Barcelona phrasebook: speaking Spanish as a visitor
Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia, where Catalan is co-official with Spanish. Street signs, metro announcements and menus are often in Catalan first, so you will see words like sortida (exit), carrer (street) and bon dia (good morning). Everyone you deal with as a visitor also speaks Spanish, so the phrases on this page work everywhere; learning to say bon dia and gràcies in Catalan is a small courtesy that people appreciate.
As in the rest of Spain, the day starts slowly and runs late: shops in the centre often stay open into the evening, lunch is the main meal, and dinner usually begins after nine. A quick hola when you enter a shop and adéu or adiós when you leave is the normal, polite routine.
What you will hear in a taxi
Taxi drivers in Barcelona tend to use a few short, predictable phrases. Recognising them matters more than saying them:
| Spanish | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ¿A dónde? | ah DOHN-deh | Where to? (taxi) |
| Vale. | BAH-leh | OK. |
| ¿Cuánto es? | KWAN-toh es | How much is it? |
Travel phrases for Barcelona
| Spanish | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Dos | dohs | two |
| Diez | dee-ETH | ten |
| ¿Cuánto cuesta? | KWAHN-toh KWEHS-tah | how much does it cost? |
| La cuenta | lah KWEN-tah | the bill |
| Está delicioso | ehs-TAH deh-lee-THYOH-soh | it's delicious |
| A la izquierda | ah lah eeth-KYER-dah | to the left |
| Todo recto | TOH-doh REK-toh | straight ahead |
| Necesito un médico | neh-theh-SEE-toh oon MEH-dee-koh | I need a doctor |
| No entiendo | noh en-tee-EN-doh | I don't understand |
Flight search and trip essentials
Compare flights on Kiwi.com, our flight-search partner. Enter the airport code below as your destination when the search opens.
| Destination | Airport code (IATA) |
|---|---|
| Barcelona, Spain | BCN |
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Once you land
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Situations to practise before you go
At the restaurant
Key pieces: reservar · una mesa para dos · de primero · para llevar
Menus split into courses: de primero (first course) and de segundo (main).
- reservar (reh-sair-BAR) — to reserve Memory hook: 'reserve'.
- una mesa (OO-nah MEH-sah) — a table Memory hook: 'mesa'.
- de primero / de segundo (deh pree-MEH-roh / deh seh-GOON-doh) — as a first course / main Memory hook: 'primary' / 'second'.
- la especialidad (lah ess-peh-syah-lee-DAHD) — the speciality Memory hook: = speciality.
- para llevar (PAH-rah yeh-BAR) — to take away Memory hook: llevar = to carry.
To say “I want to reserve a table.” in Spanish: Quiero reservar una mesa. (KYEH-roh reh-sair-BAR OO-nah MEH-sah). Built from quiero = I want; reservar = to reserve; una mesa = a table.
To say “A table for two, please.” in Spanish: Una mesa para dos, por favor. (OO-nah MEH-sah PAH-rah dohss por fah-BOR). Built from una mesa = a table; para dos = for two; por favor = please.
To say “As a first course, I want soup.” in Spanish: De primero, quiero sopa. (deh pree-MEH-roh KYEH-roh SOH-pah). Built from de primero = as first course; quiero = I want; sopa = soup.
To say “What is the speciality?” in Spanish: ¿Cuál es la especialidad? (kwahl ess lah ess-peh-thyah-lee-DAHD). Built from cuál = which/what; es = is; la especialidad = the speciality.
To say “It's to take away.” in Spanish: Es para llevar. (ess PAH-rah yeh-BAR). Built from es = it is; para llevar = to take away.
Money & prices
Key pieces: cien→mil · el efectivo · la tarjeta · el cambio
Big numbers: cien (100), doscientos (200), mil (1000).
- cien / doscientos (syen / dohss-SYEN-tohss) — 100 / 200 Memory hook: 'cent' / 'two hundred'.
- mil (meel) — a thousand Memory hook: 'mile' / 'millennium'.
- el efectivo (el eh-fek-TEE-boh) — cash
- la tarjeta (lah tar-HEH-tah) — the card
- el cambio (el KAHM-byoh) — the change Memory hook: 'change'.
To say “It costs a hundred euros.” in Spanish: Cuesta cien euros. (KWESS-tah thyen EH-oo-rohss). Built from cuesta = it costs; cien = one hundred; euros = euros.
To say “Can I pay with card?” in Spanish: ¿Puedo pagar con tarjeta? (PWEH-doh pah-GAR kohn tar-HEH-tah). Built from puedo = can I; pagar = to pay; con tarjeta = with card.
To say “I'll pay in cash.” in Spanish: Pago en efectivo. (PAH-goh en eh-fek-TEE-boh). Built from pago = I pay; en efectivo = in cash.
To say “Here is the change.” in Spanish: Aquí está el cambio. (ah-KEE ess-TAH el KAHM-byoh). Built from aquí = here; está = is; el cambio = the change.
To say “Two thousand, please.” in Spanish: Dos mil, por favor. (dohss meel por fah-BOR). Built from dos = two; mil = thousand → dos mil = 2000.
Feeling ill / at the doctor
Key pieces: me duele · estoy enfermo · necesito un médico · la farmacia
To say something hurts, use me duele (it hurts me) + the body part.
- me duele (meh DWEH-leh) — it hurts me Memory hook: 'dolor' = pain.
- la cabeza (lah kah-BEH-sah) — the head
- el estómago (el ess-TOH-mah-goh) — the stomach Memory hook: = stomach.
- estoy enfermo (ess-TOY en-FAIR-moh) — I'm ill Memory hook: 'infirm'.
- el médico / la farmacia (el MEH-dee-koh / lah far-MAH-syah) — the doctor / the pharmacy Memory hook: 'medic' / 'pharmacy'.
To say “My head hurts.” in Spanish: Me duele la cabeza. (meh DWEH-leh lah kah-BEH-thah). Built from me duele = it hurts me; la cabeza = the head.
To say “My stomach hurts.” in Spanish: Me duele el estómago. (meh DWEH-leh el ess-TOH-mah-goh). Built from me duele = it hurts me; el estómago = the stomach.
To say “I'm ill. (state → estar)” in Spanish: Estoy enfermo. (ess-TOY en-FAIR-moh). Built from a temporary state → estar; estoy = I am; enfermo = ill.
To say “I need a doctor.” in Spanish: Necesito un médico. (neh-theh-SEE-toh oon MEH-dee-koh). Built from necesito = I need; un médico = a doctor.
To say “Where is the pharmacy?” in Spanish: ¿Dónde está la farmacia? (DOHN-deh ess-TAH lah far-MAH-thyah). Built from dónde está = where is; la farmacia = the pharmacy.
Example dialogue
Taking a taxi
Driver: Buenas tardes. ¿A dónde va? (BWEH-nahs TAR-dehs. ah DOHN-deh vah) — Good afternoon. Where are you going?
You: Al aeropuerto, por favor. (ahl ah-eh-roh-PWER-toh, por fah-VOR) — To the airport, please.
Driver: Muy bien. ¿Tiene prisa? (mwee bee-EN. tee-EH-neh PREE-sah) — Very good. Are you in a hurry?
You: Sí, un poco. ¿Cuánto cuesta? (see, oon POH-koh. KWAHN-toh KWEHS-tah) — Yes, a little. How much does it cost?
Driver: Veinte euros, más o menos. (VAYN-teh EH-oo-rohs, mahs oh MEH-nohs) — Twenty euros, more or less.
You: Está bien. Gracias. (ehs-TAH byen. GRAH-thyahs) — That's fine. Thank you.
Spanish etiquette that helps in Barcelona
Two kisses hello
In Spain people greet with a light kiss on each cheek. In much of Latin America it's one kiss or a handshake. When unsure, a friendly hola and a smile always work.
Tú vs. usted
Spanish has a casual tú and a formal usted. Use usted with elders, officials, and strangers; switch to tú once invited to.
Warm and expressive
Spanish speakers tend to stand closer, touch more, and speak with lively hands. Warmth and friendliness go a long way — don't be shy about a big ¡Hola!
Written by the LanguagePath editorial team from our own course material. Pronunciation guides are approximate English respellings; tap any phrase in the app above to hear it. Native-speaker review of every course is ongoing — tell us if you spot an error.