Is it tough to travel to countries where you don’t speak the language?

Do you really need to know the language of the country you visit?
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Copyright Mark Wolters 2023

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[Chrisbs]

I love the last comment, "if you think you speak the language, you might still not understand them" I felt that way in Scotland :)

[karolinaannis]

Such an American question 😄 Us Europeans teavel.all the time, and most of us just speak English and our native language. You don't have to speak the local language. English is an international language that you will be ok with. That doesn't mean that you don't say thank you or hi in the local language out of respect. But you really don't have to learn dozens of languages throughout your life to be able to travel.

[coolpiraterapstar]

I’ve been to a part of the world where there was no English, I was able to manage and have a good time

[MizzKittyBichon]

I can speak French at a conversational level, but when I heard Haitian Creole spoken I was still able to understand it pretty well.

[matthewgumabon]

I’d say if you are just going to a country for travel and leisure over a very short period, you are very correct. Most of the time in countries that have tourists, you don’t need to speak or understand the language to enjoy a tourist itinerary.

But for anything else, going to a foreign country as a teacher, exchange student, researcher, diplomat, or anything but tourist, I’d say 100% you need to put serious effort into learning the language.
If you want to be part of society and not act like an adult-sized infant and not be able to read, write, or speak… learning the language is the first step.

[thecasualcaribou]

My issue is that I love seeing parts of countries that aren’t touristy and more rural. There’s many rural parts of different countries that I want to travel to, but absolutely no one is going to know English. I try to study a language the local language before I visit those countries

[masonblase]

I just got back to York after visiting family in the US. I’m shocked at the timing of you publishing this video lol😂

[AndyKing]

try Sweden and Denmark - they almost all speak English ;)

[RandolfLycan]

Mark says he doesn’t speak 70 languages as if he doesn’t already impressively speak like 7 of them lol.

[TheMastiffprince]

People don't realize when you pick up a few words and/ or phrases in someone's native language how far that takes you such as directions to better places that are less crowded also i feel Americans have developed this reputation no matter where you go they speak English. Putting yourself out of that mentality looks better in general.

[donovanfoto]

In 1978i found myself heading to Germany, quite unexpectedly. On the ferry from England I met two Dutch girls who were returning from studies in the US. Just before the ferry landed, I realized I don't speak Dutch. I found the two girls and learned to say "Please" and "Thank you" as courtesy would be most important. It really didn't matter as when I got to Apfeldorn, to a hostel, everyone was speaking English. I was the only NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKER. 😅

[bdimon]

In York, England my wife and I shared a table at a pub with two men from "Nuke-a-cil." We could not understand most of what they said although they understood us easily. We had a great time in spite of the language barrier. Years later, an Englishman explained they were from Newcastle.

[nufcjoker]

This is just my personal opinion, no hate intended, It blows my mind that people want to travel to a specific country but can’t be bothered to learn the basics of the language it’s just a sign of respect in my personal opinion, you can’t be so passionate about a country without wanting to learn a bit of their language, it’s not the people who were going to visit who has to adapt to us, it’s us who needs to adopt their country in style of life just my personal opinion literally no one is asking you to be fluent but at least know the basics is the minimum of respect

[tukicat]

Hell yes... went to China pre Olympics... pre smart phones.. so Lonely Planet translation book... TOTALLY USELESS... its tonal..

[SilveiraWTraveler]

But if you want to deliver some great local content a guide is very important. You are right we don't have to speak all the languages.

[gumerzambrano]

If I didn't know perfect Spanish Mexico would not be nearly as fun! Can't wait to visit other Spanish speaking countries

[xqueenfrostine]

Every time I travel to a nonEnglish speaking country I’m humbled anew by how spoiled I am as a native English speaker. So much work has been put into making your time in their country easier. That’s not a privilege speakers of many other languages enjoy! I always try to learn basic vocabulary before I travel (and even stress out over it) but I seldom get to put it to use because most of the people I encounter will speak to me in English once it’s clear I’m not a native speaker of their language. I used to just think it was because I must stand out as an American, but I’ve seen so many nonnative English speakers engage with each other in English because it’s the only language they speak in common so it’s not just about me. 😅

[RaqMor]

But I hear a lot of people get irritated when Americans don’t know the language.

[michaelwebber]

We just returned from Azerbaijan Georgia and Armenia the amount of English spoken was incredible even the Russian tourists spoke English

[RoddieSimmons]

I have been going to my 2nd. Mother's homeland, Brazil for over 50 years and live there now. I am not fluent yet, but I can tell you that BODY LANGUAGE will do wonders for you no matter where you are, especially if you are in a Latin or South American country. I.E. If I am on Copacabana Beach in Rio and I say "banho" and cross my legs, everyone knows I am looking for the bathroom. Just think how fluent you have to be if you are in a Movie Theatre and their is a Fire. Do you break out the Berlitz book and say "i believe their is a fire in this movie theatre" or do you just say "Fire" in the native language and wave your hands. Believe me it works. Start with the vocabulary picture books with the one word name for "hot, cold, dinner, breakfast" etc. and you should be good for your trip. 😎 FYI. Do learn something. I live in a small village of 2, 500 and am the only American in this village as well as the bigger village next to us. Sometimes you may not have an English-speaking person around. Most people here have not even heard English.