly not pathogens. Other Brita filters get some heavy metals, some odor causing things and a handful of chemicals. If you want a filter, go to a sporting goods place & get a real one.

WDW gets it 's water from the Reedy Creek Improvement District. Here's their water quality report http://www.state.fl.us/rcid/WQ/2002WQR3.pdf

The Water Quality Data Table below shows that the Reedy Creek Improvement District system had no violations. We're proud that your drinking water continues to meet or exceed all federal and state requirements for safe drinking water. We have determined through our monitoring and testing that only a few of these substances have even been detected from among the 135 regulated and unregulated substances for which we test annually.

Is a giant (and a giant TARGET for a lot of people) like Disney going to turn a blind eye to bad water? I find that hard to believe, as many people as are there any given day.

Conspiracy nuts aside, if this were happening, it'd be all over the media.

Bev Hamilton

 

[idontknow]

dianna112198, I think it was $30 to stay until 3pm. I could be wrong though, but it was "about" that much for "about" that time.

As for the water, I figure it is just my system that will not tolerate that much of a change in water. Nothing against the water supplier, it's just my system. It doesn't matter where we go on vacation any more, I always drink bottled water, not just at Disney.

 

[phillybeth]

Ever since I was little, I get diarrhea on the third day of vacation. Happens every time, no matter where I am. I could tell you a story about me, the Tom Sawyer Rafts, and Kaopectate from a trip in '76 but I will skip it.
Some peoples' systems are just more sensitve to a change in water. Mineral contents, water hardness etc vary and that is what causes it. No viruses, no cryptosporidium, no giardia, no bacteria.