Since many of you will need to use Portuguese for travel, we are doing a second air travel podcast, this time to help you learn how to buy airfare, which can be a bit tricky by phone.

Click here to listen to the podcast!
Olá. Queria comprar uma passagem para Fortaleza.
Gostaria de sair de Guarulhos, em São Paulo.
A ida será no dia 3 de Dezembro, e a volta será no dia 10.
A que horas é o voo? É melhor que seja de manhã.
Prefiro um assento na janela, se tiver.
Quanto custa? Vai ser trezentos reais sem taxas?
Tem que pagar mais para despachar as malas? Tá bom, obrigado.

This means, “Hello. I’d like to buy a ticket to Fortaleza.” “Olá” is a formal way to say hello, as opposed to “oi” which is a bit more informal. When you use “querer” (to want) in the past imperfect, this means “I’d like” or “I want.” “Passagem” is a ticket that involves travel, like a plane ticket or train ticket. Though “para” has multiple meanings, in this case, it means “to.”

Here, the speaker says, “I’d like to leave from Guarulhos in São Paulo.” Using “gostar” (to like) in the conditional tense is a more formal way to say “I’d like.” “Sair” is leave, and stays in the infinitive since it directly follows a conjugated verb. Guarulhos is an airport in the city of São Paulo.

This means, “The departure date will be December 3^rd, and the return date will be the 10^th.” When we say “passagem de ida e volta,” this means a round trip ticket. Therefore, when we split up the two words, “ida” is the first leg of the trip, departing, and “volta” is the return, the second leg of the trip. When you list a date in Portuguese, you preface the number with “no dia” (the day of). Here, we use the future simple tense, by simply adding an á to “ser” (to be).

Next, the speaker says, “What time is the flight? It’s better if it’s in the morning.” To say “what time is…” we say “a que horas é” or “são” depending on the noun that follows. Note that because of the recent accent changes to the Portuguese language, “voo” (flight) no longer has an accent. “É melhor” (it’s best if, it’s better if” is a great way to indicate a preference or state an opinion. Here, we use the subjunctive of “ser” (to be) since we are expressing a desire or request. “De manhã” is “in the morning.”

This means, “I prefer a window seat, if there is one.” “Preferir” means to prefer, and “assento na janela” is “window seat.” We use the future subjunctive tense of “ter” here, since there is uncertainty about whether or not something exists or will happen.

The speaker says, “How much does it cost? It’s 300 reais without taxes?” “Quanto custa” is one of the simpler ways to ask how much something costs. Note that “real” in the plural is “reais.” “Taxa” is tax, though “imposto” is another way to say tax.

Finally, this means, “Do you have to pay more to check luggage? Ok, thanks.” “Despachar” is check when we’re talking about air travel. “As malas” are bags, or luggage. As we’ve reviewed before, “tá bom” means OK, or fine.

Stay tuned next week for the BYKI list!