#1 Best Guide: French Vocabulary To Use At The Airport

Are you planning to fly in or out of France? Maybe you’re planning to visit one of the twenty-nine countries that speak French. Then it’s time to buckle up and learn the French vocabulary to use at the airport!

It’s quite common for French-speaking regions to not know any English or other languages for that matter. This makes being able to communicate in French and understand what is being said to you or being able to read, very important.

Today we’ll go over the most common French airport words and related phrases so you don’t feel completely lost or confused.

Ready? Let’s get started!

 

French Vocabulary To Use At The Airport

Airport French Vocabulary

On this page, we’ll go through airport-related lessons starting with ticket purchase vocabulary and the names of documents you can expect to need. Then, we’ll review words for baggage and vocabulary to help you get around the airport. From there you’ll learn words to help you at check-in, on the plane, and useful phrases you may need to use or you may hear while on your travels.

Ticket And Travel Document Vocabulary

French airport Vocabulary

Well, the first step is buying an airplane ticket! Usually, people do this online nowadays, but you may need to use or understand these words in French during your airport journey. These are words related to airplane ticket purchases and the names of the travel documents you’ll need.

EnglishFrenchPronunciation
aisle seatsiège côté couloir[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]siège côté couloir[/Speechword]
boarding passune carte d’embarquement[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]une carte d’embarquement[/Speechword]
business classclasse affaire[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]classe affaire[/Speechword]
economy (coach) classla classe économique[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]”la classe économique[/Speechword]
first classla première classe[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]la première classe[/Speechword]
middle seatSiège du milieu[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Siège du milieu[/Speechword]
one-way ticketun billet simple[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un billet simple[/Speechword]
one-way ticketun billet simple[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un billet simple[/Speechword]
passportun passeport[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un passeport[/Speechword]
plane ticketle billet d’avion[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]le billet d’avion[/Speechword]
plane ticketun billet d’avion[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un billet d’avion[/Speechword]
round trip ticketun billet aller-retour[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un billet aller-retour[/Speechword]
round trip ticketun billet aller-retour[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un billet aller-retour[/Speechword]
to buy a ticketacheter un billet[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]acheter un billet[/Speechword]
to make a reservationfaire une réservation[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]faire une réservation[/Speechword]
visaun visa[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un visa[/Speechword]
window seatsiège côté fenêtre[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]siège côté fenêtre[/Speechword]

Luggage And Baggage Vocabulary In French

French Vocabulary At The Airport

Which kind of baggage will you be taking? You will have to talk about your luggage in French at the airport when you check in. Here are the French words for baggage you need to know!

EnglishFrenchPronunciation
baggageles bagages[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]les bagages[/Speechword]
baggage claimla livraison des bagages[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]la livraison des bagages[/Speechword]
carry-on luggageles bagages à main[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]les bagages à main[/Speechword]
cartun chariot[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Meinemt[/Speechword]
checked luggageles bagages enregistrés/
les bagages en soute
[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]les bagages enregistrés[/Speechword]/[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]
les bagages en soute[/Speechword]
hand luggagebagage à main[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]bagage à main[/Speechword]
Luggagebagages[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]bagages[/Speechword]

French Vocabulary At The Airport

French Phrases for the airport

You’re at the airport or on the way! You’ll need to know directions in French to tell your driver where to drop you off. Once you’re there, you can use these words to help you to get around the airport or find your flight check-in area.

EnglishFrenchPronunciation
airlineune compagnie aérienne[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]une compagnie aérienne[/Speechword]
airplaneun avion[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un avion[/Speechword]
airportun aéroport[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un aéroport[/Speechword]
airport securitysécurité de l’aéroport[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]sécurité de l’aéroport[/Speechword]
Arrival hallLe Hall d’arrivée[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Le Hall d’arrivée[/Speechword]
arrivalsles arrivées[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]les arrivées[/Speechword]
baggage claimla livraison des bagages[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]la livraison des bagages[/Speechword]
cancelledannulé[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]annulé[/Speechword]
cartun chariot[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un chariot[/Speechword]
check-inl’enregistrement[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]l’enregistrement[/Speechword]
check-in counterun guichet d’embarquement[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un guichet d’embarquement[/Speechword]
customsla douane[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]la douane[/Speechword]
delayeden retard[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]en retard[/Speechword]
Departure hallLe Hall de départ[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Le Hall de départ[/Speechword]
departuresles départs[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]les départs[/Speechword]
domestic/internal flightsvols intérieurs[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]vols intérieurs[/Speechword]
duty-freeune boutique hors taxes / un duty-free[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]une boutique hors taxes[/Speechword]/[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline] un duty-free[/Speechword]
flightun vol[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un vol[/Speechword]
gateune porte[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]une porte[/Speechword]
International flightsvols internationaux[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]vols internationaux[/Speechword]
on timeà l’heure[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Meinemt[/Speechword]
runwaypiste[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]piste[/Speechword]
shuttleune navette[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]une navette[/Speechword]
terminalUn terminal[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Un terminal[/Speechword]

Vocabulary For Checking In At The Airport

French Airport terms

Here are some words related to the process of checking in at the airport in French.

EnglishFrenchPronunciation
to landAtterrir[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Atterrir[/Speechword]
to disembark, to deplaneDébarquer[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Débarquer[/Speechword]
to declaredéclarer[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]déclarer[/Speechword]
to take offDécoller[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Décoller[/Speechword]
to board, embarkEmbarquer[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Embarquer[/Speechword]
to check bagsenregistrer (les bagages)[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]enregistrer les bagages[/Speechword]
landingl’atterrissage[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]l’atterrissage[/Speechword]
boardingl’embarquement[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]l’embarquement[/Speechword]
check-inl’enregistrement[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]l’enregistrement[/Speechword]
immigrationl’immigration[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]l’immigration[/Speechword]
boarding passla carte d’embarquement[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]la carte d’embarquement[/Speechword]
customsla douane[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]la douane[/Speechword]
security checkle contrôle de sécurité[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]le contrôle de sécurité[/Speechword]
takeoffle décollage[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]le décollage[/Speechword]
carry-on luggageles bagages à main[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]les bagages à main[/Speechword]
checked-in luggageles bagages enregistrés/ un baggage en soute[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]les bagages enregistrés/ un baggage en soute[/Speechword]
flight numbernuméro de vol[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]numéro de vol[/Speechword]
To recover your luggagesRécupérer les bagages[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Récupérer les bagages[/Speechword]
stopoverune escale[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]une escale[/Speechword]
gateune porte[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]une porte[/Speechword]

French Words To Use In The Plane

French words for the airplane

Now that you’re on the plane, how do you address people? What are areas and things called on the airplane in French? Check these out.

EnglishFrenchPronunciation
aisle seatsiège côté couloir[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]siège côté couloir[/Speechword]
business classclasse affaire[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]classe affaire[/Speechword]
economy class/ coachla classe économique[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]la classe économique[/Speechword]
flight stewardessune hôtesse de l’air[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]une hôtesse de l’air[/Speechword]
middle seatSiège du milieu[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Siège du milieu[/Speechword]
passengerun passager[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un passager[/Speechword]
pilotle pilote[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]le pilote[/Speechword]
rowligne[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]ligne[/Speechword]
stewardun steward[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]un steward[/Speechword]
window seatsiège côté fenêtre/siège du côté hublot[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]siège côté fenêtre[/Speechword]

 

The Parts Of The Airplane

French airplane vocabulary

Just for fun here’s a list of French vocabulary for parts of a plane. These could be fun to know if you’re traveling with kids – you can learn together!

EnglishFrenchPronunciation
airplane bodyCorps d’avion[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Corps d’avion[/Speechword]
airplane wingsAiles d’avion[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Ailes d’avion[/Speechword]
cockpitPoste de pilotage[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Poste de pilotage[/Speechword]
engineMoteur[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Moteur[/Speechword]
jet fuelCarburéacteur[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Carburéacteur[/Speechword]
landing gearTrain d’atterrissage[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Train d’atterrissage[/Speechword]
nose of planeNez d’avion[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Nez d’avion[/Speechword]

 

Useful Phrases At The Airport

Phrases for the airport in French

Here are some useful French phrases in case you need to talk to an airport employee if you are lost or if there are any issues with your flight.

English: I am looking for terminal A.

French: Je recherche le terminal A.

English: How many pieces of luggage can I take on the plane?

French: Combien de bagages puis-je emporter dans l’avion ?

English: Why has the plane been delayed?

French: Pourquoi l’avion a-t-il été retardé ?

English: Why has the plane been canceled?

French: Pourquoi l’avion a-t-il été annulé ?

English: Are there any window seats left?

French: Reste-t-il des sièges côté fenêtre ?

English: Are there any aisle seats left?

French: Il reste des places côté couloir ?

English: I would like a window seat.

French: Je voudrais avoir un siège près de la fenêtre

English: I would like an aisle seat.

French: Je voudrais avoir un siège couloir

English: When will the flight leave?

French: Quand décollera le vol?

French Airport Phrases You May Hear

Here are some French airport phrases to keep in mind when traveling! You’ll likely be asked at least a few of these and it will make your travel process so much smoother if you recognize some of these.

EnglishFrenchPronunciation
May I see your boarding pass?Puis-je voir votre carte d’embarquement?[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Puis-je voir votre carte d’embarquement?[/Speechword]
Place your items in the tray.Placez vos articles dans le bac[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Placez vos articles dans le bac[/Speechword]
Please have your passport and boarding pass ready.Veuillez préparer votre passeport et votre carte d’embarquement[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Veuillez préparer votre passeport et votre carte d’embarquement[/Speechword]
Please place your bag on the scale.Veuillez placer votre sac sur la balance[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Veuillez placer votre sac sur la balance[/Speechword]
Please take off your shoes.Enlevez vos chaussures, s’il vous plait[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Enlevez vos chaussures, s’il vous plait[/Speechword]
Please take your laptop out of your bag.Veuillez sortir votre ordinateur portable de votre sac[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Veuillez sortir votre ordinateur portable de votre sac[/Speechword]
There has been a gate change.Il y a eu un changement de porte[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Il y a eu un changement de porte[/Speechword]
This is the final boarding call.C’est le dernier appel d’embarquement[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]C’est le dernier appel d’embarquement[/Speechword]
Your bag is overweight.Votre sac est en surpoids[Speechword voice=”French Female” isinline]Meinemt[/Speechword]

 


Most Popular Airports In France

Which airport are you flying into or out of in France? These are the top three busiest airports in France. Typically, once you’ve landed, you’ll likely get around the country by train and even travel to other European countries via rail, but if you do choose to fly, you’ll end up at one of these great airports!

  1. Paris Charles de Gaulle
  2. Paris Orly
  3. Nice

 

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