10 FRENCH TRAVEL PHRASES
You’re probably thinking, Hailey… isn’t that what Google translate is for? And I would say to you, my friend, GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF YOUR BUTT or maybe LOOK UP FROM YOUR PHONE would’ve been a little more appropriate. oops.
People think Americans are obnoxious when they travel, because…well… we sometimes are!!! When traveling in another country, I firmly believe that you should do your homework and learn some of the pleasantries. This way when you walk into a restaurant you don’t have to play the sign language game OR WORSE get a french scoff from the waiter who says stupid American under their breath as they walk away. People often think the French are rude, but let’s do OUR part and take a look inward first. By learning these phrases you will no longer come off as rude to them, and then they will return the favor and then everyone can be friends and we can all live happily ever after OK? Cool, let’s do this.
PS idk how to spell phonetically (I tried, and failed miserably) just watch the videos for the pronunciations K thanks!!!
Bonjour VS Bonsoir: This will be your most common way to say hello in France. During the day you’ll use bonjour (good day), and later in the afternoon/ when the sun goes down bonsoir (good evening). That’s not so hard, right!?
Oui & Non: This one’s easy. Oui means yes (you’ve probably heard oui oui when someones impersonating a french guy, right?) and non means no. Now just because they spoke in English to you, doesn’t mean you can’t respond in French right!? For example, “Would you like more water?” you can say oui! Very simple, but it gives you street cred trust me.
S’il vous plaît: If nothing else, you gotta know this one. Like write it on the back of your hand or something! (Pronounced see-voo-play) It means please and can be added to anything english sentence you say. “I would like the soup, s’il vous plaît” “One ticket for the Louvre, s’il vous plaît” “More wine, s’il vous plaît” “Fall in love with me cute french boy, s’il vous plaît” Get the picture? To someone more familiar you would say s’il te plaît, but let’s just stick with the basics.
Merci/ merci beaucoup! (mer-see/mer-see-bow-coo) This means thank you. If I even have to tell you why this would be important, I’m not sure we can be friends anymore.
Où est: Where is… (ooo ayyy). Probably most important phrase you’ll need this for is “Où est les toilettes?” (Where is the bathroom?). But I’ll just give you a heads up, if you’re in Paris it’s 99.9999999% of the time down the stairs.
Excusez-moi (excuse-ay-mwa) You can use this to get someone’s attention, like the waiter at a restaurant! It just means, excuse me!
Parlez-vous anglais? (par-lay-voo-on-glay) This means, do you speak English? If you’re in Paris, chances are they do… and now they’ll be more likely to help you!
Je ne comprends pas: Okay we’re getting a little more advanced with this one, but I thought why not you guys are smartie pants! (Je-ne-com-prun-pa) means I don’t understand. Which as you can imagine, in a foreign country you probably won’t understand lol. But you can combine this with the above phrase to say: I don’t understand, do you speak English?
L’addition/ l’addition s’il vous plaît: Check, please! After you’ve enjoyed every last bite of that amazing french cuisine, why not ask for the check in French? This one is a no-brainer. Even if you botch the pronunciation, the waiter will know what you mean because it’s the end of the meal! And quick FYI— you have to ask for the check in France. They won’t just come drop it by, because they don’t want you to feel rushed.
Je t’aime: Honey, we’re in the city of love. And I’m just putting this out in the universe, maybe you’ll find the love of your life. In which case, je t’aime (je-teme) will come in handy. It means I love you. I’m crossing my fingers for ya!
Now I’m not expecting you to transform into a stripe-wearing, cigarette-smoking, baguette-holding frenchie here, all I’m asking you to do is try!!! S’il vous plaît!!!!