So you’re traveling to France and are freaking out because you don’t want to be rude and look and sound like a total tourist. Good for you; knowing these common French phrases for travel will definitely help you when traveling, and it will give you some practice when using them in various french speaking countries.
We wanted to include the most commonly used phrases every tourist should know before hopping off that flight and landing in Paris. Trust us, Paris is exactly what you’ve heard: beautiful, fashionable, a little stinky, and some of the locals are a little cold to tourists. So do your best to be a good tourist and try to muster up some french practice before plaguing the lot of France with the stereotypical tourist vibe.
This post is all about the most common french phrases you’ll need when traveling to France or any other French-speaking country such as Belgium, Canada, Luxembourg, Haiti, Senegal, and others. We cover the most useful french phrases for tourists, french words for travelers, and also french etiquette ☺️
Common French Phrases For Travel
The Two French Phrases you need to know when Traveling to France
Y, knows a decent amount of French, and even she had a hard time getting us through France, which brings us to the most important two phrases to know! Trust us, you will have these two phrases memorized by the end of your trip lol for good or bad reasons ?
Also, don’t feel bad; honestly, learning another language is hard, and if you gave it your best shot and were instantly met with shock as soon as you landed because the various french accents are hard to keep track of. Then no worries, it’s actually what caught Y off guard when we landed, the french speak very fast, and their pronunciation of words is heavier and raspier. She constantly asked them to slow down and repeat what they were saying ?
French: Pouvez-vous répéter ça, s’il vous plait?
Which translates to English: Can you repeat that please?
Bon un de plus – good, one more
French: Pouvez-vous parler plus lentement s’il vous plaît?
English: Can you speak slower, please?
If all else fails just tell them in french: Je suis désolé, mon français est terrible, pouvons-nous parler en anglais s’il vous plaît?
This means in English: I’m sorry my French is terrible. Can we speak in English, please?
Make sure to ask if they speak English: Excusez moi, parlez vous anglais?
Which means in English: Excuse me, do you speak English?
A good majority of french people speak English, Spanish, or Italian, so if you’re really struggling or freezing up at the moment, just be very kind when asking them to converse in English, and of course, always ask if they speak English first.
If you’re looking for different ways to say hello in various languages, then make sure to read our post that we linked below!
Basic French Vocab For Travel
You’ll need these basic words when traveling to paris or any french city on your next trip ☺️
Oui- yes
Non – no
cout- cost
Le Prix – price
cher- expensive
merci – thank you
s’il vous plaît – please
excuse moi- excuse me
demain- tomorrow
train station – gare
airport – aeroport
time- temps
breakfast- petit-dejeuner
lunch- dejeuner
dinner – diner
water – l’eau
hospital – hopital
medicine- medicament
store: boutique
grocery store- epicerie
hungry- faim
cold – froide (froid)
hot – chaude (chaud)
weather- meteo
rain- pluie
windy- venteux (venteuse)
Days in French: Basic French Words
Sunday – Dimanche
Monday – Lundi
Tuesday- Mardi
Wednesday – Mercredi
Thursday – Jeudi
Friday – Vendredi
Saturday – samedi
Numbers in French: Basic French
- un
- deux
- toi
- quatre
- cinq
- six
- sept
- nuit
- neuf
- dix
- onze
- deuze
- treize
- quatorze
- quinze
- sieze
- dix-sept
- dix-nuit
- dix neuf
- vingt
50. cinquante
100. cent
1000 mille
Basic Everyday French Phrases and Conversation Basics
Also, looking for more basic french phases? Diana from Mondly has a list of french phrases to expand on*
French: Je suis fatigué
English: I’m tired
French: Quel temps fait ajourd’hui?
Egnlish: What’s the weather today?
French: Vous voulez déjeuner?
English: Want to have lunch?
French: Qu’est- ce qu’il y a de cool a fair par ici?
English: What’s cool to do around here?
French: Ou est la plage, Ou est
English: Where is the beach?
French: Je ne comprends pas
English: I dont understand
Exploring Paris but just can't seem to find the perfect photo spots and viewpoints? Read our guide on the Best Paris Views and how to how avoid the crowds!
Common Phrases In French For General Use
How to Say Hello in French: For Different Audiences?
When greeting people in french, it’s usually best to keep to formal versions of phrases and words because it can come off as rude if you use informal versions. If greeting a stranger for example, use formal, and later in the conversation, gauge the vibe and then lax into casual versions.
Bonjour
Formal:
French: Bonjour
Pronounced: Bon-jour
Feminine:
French: Bonjour Madame
English: Hello, madam
Masculine:
French: Bonjour Monsieur
English: Hello, sir
Salut
Informal:
French: Salut
Pronounced: Sa-lu
Feminine:
French: Salut
English: Hello
Masculine:
French: Salut
Egnlish: Hello
Special Note: Salut can also mean bye, so it’s common to use it at the beginning of a conversation and end by saying goodbye using the same word.
Tired of France and looking to explore its neighboring European country, Italy? Make sure to read our other popular Italian city guides for Florence, Venice, Milan, and Rome!
- Best Things To Do In Milan
- Love Views? Check out the stunning views in Venice!
- More of a classic renaissance gal? Don’t forget to check out Florence.
- Can’t get over the beauty of Rome? Then read our Eternal City Guide!
How to say “my name is…” in french
French: Je m’appele
English: My name is
French: Mon nom est
English: My name is
How to ask someone what their name is in french
French: Salut comment tu t’appelles?
English: Hello what is your name?
How to say “How’s it going” in french?
French: Ça va?
English: How’s it going?
How to say “good morning” in french?
French: Bon Matin!
English: Good morning
How to say “good afternoon” in french?
French: Bon apres-midi!
English: Good afternoon
How to say “good evening” in french?
Bonsoir!
Good evening
How to say “Have a good night” in french?
Dont forget this popular phrase when traveling around Paris at night!
bonne nuit
have a good night
How To Say “See you later” in french
a plus tard
see you later
ou – or
A toute a l’heaure
see you soon
How to say excuse me in french?
Formal: Excusez Moi
excuse me
informal: pardon
excuse me
How to say nice to meet you in french?
Formal: C’est un plaisir de vous rencontrer
most used: Enchante
Feminine: Enchantee
Masculine: Enchante
How to say “how much does it cost” in french?
French: Combien ca coute –
English: how much does it cost
French: Combien-
English: how much
French: C’est Combien? –
English: how much is it?
How to say “thank you” in french?
French: merci
English: thank you
French: merci beaucoup
English: thank you so much
French: merci a tous –
English: thank you all
French: merci bien-
English: thank you kindly
How to say “You’re Welcome” in French?
Feminine:
French: Bienvenue
English: You’re welcome
Masculine:
French: Bienvenu
English: You’re welcome
Anyone:
French: Pas de qoui
English: You are welcome!
French: De rein
English: You are welcome, dont mention it
How to say Goodbye in French?
French: Au revoir
English: Goodbye
Direction and Time in French
Directions in French: Les Directions
French
- à droite
- à gauche
- en bas
- en haut
- devant
- derrière
- au sud
- au nord
- à l’est
- à l’ouest
- loin
- près
- droit
- à côté de
English
- to the right
- to the left
- down
- up
- front of
- back of
- to the south
- to the north
- to the east
- to the west
- far
- near
- straight
- next to
Time in French:
l’heure- Time
Midi- Noon
Minuit – Midnight
Du matin – In the morning
De l’après-midi – In the afternoon
To say the time in french just add “Il est” in the beginning, and “heures” after the number
Also, saying: and a quarter, a half, quarter to, it’s as follows:
French: Et quart:
English: And a quarter
French: Moins le quart
English: Quarter to
French: Et demie
English: And a half
Pour example:
French: Il est cinq heures
English: It is 5 o-clock
French: Il est cinq heures vengt
English: It is 5:20
French: Il est neuf heures du matin
English: It is 9 o clock in the morning
How to say “I’m searching for” in french?
French: Je Cherche
English: I’m searching for
How to say “where is the..” in french?
French: Où est le
English: Where is the
French: Où see trouve?
English: Where is?
Examples: Où est le toilette – this is not really correct you would rather say ” ou see trouvent les toilettes? or you could say où sont les toilettes
French: Ou est la gare
English: Where is the train station?
How to say “I need directions for…” in french
French: J’ai besoin d’itineraires pour
English: I need directions for
How to say what time is it? in french
French: Quelle heure est-il?
English: What time is it?
Help and Confusion: Common Phrases in French
How to say “I need help” or “can you help me” in french?
French: j’ai Besoin d’aide –
English: I need help
French: j’ai Besoin d’aide si vous plait
English: I need help please
French: Pourriez-vous m’aider?
English: Can you help me?
How to say “I don’t understand” in French?
French: Je ne comprends pas
English: I dont understand
How to say “I don’t know” in French?
French: Je ne sais pas
English: I dont know
How to ask someone to speak slower in french
French: Peux-tu dire ça plus lentement
English: Can you say that slower
How to say “Can you repeat that” or “repeat please” in french?
French: Peux-tu répéter cela
English: Can you repeat that?
French: Repetez, S’il vous plait
English: Repeat, please
How to tell someone you don’t speak french
French: Je ne parle pas français, désolé
English: I dont speak french, sorry
Basic French: Ordering Food in French
Ordering in French can seem intimidating, especially if you don’t know the language. However it’s super important that you know some key phrases for ordering and fire certain dietary restrictions. Like ordering vegan food would be hard to explain in English, so it’s best to know how to say vegan in French beforehand.
French: Je voudrais (un café) (un verre de vin) ( un verre de l’eu) (un thé) (June bière)
English: I would like a coffee, a glass of wine, a glass of water, a tea, a Beer
French: Puis-je voir la carte des vins
English: Can I see the wine list
French: Puis-je avoir le menu
English: Can I get the menu, please
French: L’addition, s’il vous plaît
English: The bill, please
French: J’ai des allergies alimentaires pour les (cacahuètes) (le Lait) (le gluten)
English: I have food allergies to (peanuts) (milk) (gluten)
French: Je ne peux rien avoir avec (des allergies alimentaires) (des produits d’origine animale) (de la viande) (du poison) (du sucre)
English: I can’t have anything with (allergies list here) (animal products) (meat) (fish) (sugar)
How to shop in French: Common French Phrases for Travel
French: C’est tres cher! C’est trop cher!
English: It’s too/very expensive!
French: À quella heaure est-ce queue s’est ouvert (fermé)?
English: At what time does it open? (close)
French: Combien ça coûte?
English: How much does it cost?
French: Y a-t-il des premises spéciales aujourd’hui?
English: Are there any special discounts today?
French Phrases For Travel
That wraps up our post for the most common french phrases you’ll need to know eh traveling in France and other french speaking countries! We hope you enjoyed this post, and if you did, please share our post via any of your favorite social media ☺️ If you need packing tips, European travel guides, or United States travel tips, then make sure to check out our other posts ☺️.