10 Essential Italian Travel Phrases

thereseholland
Jul 4, 2015
2 min read

As you may have figured out by now, Italians speak Italian.

While you may already know words like "ciao", "grazie", or "arrivederci", once you arrive in Italy you may want to know a few more words to make your trip a little bit easier.

So, with corrections from my boyfriend (who's Italian), I've come up with the 10 Essential Italian Travel Phrases. I personally have found that these phrases can really come in handy while in il bel paese (the beautiful country) that is Italy!

So here they are, in no particular order, in the form of English // Italian.

Is there wifi here? // C'è il Wi-Fi qui?

(if you need a password, Italians use the word "password", and will understand if you ask, "Password?")

May I have a bottle of water, please? //Posso avere un bicchiere d'acqua, per favore?

(Why not replace "d'acqua" with "di vino", and try some of Italy's famous wine?)

Where's the bathroom? // Dove è il bagno?

(Note: bagno is pronounced banyo.)

How much does this cost? // Quanto costa?
Do you speak English? // Parli inglese?
Help! // Aiuto!

(Hoping you won't need to use this!)

I don't speak Italian very well. // Non parlo l'italiano molto bene.
Do you/did you understand? // Hai capito?

(A good thing to ask when you've probably mispronounced something.)

I don't understand. // Non capisco, or, non ho capito

(Either works, I typically use "Non ho capito", and I hear this from Italians more as well. The first is literally "I do not understand", the second, "I haven't understood", but both can be used in present situations to tell someone you don't understand.)