Essential Spanish Phrases for Travelers

Spanish is an official language in around 20 countries, making it one of the single most practically useful languages to know a few phrases of while travelling.

Greetings and politeness

Hola (hello), buenos días (good morning), por favor (please), gracias (thank you), perdón (excuse me/sorry) — small courtesies genuinely appreciated when travelling.

The tú/usted distinction while travelling

Default to formal usted with strangers, service staff, and anyone older or in a professional context, particularly in more formal Latin American settings, as covered in more detail in our common mistakes article — using casual tú with someone you should address formally can come across as overly familiar.

Getting around

¿Dónde está...? (where is...?), ¿cuánto cuesta? (how much does it cost?), izquierda / derecha (left / right) — practical navigation phrases.

Dining

Una mesa para dos, por favor (a table for two, please), la cuenta, por favor (the bill, please), está delicioso (it's delicious) — useful, appreciated phrases in restaurants.

Emergencies and help

¿Puede ayudarme? (can you help me?), no entiendo (I don't understand), ¿habla inglés? (do you speak English?) — practical fallback phrases.

A note on regional variation for travel specifically

As covered in more detail in our regional variation article, vocabulary and even some common phrases can shift between Spain and different Latin American countries — a standard dictionary gives a strong foundation broadly understood everywhere, with regional specifics to pick up naturally once travelling in a specific area.

A practical pre-trip habit

Look up and practice the phrases you know you'll actually need — check-in, dining, directions — and download your dictionary app before you travel so it works offline once you land.

Look up any Spanish word or phrase instantly, offline, with English Spanish Dictionary →