You land in Mexico City, Bogotá, or Buenos Aires with a few words of Spanish and a phone that may or may not have data. The tourist phrasebook helps, but it's full of stilted sentences nobody actually says.
This guide gives you the Spanish that real travellers use — ordered by the situations you'll hit, in roughly the order you'll hit them.
At the Airport & Border
These first few phrases matter before you've even left arrivals.
| Spanish | English |
|---|
| ¿Dónde está la salida? | Where is the exit? |
|---|---|
| ¿Dónde recojo mi maleta? | Where do I collect my luggage? |
| Tengo una conexión a las… | I have a connection at… |
| ¿Cuánto tiempo tarda? | How long does it take? |
| Vengo de turismo | I'm here as a tourist |
| ¿Necesito una visa? | Do I need a visa? |
Key tip: Immigration officers appreciate a calm, clear sentence. Vengo de turismo covers 90% of arrival conversations.
Getting a Taxi or Rideshare
Latin American cities vary wildly on safety and pricing. These phrases help you negotiate clearly.
| Spanish | English |
|---|
| ¿Cuánto cuesta ir a…? | How much is it to go to…? |
|---|---|
| ¿Tiene taxímetro? | Do you have a meter? |
| Vaya por la autopista, por favor | Please take the highway |
| Pare aquí, por favor | Stop here, please |
| ¿Puede esperar un momento? | Can you wait a moment? |
| Lléveme a esta dirección | Take me to this address |
Showing the address on your phone works everywhere, but saying lléveme a esta dirección while pointing at the screen signals you know what you're doing.
At the Hostel or Hotel
| Spanish | English |
|---|
| Tengo una reserva a nombre de… | I have a booking under the name… |
|---|---|
| ¿A qué hora es el check-out? | What time is check-out? |
| ¿Hay wifi? ¿Cuál es la contraseña? | Is there wifi? What's the password? |
| ¿Puede guardar mi equipaje? | Can you store my luggage? |
| ¿Tiene casilleros? | Do you have lockers? |
| No funciona el aire acondicionado | The air conditioning doesn't work |
At a Restaurant or Street Food Stall
Street food is where you'll eat the best meals and where English disappears entirely.
| Spanish | English |
|---|
| ¿Qué recomienda? | What do you recommend? |
|---|---|
| ¿Lleva carne? | Does it have meat in it? |
| Sin picante, por favor | Without spice, please |
| Mucho picante, por favor | Very spicy, please |
| La cuenta, por favor | The bill, please |
| ¿Está incluido el servicio? | Is service included? |
| Para llevar | To take away |
| Para comer aquí | To eat here |
At a Market or Shop
| Spanish | English |
|---|
| ¿Cuánto cuesta esto? | How much does this cost? |
|---|---|
| ¿Tiene algo más barato? | Do you have something cheaper? |
| ¿Me puede dar un descuento? | Can you give me a discount? |
| Me lo llevo | I'll take it |
| Solo estoy mirando | I'm just looking |
Haggling is expected at markets in Mexico, Peru, Colombia, and Bolivia. Starting with ¿me puede dar un descuento? opens the negotiation politely.
Emergencies & Getting Help
| Spanish | English |
|---|
| Necesito ayuda | I need help |
|---|---|
| Llame a la policía | Call the police |
| Me robaron | I was robbed |
| Necesito un médico | I need a doctor |
| ¿Dónde está el hospital más cercano? | Where is the nearest hospital? |
Save necesito ayuda in your memory before everything else on this list. It works in every situation.
The One Superphrase Every Traveller Needs
> ¿Me puede repetir más despacio, por favor? > Can you repeat that more slowly, please?
This single sentence unlocks every conversation. When someone speaks too fast — which is always, at first — this buys you time without admitting defeat. Most people happily slow down when asked politely.
A Note on Latin American Accents
Spanish sounds different across the region:
- Mexico — clear, relatively slow, great for beginners
- Colombia (Bogotá) — famously clear and neutral, widely considered the easiest accent for beginners to follow
- Argentina — the ll and y sounds shift to something like sh, and vos replaces tú
- Cuba & Caribbean — faster, consonants drop at end of words (¿Cómo está? sounds like ¿Cómo etá?)
How to Move These From Memory to Mouth
Reading a phrase once gives you recognition. Being able to say it under pressure — tired, after a long flight, to a driver who's already pulling away from the kerb — requires something more.
The fastest way to build that muscle: sentence-level practice. Hear the phrase spoken aloud, try to reproduce it, check your word order. Repeat until it feels automatic rather than translated.
All 35 of these phrases are available as spoken sentence puzzles in Tango. You arrange the words in the correct order while hearing a native-quality Spanish voice. Practise your travel Spanish now →