How to Use Spanish When Asking for Directions

It's difficult to get around in a Spanish city when you don't know the language. Asking directions is a key activity in such a situation. Following are some simple phrases you can use, followed by phonetic spelling, in parentheses, to help you approximate accurate Spanish sounds. Where the phonetic spelling is in capital letters, that indicates where you should stress the word more as you say it.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Start with the all-purpose phrase, "Where is … ?" by saying "¿Dónde está …?" (DOHN-day eh-STAH). You can then follow that phrase with a variety of things, such as THE GAS STATION-LA GASOLINERA (lah gah-soh-lee-NAY-rah); THE BANK-EL BANCO (ehl BAHN-koh); THE POST OFFICE-EL CORREO (ehl koh-RRAY-oh); THE BARBER/HAIRDRESSER-LA PELUQUERÍA (lah pay-loo-kay-REE-ah); THE SUBWAY-EL METRO (ehl MEH-troh); THE BUS STOP-LA PARADA DE AUTOBÚS (lah pah-RAH-dah day out-oh-BOOS); THE BOOKSTORE-LA LIBRERÍA (lah lee-bray-REE-ah).

2. Ask where a street is by using "¿Dónde está la calle (name)?" (DOHN-day eh-STAH lah CAH-yay). You can also say that you're looking for a street by saying "Busco la calle (name)" (BOO-skoh lah CAH-yay).

3. Discover if someplace is close by saying "¿Está cerca?" (eh-STAH SARE-kah). Ask if it's far away by saying "¿Está lejos?" (eh-STAH LAY-hos). Distance is always a concern when trying to get from one place to another.

4. Determine if you should go to the left by saying "¿Voy a la izquierda?" (boy ah lah ees-kee-AIR-dah). Ask if you should go to the right by saying "¿Voy a la derecha?" (boy ah lah day-RAY-cha). Ask if you should go straight by asking "¿Voy recto?" (boy REHK-toh).

5. Find out "How do I get to (place)?" by saying "¿Cómo se llega a …?" (KOH-moh say YAY-gah ah). Ask if it's up the street by saying "¿Calle arriba?" (CAH-yay ah-RREE-bah) or if it's down the street by saying "¿Calle abajo?" (CAH-yay ah-BAH-ho).

6. Verify how far away something is by saying "¿A cuánta distancia está?" (ah KWAHN-tah dee-STAHN-see-ah eh-STAH). To be more specific, you can ask how many blocks away a place is by saying "¿A cuántas cuadras está?" (ah KWAHN-tahs KWAH-drahs eh-STAH).

7. Question if you need to take a taxi to get there by saying "¿Hay que tomar taxi?" (ay kay toh-MAHR TAH-ksee). Ask if you need to take a bus by saying "¿Hay que tomar autobús?" (ay kay toh-MAHR out-oh-BOOS). Ask if it's better to take the subway by saying "¿Es mejor tomar metro?" (ehs may-HORE toh-MAHR MEH-troh).

Tips & Warnings

• Be polite and say "Excuse me" before addressing someone. Say this with "Perdone" (pare-DOH-nay) or "Con permiso" (cone pare-MEE-soh).

Resources

• Wonderful site for helping you increase your vocabulary
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