SA has one of the best dunnies in the world: Eyre Peninsula town flushed with success in World Toilet Tourism Awards

A SMALL South Australian country town is hoping its appeal to tourists is in the toilet — after its public loo was hailed as Number One in its category in the International Toilet Tourism Awards. Find out why it’s so fabulous!

Inside Cummins’ top toilet.

A HUMBLE dunny at Cummins is flushed with success after being named among the 2018 International Toilet Tourism Award winners.

The public loo in the Eyre Peninsula town has been honoured along with a James Bond-themed lavatory in Switzerland, a WC that makes guests feel they are in a forest in Canada and a rest room with a view of the ocean in California.

The awards are the brainchild of the mytravelresearch.com site and in their second year attracted 30 entries.

The Cummins Mosaic Loo was among the six winners, the throne room taking the crown for the Best Economic Contributor after the community “turned a bland red brick toilet block into a public loo with personality”.

The Cummins Mosaic Group outside their humble toilet block — Judy Hurrell, Wendy Holman, Yvonne Laube, Liz Slater, Barb Fuller and Josie Hammond.

“Due to word of mouth, tourists now seek out the rest rooms which feature statues, mosaics and paintings reflecting a more genteel bygone era from the early 20th century,” the citation reads. “Local businesses now benefit from passers by stopping to visit the old-fashioned themed rest rooms in the centre of town.”

The Cummins Mosaic Group formed after Port Lincoln artist Karen Carr was engaged by the local school to work with students and the Cummins District Community Bank provided a grant with a requirement a community project was part of the program.

The women in the mosaic group then formed the Cummins Loo Improvement Group.

Karen Carr with Dulcie and Chook outside the toilet block.

Even the exterior of the toilet has a unique and humorous touch.

Spokeswoman Wendy Holman said the project to beautify the toilet block in the Railway Triangle Park aimed to reflect the area’s railway heritage.

“We heard about the awards by chance and are simply blown away to win — to be in the company of entrants from places like California, Kansas and Canada is incredible,” she said.

“We put mosaics outside, then inside made improvements like mosaic mirrors, named the cubicles after railway sidings and put up historic pictures that reflect our railway heritage.”

As well as mosaics of depicting the old railway station tea rooms and ticket office, a dog relieving itself and other artwork, the piece de resistance is a mosaic statue of “Dulcie” and “Chook” who appear to be waiting with suitcases for a train outside after finding relief inside.

The three ladies’ cubicles, two male cubicles and urinal may be a good place for contemplation but Ms Holman said visitors should not expect a transformative experience.

“It just an ordinary toilet that we’ve decorated — but we really are blown away to have been recognised for doing it,” she said.

OTHER TOP TOILETS

Best Design — Saskatchewan Science Centre, Canada, with its floor to ceiling visuals of the deep forest and audio of birdsong and woodland sounds.

Best Location — Hotel La Jolla, California, on the 11th floor giving view of the coastal village of La Jolla and the Pacific Ocean.

Best Accessible — Brisbane Airport with features including a dedicated adult changing place for people with disabilities and an indoor loo for guide dogs.

Quirkiest — Bowl Plaza, Lucas, Kansas, shaped like a toilet tank with a raised lid as entrance, benches like a curved toilet seats and loads of bling.

Overall Winner — James Bond Loos at the top at Mt Schilthorn in Switzerland, the site used as Blofeld’s Lair in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Bond girl Diana Rigg appears in the mirror when men wash their hands, signs remind men to “shake, don’t stir” and “aim like James”, while the ladies’ loo has music, an image of James appearing by bullet holes as shots ring out and audio of him saying “Tonight, my place — just the two of us”.