Common Spanish Phrases for Travelers

Spanish is spoken in a number of countries, including Argentina, Colombia, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Peru, Spain, and Venezuela. Spanish is spoken by over 300 million people worldwide. In the United States, Spanish is usually spoken in Miami, Los Angeles, New York and in the state of New Mexico Spanish is used officially as a second language. If you are planning to a trip to Spain, Mexico or any other Spanish-speaking country for business or holiday, then you’ll certainly need to know these common Spanish phrases and sentences to communicate with ease.
This article includes a table of: Spanish words and common phrases. It will lend a hand if you want a quick translation when chatting in Spanish! Most of the phrases in this article are used for daily life conversations, so they might come handy if you remember them.

Spanish-speaking countries are exceptionally polite and you should always be courteous and greet “hello” and “how are you. We’ll also illustrate how to greet and farewell in Spanish. If you want to ask someone how they are, or what they are up to lately, we’ll also show how to welcome someone in Spanish, or how to say sorry, and numerous other important phrases.

• Good morning – Buenos días (bway nos dee ahs)
• Good afternoon – Buenas tardes (bway nahs tar days)
• Good evening – Buenas noches (bway nahs noh chayss)
• Qué hay (de nuevo)? – What’s up?
• Qué pasa? – How’s it going?
• Hola (oh lah) is “hi” and you can say that with people you know.
• ¿Cómo está? (coh moh es tah) is “how are you?” if you don’t know someone and ¿Cómo estás? (coh moh  es tahs) if you do know them.
• If they ask you how you are, you can say “good, thank you” – “bien, gracias” (bee ayn, grah cee ahs).
• Please – Por favor (por fah vohr) – and Thank you – Gracias (grah cee ahs).  These are VERY IMPORTANT words in Spanish.
• When you are introduced to someone, you say “Mucho gusto” (moo choh goos toh) means, “nice to meet you.”
• ¿Habla inglés? (ahblah een glays)? – Do you speak English?
• In traditional Spanish, if you are sorry, simply say “siento”. If you are just being polite for interrupting then say “¡perdone!
• Excuse me – Disculpe
• Where’s the bathroom? – ¿Dónde está el baño?
• Of course – Por supuesto
• I don’t like it – No me gusta
• We like it – Nos gusta
• There’s a mistake – Hay un error
• Now – Ahora
• Today/tomorrow/next week – Hoy/mańana/la semana próxima
• Help!/Stop!/Go away! – ˇSocorro!/ˇPare!/ˇVáyase!
• Where is….? – żDónde está…?
• Perfect – Perfecto
• I don’t need that – No necesito eso
• It’s too expensive – Es demasiado caro
• Looking for a hotel
  1. Can you recommend a good, cheap hotel around here? – żMe puede recomendar un hotel bueno y barato por aquí?
  2. Is there a hostel nearby? – żHay un hostal cerca de aquí?
  3. I’d like to book a room for 4 nights, please. – Quisiera reservar una habitación por 4 noches, por favor.
  4. Do you have a single room? – żTiene una habitación sencilla?
• General phrases related to FOOD/EATING
  1. I’m very hungry. – Tengo mucha hambre.
  2. I’m thirsty. – Tengo sed.
  3. I feel like drinking coffee. – Tengo ganas de tomar un café/ Se me antoja un café.
  4. I’m full. – Estoy satisfecho/bien.
  5. We’re not hungry. – No tenemos hambre.
  6. Do you have anything to drink? – ¿Tiene algo a tomar?
  7. Is there a cafe near here? – ¿Hay un café/una cafetería cerca de aquí?
  8. Can you recommend a good vegetarian restaurant? – ¿Me puede recomendar un buen restaurante vegetariano?
• Asking for directions
  1. Is there a supermarket nearby? – żHay un supermercado por aquí?
  2. Is there a bank around here? – żHay un banco por aquí?
  3. Is it far from here? – żEstá lejos de aquí?
  4. I’m looking for this street. – Busco esta calle.
  5. How far is it? – żA qué distancia está?
• Saying Goodbye in Spanish
  1. Adiós – Bye
  2. Despidido – Farewell
  3. Nos vemos – See you
  4. Hasta luego – See you later
  5. Hasta la proximo – See you next time
  6. Cuidate – Take care

Don’t just read the common Spanish phrases if you want to be proficient then pronounce them, out loud! These common Spanish phrases are the most essential, the most common Spanish travel phrases that will help you to get your point across.