You’re in or planning a trip to a foreign country that speaks French! Excellent choice. The next step is to figure out how to get around. As we all know, getting lost sucks, so we’ve created this handy guide to help you ask for, understand directions or give directions in French.
Let’s go memorize French directions!
Why Should You Learn How To Give Directions In French?
Did you ever learn French in school? That’s because it’s the official language of thirteen countries and a secondary official language in fourteen others. If you did learn French then you no doubt remember this phrase:
- Where is the library?
- Où est la bibliothèque?
I’ve never been exactly sure why où est la bibliothèque is always one of the first directional questions taught in French classes, but it is! The French must love reading.
Besides that, the French people also love people who can speak French – with a perfect accent preferably! Trust me, knowing even just a little bit of French will get you so much farther with the locals, especially in France. They appreciate that you’re trying as opposed to being a typical tourist.
Let’s take a look at some famous sites you may like to know how to get to when you visit France. Sorry if we’re assuming that’s where you’re headed, but Paris is the most popular French-speaking tourist destination!
Top 5 Sites To Visit In France
- Gorges du Verdon (The Grand Canyon of France)
- Mont Saint-Michel (UNESCO Site)
- Auvergne Volcanoes Regional Nature Park
- Corsica
- Eifel Tower, Paris
How To Ask For Directions In French
Here are some useful questions and phrases in French that you can use to ask for help with the locals to avoid getting lost. The first four suggestions will get you off on the right foot, so to speak.
- Excuse me. I’m lost Excusez moi. Je suis perdu
- Excuse me. I don’t come from here… Excusez moi. Je ne viens pas d’ici
- Excuse me. I can’t find…. Excusez moi. Je ne trouve pas…
- Excuse me. Can you help me please? Excusez moi. Pouvez-vous m’aider s’il vous plaît?
You’ll notice that all of those questions began with a pleasantry. This is very much appreciated in France and any French-speaking city, so remember to start any interactions with strangers with excusez moi.
Let’s continue with the ‘where’ questions you will no doubt find yourself asking to get directions in French.
| English Question | French Question | Pronunciation |
| Where can I find…? | Où est-ce que je peux trouver… | |
| Where is…? où est ce | Où est ce | |
| Where is the bathroom? | Où sont les toilettes | |
| Where is the train station? | Où est la gare? | |
| Where is the bus station? | Où est l’arrêt de bus? | |
| Which direction is it? | C’est dans quelle direction ? | |
| Where are the stairs? | Où sont les escaliers ? | |
| Where is the post office? | Où est le bureau de poste? | |
| Where are we? | Où sommes-nous? | |
| Where is this street? (Point to map) | Où est cette rue? | |
| Do you know where (insert place ) is? Est-ce que vous savez où est | Est-ce que vous savez où … est? |
Here are some other questions you may ask to get directions in French.
| English Question | French Question | Pronunciation |
| Can you show me? | Peux-tu me montrer? | |
| How do I get to…? | Comment puis-je aller à…? | |
| How do I get there? | Comment puis-je y arriver? | |
| How long does it take to get there? | Combien de temps faut-il pour y arriver? | |
| Is it close to here? | C’est près d’ici ? | |
| Is it far from here? | Est-ce loin d ‘ici? | |
| Is there a (insert place) nearby? | Est-ce qu’il y a…près d’ici | |
| Is it within walking distance?/Can I walk there? | Est-ce que je peux y aller à pied ? | |
| Please show me on the map | Veuillez me montrer sur la carte |
Directions In French Locals May Say To You
These are some common responses that you may hear in French to help you get where you want to be!
| English Word | German Word | Pronunciation |
| It’s very close | C’est très proche | |
| It’s far away | C’est loin | |
| It’s over the bridge | C’est sur le pont | |
| Come with me | Viens avec moi | |
| I’ll show you | Je vais te montrer | |
| May I assist (help) you? | Puis-je vous assister? | |
| At the corner | Au coin de | |
| At the end of the street | Au bout de la rue | |
| To the left | à gauche | |
| To the right | à droite | |
| It’s far from here | C’est loin d’ici | |
| It’s near here c’est près d’ici | C’est près d’ici | |
| Go straight | allez tout droit /continuez tout droit | |
| Walk… | aller à pied | |
| Turn left | tournez à gauche | |
| Turn right | tournez à droite | |
| Close | près de |
Give Directions In French
These are some essential French directional words and phrases you should know in case you feel confident giving someone else directions in French, which would be great!
Prepositions
| English Word | French Word | Pronunciation |
| Across | De l’autre côté | |
| Behind | en arrière | |
| Between | Entre | |
| Down | Vers le bas | |
| Downstairs | En bas | |
| Far | Loin | |
| In | Dans | |
| Inside | À l’intérieur | |
| Near | À proximité | |
| Nearby | Tout près d’ici | |
| On | Sur | |
| Outside | À l’extérieur | |
| Over | Plus de | |
| Straight | droit | |
| Under | sous | |
| Upstairs | En haut |
Prepositional Phrases
| English | French | Pronunciation |
| Across from | En face de | |
| Over there | Là bas | |
| Across the street | De l’autre côté de la rue | |
| Around the corner | Au coin de la rue | |
| Before the… | Avant le | |
| Down the hallway | Dans le couloir | |
| Far away | Loin | |
| In front of | Devant de | |
| On the… | Sue le/la… | |
| On top of | Au dessus de | |
| Past the… | Après le/la… | |
| Straight ahead/Go straight | Tout droit | |
| Towards the… | En direction de… |
Compass Directions
| English | French | Pronunciation |
| North | Le nord | |
| South | Le sud | |
| East | L’est | |
| West | L’ouest |
Useful Apps That Can Help You When You Are Lost!
Sometimes it’s just easier to use technology. Here are some apps that can help you get around in France.
- Citymapper – maps at your fingertips!
- Tigets – Get last-minute tickets to local attractions.
- Flush – find public toilets anywhere!
- Waze– operates similarly to Google Maps except will show you where any travel pain points will be or delays that may hinder your travel plans.
- Google Maps – is probably the most well-known navigation app, it will be your best friend in finding the places on your travel list
Navigate Your Way In French With Ling App!
It’s said learning French is the gateway to quickly learning other languages such as Spanish and Italian!
We’d love for you to continue to learn French and we can’t recommend Ling App more.
Learning with Ling is fun and easy. It’s got games, interactive quizzes, and listening activities too. It’s also incredibly handy if you’re planning to travel elsewhere in Europe – it has over 60 languages in addition to French!
Whether you want to learn how to speak French, be fluent in German, or even Swedish, the Ling App is here to help!
Download the Ling App today and get started with learning languages now. Available on Google Play and the Apple Store.
