Note that I am using the formal greetings rather than the informal, because on your travels you’ll be talking to people you don’t know. So it’s more polite to use the formal.

BASICS

Hello – Hallo (hello) / Guten Tag (good day)

Thank you – Vielen Dank (many thanks) / Dankeschön (thank you)

No, thanks – Nein, danke.

Please – Bitte

Excuse me / Sorry – Entschuldigung

Goodbye – Auf Wiedersehen

Travel resource number one: Navigating A German Airport 

COMMON PHRASES/QUESTIONS

If approaching a stranger in a German-speaking country, you can start with an opening sentence like this one:

Excuse me, could you help me, please? – Entschuldigung, können Sie mir bitte helfen?

Following that, you can ask your question, such as: Wo ist der Bahnhof, bitte? – Where is the train station, please?

Alternatively, you can omit the request for help and launch straight into your question by starting with an ‘Entschuldigung’ (excuse me), to make it more polite! Here are a few examples of things you might ask:

Excuse me, where is <hotel name>, please? – Entschuldigung, wo ist <hotel name>, bitte?

Excuse me, where is the nearest cash machine, please? – Entschuldigung, wo ist der nächste Geldautomat, bitte?

Excuse me, where are the toilets, please? – Entschuldigung, wo sind die Toiletten, bitte?

Men – Herren/Männer
Women – Damen/Frauen
(Just in case you see these written on toilet doors with nothing else on them to tell you which is which!)

Image via Pixabay.

Travel resource number two: Asking for directions in German

Excuse me, where can I find the train station/the bus stop/a bank, please? – Entschuldigung, wo finde ich den Bahnhof/die Bushaltestelle/eine Bank, bitte?

Excuse me, where is the beach, please? – Entschuldigung, wo ist der Strand, bitte?

Travel resource number three: Giving directions in German

To the train station/airport, please – Zum Bahnhof/Flughafen, bitte.

How much is this, please? – Wie viel kostet das, bitte?

Is it far away? – Ist das weit weg?

How long does it take? – Wie lange dauert das?

When do I have to check out? – Wann muss ich auschecken?

What time do you serve breakfast? – Wann servieren Sie Frühstück?

Travel resource number four: Booking a hotel room in German

 

Image via Pixabay.

A table for one/two/three, please. – Einen Tisch für eins/zwei/drei, bitte.

The bill, please – Die Rechnung, bitte.

Travel resource number five: Navigating a German café

Travel resource number six: Going to a German beer garden

 

I’m lost – Ich habe mich verlaufen.

I only speak a bit of German – Ich spreche nur ein bisschen Deutsch.

Do you speak English? – Sprechen Sie Englisch?

Sorry? (Could you repeat that, please?) – Wie bitte?

Travel resource number seven: What to say in German when words fail you

Travel resource number eight: At a German petrol station

 

Thank you for your help! – Vielen Dank für Ihre Hilfe!

Naturally I could have included so many more phrases but then I feel this post would have gone on forever! If there are any phrases I’ve missed that you desperately want the translation for, leave them in the comments. Also, be sure to check out the archived posts I linked throughout this article. I hope this will give you the confidence to communicate effectively in Germany!

Bis bald and enjoy your Sommerurlaub (summer holiday)!

Constanze