How to Choose a Travel Phrase Book

A good phrase book can be a lifeline when you're traveling. Unfortunately, though, if you're looking for a phrase book for a commonly spoken language, the choices can seem endless, and it's not always clear which phrase books are any good. Here's how to sort through the crowd and find the best phrase book for you.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Local bookstores
• Online bookstores

1. Think through the activities you plan to do on your trip. Will you be exploring museums by day and clubs by night or go hiking and camping? Maybe you're something of a gourmet and want a phrase book with a well-developed section on food and dining.
2. Browse local or online bookstores for promising-looking travel phrase books. Look over the table of contents, note the publisher's credentials and read online reviews to pick out the better phrase books. For less common languages, you may only come up with two or three. For widely spoken languages, though, you'll probably be able to short list at least 10 travel phrase books.
3. Make sure the phrase book helps you read and pronounce foreign words. Are the words written out phonetically in a logical way that accurately reflects the correct pronunciation? Try to learn something about how the letters in the language's alphabet are pronounced so you can tell if a phrase book gets it wrong.
4. Check that the phrase book isn't missing important sections. Your idea of "must have" sections in a travel phrase book may be different from the editor's. Make sure the phrase book covers vital topics like finding accommodation, buying food and meeting new people.
5. Look for a grammar section. Knowing the basics of grammar will help you build your own sentences if you need to communicate something not covered in your travel phrase book. It doesn't have to be 20 pages long, but the better foreign language phrase books will give you at least some basic grammar explanations.
6. Consider the phrase book's layout and design. In a good travel phrase book, everything should be easy to find and easy to read. Make sure you can get to each section within seconds. Stay away from books with tiny or very light print or lines that are crammed together.

Tips & Warnings

• Ask a native or fluent speaker to check out the phrase book before you buy. They'll spot any critical errors in the pronunciation guides and grammar that you might not notice until it's too late.
• If you find a potentially great phrase book with no phonetic pronunciation guides, consider learning the language's alphabet. Complex writing systems like Chinese and Arabic take some time to learn, but most people can get the hang of an alphabet like Cyrillic or Greek in just a few days. This way you'll be able to read the local street and store signs, too.
• Don't accept shoddy pronunciation guides. Sometimes just slightly mispronouncing a vowel or putting the stress on the wrong syllable can totally change the meaning of a word.

Who Can Help: