Best Phrases

[adeleinthesea]

When visiting a country where you aren't familiar with their language, what are all the phrases you should know before going there? I thought about "where is the bathroom" "how to I get to the ____" but I'd like to be fully prepared here.

What should every tourist know in a foreign country? And what is the best way to learn it?

[JessiFox]

I think anything you'd want to be able to communicate, both in an emergency and in frequent expected use, should be considered. Consider different emergencies, medical, legal, etc. and what you would need in order to navigate those...perhaps you're lost and need to know a few key locations and directional phrases. Perhaps you want to know more about something or how to get somewhere. I just try to run through the scenarios in my head and prepare for 1. the most likely to happen a good bit. and 2. the most crucial in case of unexpected events.

[whatupswags]

Definitely learn how to say, "I would like..." because it is so much more polite when ordering food or just talking to someone in general. I usually tell my visiting friends (coming to France) that if they can key in on these 5 main sayings, they can survive just fine because these open the door to the locals.

1) Hello - Bonjour

2) Please - S'il vous plait

3) Thank you - Merci

4) Do you speak English? - Parlez-vous anglais?

5) Goodbye - Au revoir

Obviously, this is super basic, but the foundation of what you must absolutely have is here. From this you build up!

[leahcim132]

If I was in a foreign country, I would learn the following:

-Where is the washroom

-Thank you

-Where is the nearest Mcdonalds .

[Beverly]

My parents only care about 'bargain?' . Somehow they have it in their mind that other countries will let you bargain when you want to buy stuffs so..

I always ask if they speak English first .I personally think it's important to learn 'where is.....'  .'Thank You'. I mostly try to find one word such as 'Taxi?' so they know right away if I want a taxi and will point me where to go to get a taxi. 'Airport' is another one.

[ghanashyam]

I would learn how to convey this message.

1. Do you speak English.

2 I want the help.

3 I am not feeling well.

4. Can I contact my hotel on your cell phone?

[LauraM]

I agree with previous comments on this thread.  The basics, dealing with daily life -- greetings, emergency directions, etc. are all essential since we never know what we might encounter.

To make sure I had the basics covered, I would get a phrase book for travelers and study it ahead of time.  They are available in most of the major languages.  In the days before Kindle and other eBook formats, you could get these in very small paperbacks, some as small as a wallet.  I always found them very helpful even if I wasn't traveling just because they were so handy.  These days you can get such phrase books on Kindle, iPad, etc. as well as your mobile phone.

[Rosa]

I think the basic things would be most important. So knowing how to greet and other courtesies would be the first thing. Then asking for the location of important places like the hospital, the embassy,police station and library would follow.

[Baburra]

I think any of the basic ones would be good enough as long as you are able to somehow act the rest out. I'd say questions like "where?" or "how much?" are probably the most important ones, and also maybe "thank you" for after they put up with communicating with a foreigner.  :grin: