From Iceland — Icelandic Bottle Water: Cheaper In Thailand Than In Iceland

Icelandic Bottle Water: Cheaper In Thailand Than In Iceland

Published March 30, 2016

Andie Sophia Fontaine
Photo by
Paul Fontaine

For some mysterious reason, Icelandic bottled water can be had in Thailand for half the price it goes for in Iceland itself.

The matter was brought to light by Guðmundur Sigurðsson, who posted two photos of Iceland Spring water – one from Iceland, and the other from Thailand.

As Guðmundur shows, the bottled water sold in Iceland goes for 349 ISK. The exact same bottle sold at a McDonald’s in Thailand, however, goes for 45 Baht – about 160 ISK.

“The price for a bottle of water is cut by more than half if it travels halfway around the world,” Guðmundur wrote.

Reporters reached out to Ölgerðin, the company which bottles the water, to comment on the matter, but have yet to receive a response. The reason for the price difference remains a mystery for now.

However, it bears pointing out once again that you do not need bottled water in Iceland. Iceland actually ranks second in the world in the Environmental Performance Index, receiving a perfect score of 100 in terms of water quality itself.

As such, there is no need to buy bottled water in Iceland, unless you have no access to tap water, are staying someplace with faulty plumbing, or you just happen to really enjoy drinking water out of a plastic bottle.

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