Learning Italian: Asking for directions

When you’re travelling around Italy, there is no doubt you will need some information to help you get to where you want to go. Whether you’re in a big city or a small town, it’s always useful to know some basic phrases to ask the locals. In order to ask someone for information, you can say scusi… or mi scusi… (excuse me) if addressing an adult or a stranger, and scusa… if you’re addressing somebody younger. Don’t forget to say grazie or tante grazie when you get the information, or if you don’t get what you need, you can say grazie lo stesso (thanks all the same)!

You can use cerco (I’m looking for) or cerchiamo (we’re looking for) to ask where something is, which come from the verb cercare (to look for).

Scusi, cerco la stazione.

Excuse me, I’m looking for the station.

Mi scusi, cerchiamo la piazza principale.

Excuse me, we’re looking for the main square.

Scusa, ci sono ristoranti in questa zona?

Excuse me, are there any restaurants around here?

In order to get the exact information you’re looking for, you may want to ask, for example, Dove…? (Where…?), Quale…? (Which…?), or A che ora…? (What time…?). Once you’ve learnt these three key phrases, you can pretty much ask anything!

Dov’è il bagno?

Where is the toilet?

Quali autobus vanno in centro?

Which buses go to the town centre?

Da quale binario parte il treno per Roma?

Which platform does the train for Rome go from?

A che ora arriviamo a Palermo?

What time do we arrive in Palermo?

Another handy verb to use is Posso…? (Can I…?), or Si può…? (Can you…?) to ask whether you can do something, or if something is generally possible. These are from the verb potere (to be able).

Possiamo comprare due biglietti dell’autobus, per favore?

Can we please buy two bus tickets?

Si può pagare con la carta di credito?

Is it possible to pay by credit card?

Don’t forget to come back for the next blog post to help you continue with the conversation!