Tourists are blown away by many things when visiting New Zealand such as our vast, untouched landscapes, laid-back Kiwi attitude and delicious pies.  

However, one American tourist who recently visited Aotearoa was moved by something you wouldn’t see in a 100% Pure New Zealand tourism advertisement; our bathrooms.  

“You guys have awesome ideas that I’m going to install back home!!” the tourist wrote on a Reddit page dedicated to New Zealand.  

The enthusiastic American proceeded to describe three things they loved about New Zealand loos.  

First was a heated towel rack, which they described as “insane!!!”.  

Having never used or seen one before, they said it felt so awesome they “couldn’t wait to take a shower just to use a nice warm towel”. Thanks to the towel racks, every towel felt like it came right out of the dryer, they added.  

Second were heated toilet seats.  

New Zealand’s winters weren’t nearly as bad as winter in the Northern US, the American said, but Kiwis were on to something with their fancy toilet seats. “I’m going to get one of these,” they wrote, wondering aloud how it wasn’t yet a norm in the US.  

The final element of bathroom design they adored was the heaters in the bathroom.  

“Everytime I go to the bathroom the tiles are freezing,” the American complained, adding that “a nice heater in the bathroom was awesome to use” in New Zealand.  

The visitor knew their excitement was probably confusing to Kiwis who would consider these things “pretty normal” but said they thought the ideas were “awesome”.  

Within hours, the post had more than 350 likes and 165 comments, as people responded to the unusual praise.  

One Kiwi was quick to reply to the excited American and ensure they didn’t return home with incorrect assumptions about Aotearoa’s toilet scene.  

“Heated towel rails are quite common, heaters in bathrooms less common and heated toilet seats aren’t very common at all,” they clarified.  

The tourist might have encountered the fancy warm seats in AirBnbs that want to impress guests but they certainly weren’t the norm in Kiwi houses, they added.  

“Never even heard of a heated toilet seat until reading this,” another person added, while another joked that a “Heated toilet seat in NZ means your son used the loo before you and spent an hour on his phone”.  

The American confirmed they had stayed in AirBnbs in the North and South islands, but wasn’t bothered as the heated towel racks were their favourite part.  

One person pointed out that heated towel rails weren’t a New Zealand speciality; lots of countries have them.  

“I think it’s funny that a lot of Americans don’t realise they’re the odd ones out with a bunch of things,” they commented.  

Many people added that the towel racks weren’t for comfort but for practicality.  

“Heated towel rails are the norm because it’s the only way towels ever dry, especially in the winter,” one person explained, with others agreeing they only switch on their rails when the towels need to dry.  

Regarding bathroom heaters, one Kiwi said they have lived in antiquated houses, hostels and “dingy student flats” and every place had one.  

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bathroom without a heater, to the point where I thought it must be part of the building standard,” they wrote.