When you travel in Spanish, a small set of words carries you a long way: the transport (tren, autobús, avión, taxi), the places you head for (estación, aeropuerto, hotel, mercado), and the directions that get you there (izquierda, derecha, cerca, lejos). Learn the list below, with audio, and you can find your way, ask where something is, and catch the right bus. Start with 60 phrases with audio, recall practice, or the free PDF.
The travel words
This is the getting-around slice of Vocabcord's A1 Spanish set: how you travel, where you go, and which way to turn. Tap the play button on any row to hear it.
| Spanish | English | In a sentence |
|---|---|---|
| coche | car | My car is blue. |
| autobús | bus | The bus is late. |
| tren | train | The train arrives at noon. |
| avión | plane | We took a plane. |
| bicicleta | bicycle | I ride a bicycle. |
| taxi | taxi | Call me a taxi. |
| calle | street | A quiet street. |
| ciudad | city | I love this city. |
| pueblo | town | A small town. |
| país | country | What country are you from? |
| tienda | store | The store closes at nine. |
| mercado | market | Fresh fish at the market. |
| parque | park | Walk in the park. |
| biblioteca | library | Quiet in the library. |
| estación | station | The train station is busy. |
| aeropuerto | airport | Meet me at the airport. |
| hotel | hotel | Our hotel is nice. |
| aquí | here | Come here. |
| allí | there | Look over there. |
| cerca | near | Near the river. |
| lejos | far | It's not far. |
| izquierda | left | Turn left at the corner. |
| derecha | right | Take the first right. |
| arriba | up | Look up at the sky. |
| abajo | down | Sit down here. |
| mar | sea | Swim in the sea. |
| montaña | mountain | A high mountain. |
| playa | beach | A sandy beach. |
Asking the way: left, right, near, far
To ask where something is, pair these words with ¿Dónde está...? (where is...?): ¿Dónde está la estación? Then listen for the answer. A la derecha is to the right, a la izquierda to the left, todo recto straight on. Cerca means it is close, lejos that you have a walk ahead. And aquí (here) and allí (there) do a lot of quiet work when you can point.
Catching the bus: coger or tomar?
To say you take or catch a form of transport, Spain reaches for coger: coger el tren, coger el autobús. Take care with that verb in much of Latin America, where coger is vulgar slang; there the safe, neutral choice is tomar, as in tomar el autobús. Gender matters here as well: el tren and el avión are masculine, while la bicicleta is feminine. For the words around the trip itself, the driver, the platform, the ticket office, and for exactly which preposition goes with which vehicle, see our guide to transport in Spanish, including how to say by car or by train in Spanish.
Where are you headed?
The big-picture words frame any trip. A ciudad is a city, a pueblo a small town, a país a whole country. And the classic holiday choices line up neatly: playa for the beach, montaña for the mountains, mar for the sea itself.
Front-load the ones you will need first
Before a trip, the words worth drilling are the ones that get you from the plane to your bed: estación, taxi, hotel, and a la derecha. Learn those cold and the rest can fill in once you arrive, when every sign, announcement, and overheard direction turns into free practice. Travel vocabulary is unusual that way, because the place itself does most of the teaching.
Useful Spanish phrases for travel
These practical phrases come from Vocabcord’s Spanish 500 collection. The collection leans toward European Spanish and calls out regional choices where they matter. Many phrases use polite forms that work well with a stranger. Tap the play button beside a phrase to hear its pronunciation.
Download the free phrasebook (PDF)
Save the phrase list, practice prompts and answer key for offline use. Listen to each phrase below.
When you need a little help
| Spanish | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| No entiendo. | I don't understand. | |
| ¿Habla inglés? | Do you speak English? | Usted form, used for polite or formal address. |
| Perdone, mi español no es muy bueno. | Sorry, my Spanish isn't very good. | |
| Más despacio, por favor. | Slower, please. | |
| ¿Puede repetir, por favor? | Could you say that again, please? | |
| ¿Me lo puede escribir? | Can you write that down for me? | |
| ¿Cómo? | Sorry? | The polite way to ask someone to repeat; ¿qué? on its own sounds curt. |
| Lo siento, no le he entendido. | Sorry, I didn't catch that. |
Finding your way and taking transport
| Spanish | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ¿Dónde está la parada del autobús? | Where's the bus stop? | |
| ¿Cómo llego al centro? | How do I get to the city centre? | |
| ¿Está lejos? | Is it far? | |
| ¿Se puede ir andando? | Can I walk there? | Andando is Spain; caminando is what you hear across Latin America. |
| Todo recto. | Straight ahead. | Spain says recto; Latin America says derecho, which a Spaniard hears as the right-hand side. |
| A la derecha. | On the right. | |
| A la izquierda. | On the left. | |
| ¿Este autobús va al aeropuerto? | Does this bus go to the airport? | |
| ¿Dónde tengo que bajarme? | Where do I get off? | |
| Un billete sencillo, por favor. | A single ticket, please. | Billete is Spain; boleto or pasaje in Latin America. |
| ¿Cuánto cuesta el billete? | How much is the ticket? | |
| ¿A qué hora sale el próximo tren? | What time is the next train? | |
| ¿De qué andén sale? | Which platform does it leave from? | Vía on the departures board means the same thing. |
| ¿Dónde puedo coger un taxi? | Where can I get a taxi? | Coger is everyday Spain. In Mexico, Argentina and much of Latin America it is obscene; say tomar there. |
| Al aeropuerto, por favor. | To the airport, please. | |
| Me he perdido. | I'm lost. | |
| ¿Puede enseñármelo en el mapa? | Can you show me on the map? |
Checking in and sorting out your room
| Spanish | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Tengo una reserva a nombre de Kowalski. | I have a booking under Kowalski. | |
| ¿Tiene habitaciones libres? | Do you have any rooms? | |
| Una habitación doble para dos noches. | A double room for two nights. | |
| ¿Cuánto cuesta la noche? | How much is it per night? | |
| ¿El desayuno está incluido? | Is breakfast included? | |
| ¿A qué hora hay que dejar la habitación? | What time is check-out? | |
| ¿Puedo dejar la maleta aquí? | Can I leave my suitcase here? | |
| ¿Me da otra llave? | Could I have another key? | |
| No funciona el aire acondicionado. | The air conditioning isn't working. | |
| No hay agua caliente. | There's no hot water. | |
| ¿Puedo pagar ahora? | Can I pay now? | |
| ¿Me puede pedir un taxi? | Could you call me a taxi? |
Ordering food and asking for the bill
| Spanish | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Una mesa para dos, por favor. | A table for two, please. | |
| La carta, por favor. | The menu, please. | Carta asks for the list of dishes. Menú can mean a set meal or the menu itself; menú del día is the set daily offering. |
| ¿Qué me recomienda? | What do you recommend? | |
| ¿Qué lleva este plato? | What's in this dish? | |
| Soy vegetariano. | I'm vegetarian. | Vegetariana if you are a woman. |
| Agua con gas, por favor. | Sparkling water, please. | |
| Un café con leche, por favor. | A white coffee, please. | |
| ¿Me trae la cuenta, por favor? | Could I have the bill, please? | A polite way to ask for the bill when you are ready to pay. |
| ¿Podemos pagar por separado? | Can we pay separately? | |
| ¿Dónde está el baño? | Where's the toilet? | Servicios or aseos on signs in Spain; baño is understood everywhere. |
| ¿Se puede pagar con tarjeta? | Do you take cards? | |
| Para llevar, por favor. | To take away, please. | |
| ¿Tienen algo sin carne? | Do you have anything without meat? | |
| ¿Me pone un vaso de agua del grifo? | Could I get a glass of tap water? | Free by law in Spain; poner is the bar verb for serving anything. |
Paying and getting what you need
| Spanish | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ¿Cuánto cuesta? | How much is it? | |
| ¿Cuánto es? | How much is that? | For the total at the till; ¿cuánto cuesta? for a single item you are holding. |
| ¿Con tarjeta o en efectivo? | Card or cash? | |
| Con tarjeta, por favor. | Card, please. | |
| ¿Puedo pagar con el móvil? | Can I pay with my phone? | |
| Solo aceptamos efectivo. | Cash only. | |
| Medio kilo de esto. | Half a kilo of this. | |
| ¿Dónde hay un cajero? | Where's a cash machine? | |
| El cajero no me ha devuelto la tarjeta. | The cash machine kept my card. |
Try it from memory
Read each situation, say a Spanish response aloud, then reveal one possible answer. More than one phrase may work in a real conversation.
You did not catch what someone said. Ask them to repeat it, please.
Reveal a model answer
Ask how to get to the city centre.
Reveal a model answer
Ask whether this bus goes to the airport.
Reveal a model answer
Tell the hotel receptionist you have a booking under Kowalski.
Reveal a model answer
Ask whether breakfast is included.
Reveal a model answer
Ask for the bill politely.
Reveal a model answer
Ask whether you can pay by card.
Reveal a model answer
Ask where the nearest cash machine is.
Reveal a model answer
The phrase list leans toward European Spanish and includes regional notes. For example, billete is usual in Spain; boleto or pasaje is common in parts of Latin America. In Spain, coger is ordinary for catching transport; in much of Latin America, tomar is the safer choice.
Explore all 500 Spanish phrases or read the restaurant ordering guide.
Common questions
How do you ask where something is in Spanish?
Use ¿Dónde está...? followed by the place, as in ¿Dónde está el hotel? (where is the hotel?) or ¿Dónde está la estación? (where is the station?).
How do you say left and right in Spanish?
Left is izquierda and right is derecha. To give or follow directions you usually add a la: a la izquierda (to the left), a la derecha (to the right).
Is it coger or tomar el autobús?
In Spain, coger el autobús is the everyday way to say catch the bus. In much of Latin America coger is vulgar, so tomar el autobús is the safer choice there. Both mean to take the bus.
How do you say the airport and the train station in Spanish?
The airport is el aeropuerto and the station is la estación (you can say la estación de tren to be specific). Note the genders: el aeropuerto but la estación.
