Have you ever seen a female urinal?

If you’re a woman, the idea of being able to empty your bladder standing up might be appealing. Imagine no longer having to wait in long lines to use the bathroom. Especially at festivals!

It might surprise you to know that there are urinals for women to be found around the world. But they are far from mainstream just yet.

The Quest for the Female Urinal

Since the 1990s, designers have been finding ways to help women go to the bathroom without having to sit.

In the healthcare industry, there are a number of devices that help medically compromised women empty their bladders without the need to stand and sit and stand again. Female hikers and backpackers have used similar devices to pee more easily when outside all the time.

Whatever the case, the discreet and portable female urinal is more common than the actual urinal we think of when it comes to men. They are out there though.

China and Malaysia

Right now in the United States, you’d be pretty hard-pressed to find a female urinal at festivals or any other public place. Yet in China, certain festivals provide standard female urinals.

In Malaysia, a company developed a highly useful and even attractive female urinal concept that could be incorporated into public bathrooms there. But this was in the mid-1990s and it just didn’t take off.

Even in Europe, there is a prototype for a women’s urinal installed at a German university. It includes a cubicle with a door and is similar to a men’s urinal, only lower. The female user has her back to the wall and kneels down in a skiers position.

And in Italy, there are female urinals that include a design with the whimsical name “Girly.”

The Latest Configuration

It seems that the female urinal has been slow to be embraced. But that could soon change.

The architect Gina Périer recently debuted a new female urinal called LaPee. It’s a female toilet designed specifically for festivals and outdoor events.

LaPee is a pink plastic structure that allows women to pee sitting down quickly and safely. There are three urinals with no doors arranged in a spiral with curving backrests that enable women to relieve themselves while staying aware of their surroundings. The walls are designed to cover the lower half of a woman’s body.

And because it’s designed to meet industrial standards for cleaning, it can be treated the same way as men’s portable urinal systems. This makes it an exciting option for event planners.

Is a Female Urinal Revolution on the Horizon?

It’s tough to say at this point. But there’s movement in that direction. So it’s possible you may see one at the next festival you attend.

Be on the lookout. You may soon be saying good-bye to long bathroom lines. Until then though, keep that portable female urinal nearby.

And for more fascinating stories and articles, keep checking back with us!