Short and sweet – 10 phrases you should try to learn in the language before you travel.
Even if you don’t use all of them, or people understand another language you can speak (most places have many people who can speak English now) it’s always a good idea – and makes you seem more willing to learn – if you know a few words of the language.
Especially if you’re backpacking and visiting a lot of countries in short succession, you don’t have time to learn much of the local language before moving on. Having a list of a few phrases is therefore really beneficial to be able to chat, be a bit more friendly and absorb some more of the culture.
- Thank you
- Hello
- How much (does this cost)?
- The bill, please.
- I’m lost, can you show me where _____ is?
- Goodbye
- I have a reservation.
- Do you speak English?
- I would like a ticket for ____.
- I’m travelling for _________ and I live in ______.
Although number ten is not as necessary to get around, it’s often nice to be able to converse a little and explain where you’re from – especially if their knowledge of another language you speak is limited. Learning a language – or at least a few words – can show the people in the country you’re visiting that you really do want to immerse yourself in the culture. This can really help, and once you get chatting to the locals you can ask for tips on local food, local bars etc which are often cheaper and more authentic than the tourist restaurants.
The rest are fairly self explanatory, and it’s also a good idea to learn some numbers. If, for example, you’re travelling as a two, learning the number two can be really useful for asking for tables in restaurants and booking trips.
To translate these phrases, there are loads of translation apps you can get, for translating into Spanish I would highly recommend SpanishDictionary.com | English to Spanish Translation, Dictionary, Translator.
Happy travels!
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