🇪🇸 SpanishA1–A2

How to Ask for Directions in Spanish

Use this page when you need help finding a street, station, museum, or other nearby place in Spain. It gives you the polite ways to stop someone, ask how to get somewhere, understand the directions you hear back, and confirm a detail if you did not catch it the first time.

Useful in real conversations

Essential Spanish phrases

Getting someone's attention

Short openers you can use before asking for help.

Perdone
Excuse me
Disculpe
Excuse me
Perdone, ¿me puede ayudar?
Excuse me, can you help me?
¿Tiene un minuto?
Do you have a minute?

Asking where a place is

Useful questions for finding out where a place is and whether you can walk there.

¿Dónde está [place]?
Where is [place]?
¿Cómo llego a [place]?
How do I get to [place]?
¿Está lejos de aquí?
Is it far from here?
¿Se puede ir andando?
Can I walk there?
¿Está cerca?
Is it nearby?

Understanding directions

Common replies you may hear when someone explains the route.

Siga recto.
Go straight ahead.
Gire a la derecha.
Turn right.
Gire a la izquierda.
Turn left.
Cruce la calle.
Cross the street.
Está al final de la calle.
It's at the end of the street.
Está junto al banco.
It's next to the bank.

Clarifying and thanking

Phrases for checking what you heard and closing the exchange politely.

¿Puede repetirlo, por favor?
Can you repeat that, please?
¿Más despacio, por favor?
Slower, please.
¿Quiere decir a la izquierda?
Do you mean to the left?
Muchas gracias por su ayuda.
Thank you very much for your help.
Gracias, ya está.
Thanks, that's enough.

Example conversations

Finding a museum from the street

A learner stops a passerby and asks how to reach a museum on foot.

You
Perdone, ¿me puede ayudar?
Excuse me, can you help me?
Other person
Claro. ¿Qué busca?
Of course. What are you looking for?
You
¿Cómo llego al Museo del Prado?
How do I get to the Prado Museum?
Other person
Siga recto y gire a la derecha en el semáforo.
Go straight ahead and turn right at the traffic light.
You
¿A la derecha en el semáforo?
To the right at the traffic light?
Other person
Sí, luego está al final de la calle.
Yes, then it's at the end of the street.
You
Muchas gracias por su ayuda.
Thank you very much for your help.
Other person
De nada.
You're welcome.

Walking to the train station

A learner asks at the side of a road whether the station is reachable on foot and checks the route.

You
Disculpe, ¿dónde está la estación de tren?
Excuse me, where is the train station?
Other person
Está a cinco minutos andando.
It's five minutes away on foot.
You
¿Se puede ir andando?
Can I walk there?
Other person
Sí, siga recto hasta la plaza y cruce la calle.
Yes, go straight ahead to the square and cross the street.
You
¿Quiere decir a la izquierda?
Do you mean to the left?
Other person
No, siga recto; está junto al banco.
No, keep going straight; it's next to the bank.
You
Perfecto, gracias.
Perfect, thanks.
Other person
De nada.
You're welcome.

A few things to know

polite by default

For a stranger or someone you do not know well, start with polite forms such as Perdone and usted-style questions like ¿me puede ayudar?. The directions you are likely to hear back are the formal usted commands used in Spain, such as Siga and Gire. Save informal tú forms for people you know well or very casual situations.

grammar

llegar a with places

Spanish uses llegar a + place when you ask how to get somewhere, as in '¿Cómo llego a [place]?'. If the place starts with el, the a contracts to al, so '¿Cómo llego al museo?' is the natural pattern. If it starts with la, keep 'a la', as in '¿Cómo llego a la estación?'.

grammar

Turn directions use a la

For street directions, Spanish normally says 'a la derecha' and 'a la izquierda', as in 'Gire a la derecha.'. In this context, 'en la derecha' or 'en la izquierda' is not the usual form.

Try it yourself

Choose the right phrase

Pick what you would say in each situation.

Question 1 of 3

Question 1
Question 2
Question 3

You are trying to stop a stranger and start a question about directions in one sentence. Which phrase fits best?

Perdone, ¿me puede ayudar?Perdone¿Tiene un minuto?

Keep building your everyday vocabulary

Spanish Introductions: Essential PhrasesSpanish phrases for greeting someone, introducing yourself, asking basic personal questions, and closing a first conversation naturally in Spain.Spanish Restaurant and Café PhrasesSpanish (Spain) phrases for restaurant and café visits: getting a table, ordering, checking ingredients, handling a problem, paying, and leaving politely.Spanish Hotel and Accommodation PhrasesSpanish hotel phrases for checking in, asking about services, reporting room problems, and checking out in Spain.Essential Spanish Shopping PhrasesEssential Spanish phrases for shopping in Spain: asking for help, checking price and size, trying items on, understanding basic replies, paying, and handling a simple exchange or return.Spanish Public Transport PhrasesSpanish (Spain) phrases for finding the right bus or train, buying tickets, asking about stops and times, making transfers, and handling delays or confusion.

Put the phrases in context