In most big cities, the water is safe when it leaves the treatment plant, but old pipes can add contaminants before it reaches your tap. Almost nobody drinks it straight anyway — people either boil it first or use a filter.

Hotels always provide bottled water. If you're traveling, just stick to bottled water — it's cheap and you can buy it anywhere.

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This question actually has two parts: is the water safe when it leaves the treatment plant, and does it stay safe traveling through the pipes to your tap?

In modern Chinese cities, the water treatment plants meet international standards — the water is safe when it leaves the plant. The problem is the pipes. Many cities still have pipes that were installed decades ago, and old iron pipes can rust and leach heavy metals into the water. So by the time it reaches your tap, it might not be safe to drink directly.

That's why Chinese households have the habit of boiling water before drinking it — boiling kills any bacteria, and it's the simplest way to make water safe. These days, more and more homes are installing water filters directly on the tap, so you can drink filtered water straight from the tap.

For travelers, the answer is simple: