Parading the streets during the Mardi Gras festival and nowhere to pee? The gods of “crapitalists” can make life easier for the desperate! Two New Orleanians have developed a web-based application called Airpnp similar to the popular holiday rental website Airbnb. Instead of renting cozy accommodation, people can rent out their lavatories.

 

The quirky idea is the brainchild of Max Gaudin and Travis Laurendine, who call themselves “entrepeeneurs” and had regularly faced problems to ‘legally urinate’ during the festivities. The parade involves heavy drinking among other things because of which people had to resort to public urination which could land them in the Orleans Parish Prison for a weekend.

 

 Highlights of the Toilet app:

• Nature calls can be sorted for as low as five dollars or less.
• Users can select from pictures posted on the site which also give details of description of amenities.
• Users can rate their ‘experience’ and leave testimonies so that “others can see how each restroom stacks up.” (your ‘potty’ jokes can really come alive now! )

 

The idea has become very popular in a really short time. Apart from New Orleans there are restrooms providing the service all over Europe, one in Iran, Northwest Canada, Australia and Taiwan.

Two restrooms in south India are also listed on the map. With no penalty on public pee-ers in India, don’t we really hope this concept catches up in our country? Who really likes a ‘free stink experience’ while walking down the street!