Estonia, Markets and Companies, Tourism, Water

"This outcome is positively surprising, since a consumer survey carried out a little earlier showed that offer of tap water is not yet so widespread according to customers," Tallinna Vesi spokesperson Eliis Vennik said commenting on the outcome of the telephone poll covering 60 eating places.

The survey indicates that customers have become increasingly confident about asking for tap water and a big portion of cafes and restaurants are pleased to serve it to their clients, Vennik said.

"Eating places that offer no tap water at all have become an exception by now," she added.

Vennik said that where in most cases tap water was offered for free, some cafes and restaurants charged money for tap water citing extras such as lemon, peppermint leaves or ice added to the water.

"In any event, we are pleased that eating places and their clients alike prefer a more environment friendly alternative to bottled water," Vennik said.

A survey of customers of cafes and restaurants conducted by Tallinna Vesi in spring this year revealed that 70% of the respondents prefer tap water to bottled water when eating out. The online survey that covered more than 1,200 respondents also indicates that even though customers prefer tap water, its offer in cafes and restaurants is still not widespread.

According to almost half of the patrons of cafes and restaurants interviewed, tap water is not available in cafes and restaurants.

At locations where tap water is available to customers it is mostly offered for free.

In the telephone survey of cafes and restaurants, 60 eating places of Tallinn were interviewed.

Tallinna Vesi has conducted campaigns to promote the drinking of tap water also earlier and the percentage of people who drink tap water has been growing year after year. Where in 2011 48% of residents of Tallinn drank tap water, in 2016 this ratio had gown to 80%.