Is it very difficult to take a vacation somewhere where you don't speak the language (specifically Peru)?

February 13, 2008 1:03 PM

Is it very difficult to take a vacation somewhere where you don't speak the language (specifically Peru)?

My wife and I are considering taking a week long vacation in Peru in April. I don't have it all planned out yet but we'd most likely see Machu Picchu and the Nazca Lines and stay in Cuzco.

Neither one of us speaks spanish and we don't have much time to learn it.

Will it be really difficult to get around without knowing the language? I would think some English is spoken around touristy areas.

posted by bingwah to travel & transportation (28 comments total)

I usually don't like to do this, cause it confines you TO the tourist areas. But you should be able to find a tour operator there that can take you along the whole way and speaks English.
posted by waylaid at 1:13 PM on February 13, 2008

What waylaid said.

But, depending on the economic situation of your country of interest, you can get around that problem by paying a local to personally guide/translate for you.
posted by Netzapper at 1:21 PM on February 13, 2008

Use a phrase book and you can get by easily. Practice key phrases on the ride down there so you get the pronunciation correct and you should have no problems. The places you mentioned are tourist areas so they are used to dealing with english-speakers.
posted by JJ86 at 1:25 PM on February 13, 2008

You'll be fine if you confine yourself to the area around Cuzco and use reputable guides.

My strong recommendation would be to budget a couple of extra days and do at least a 3-day hike on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. It's an entirely different experience if you take the train up from Aguas Calientes.
posted by Roach at 1:27 PM on February 13, 2008 [1 favorite]

You won't have a problem finding English speakers unless you're way, way off the beaten track. And even if there are times when nobody speaks English, and you no Spanish, that's half the fun of travel: being confused, pantomiming your way through situations. You'll be fine.
posted by nitsuj at 1:31 PM on February 13, 2008

If people only traveled to areas where they spoke the language, the world would be a very different place. And life would be far less exciting.

* Spend a little extra money and use experienced, bi-lingual local guides.
* Spend a little extra money and use a phrasebook.

Some of the best experiences I've ever had in my 70+, 7 continent travels have been the joy of asking a local to each me a few phrases. It earns you a smile, some laughs, some respect and a much better travel experience.

Just promise yourself you'll learn 5 useful phrases in Spanish and your entire visit to Peru will be 10 x better.
posted by HeyAllie at 1:32 PM on February 13, 2008

I did pretty well in rural Taiwan with a phrasebook and a lot of gesturing and pointing. I had a terrible time learning any Chinese, but learning the numbers came in handy for buying things from street vendors and other places without posted pricing. I didn't really get off the tourist path, but these were places that only Taiwanese tourists tended to go, so there wasn't a lot of English to be found.
posted by moonmilk at 1:33 PM on February 13, 2008

I was in Peru a month ago. The friend I went with speaks fluent Spanish, but mine is pretty basic. I was ok for the most part, and think you would do well to learn some simple phrases. People there are used to tourists and are generally patient.
posted by sweetkid at 1:35 PM on February 13, 2008

I've been lots of places where I didn't speak the local language, and gotten along just fine. Frankly, I think trying to learn the language on-the-spot is sort of fun (eg: middle of nowhere Romania, where you suddenly learn everyone seems to pronounce "tren" with a slightly different tone. Or Bulgaria, where every time I said "Blagodarya" someone would correct the pronunciation -- and then someone else would make a different correction, and they'd get in an argument!)

...then again, I'm the kind of person who looks back fondly at the time I got stuck at a checkpoint in Myingyan.

Point, gesture, laugh a lot, and try hard. As long as you can do those four things, you'll be fine.
posted by aramaic at 1:40 PM on February 13, 2008

I wouldn't be too worried if you stick to Peru, and to the more touristic path specifically. There's always someone around who speaks English. Just get a phrasebook and you'll learn the most useful stuff pretty quickly.

By the way I would really recommend spending more time in the Inca Valley instead of having to fly (or bus? no.... ) to Nazca. You'll lose less time in transportation (1 week is short!), and this will feel more like vacation! The Pisac ruins are awesome, and so are the Salineras! I found that the Inca Valley is a great preparation/progression to Machu Picchu.
posted by ddaavviidd at 1:49 PM on February 13, 2008

You may not think you have time to learn a new language, but really you do at least for visiting. I HIGHLY recommend going through the first month (or more depending on when in April you are going) of a Pimsleur course in Spanish. I did just about a month of the Japanese level 1 disks prior to my going over there for a two weeks vacation and while I couldn't get into big conversations with people, I could ask for directions, figure out how much things were, and use pleasantries which are always respectful of the place you are visiting.

The Pimsleur technique really is quite helpful and successful, and sort of relies on the "one 30 minute lesson a day" to work, as it gives your brain time to sort of comprehend and store the information when you are "idling." You can learn more about the technique at Wikipedia. You won't be fluent by any means, and it doesn't really help a lot when it comes to reading but you should be able to suss out signs since both english and spanish use the same basic alphabet (unlike Japanese!). In the end, you might find yourself able to be a little more adventurous, or at least more confident during your trip.
posted by tittergrrl at 1:51 PM on February 13, 2008 [1 favorite]

Agreed with everyone here. (For the record, I wasn't saying that you shouldn't go - you absolutely should) You will be fine, especially in a place with a lot of tourists and English-speakign guides.
posted by waylaid at 2:08 PM on February 13, 2008

I generally don't do this, but you shouldn't let it keep you from going somewhere you want to go! I've been in regions where I couldn't speak the language; the most important phrases are probably "how much is this", the numbers, and names of various food so you don't starve. Asking directions is usually a matter of repeating the place you want to go and acting all confused, and people can generally point the way if they know what place you're referring to.
posted by pravit at 2:12 PM on February 13, 2008

Was just going to pop in to recommend the Pimsleur course as tittergrrl did. They're cheap and easy to follow along. If you commute to work, you have time to learn some basic tourist Spanish.
posted by Burhanistan at 2:12 PM on February 13, 2008

Definitely go. Learn a few basic words/phrases before you get there. It's amazing how far you'll get with just:

hello
excuse me
please
thank you
1,2,3
how much?
I'm sorry
I don't speak [language].

Even this tiny effort to speak the local language will bring you goodwill and cooperation in spades. You'll be fine.
posted by somanyamys at 2:27 PM on February 13, 2008

From Wikitravel Peru:
"In tourist centers like Cusco and Machu Picchu or in high class hotels, English is spoken. If you intend to visit other sites, especially in the countryside, you'll need Spanish."

My boyfriend and I have taken a number of vacations in countries where neither of us spoke the language, and so far it has never been an issue. Of course, we rarely strayed from the beaten, path, but it looks like you will be exclusively sticking to touristy endevours as well, where everyone involved is likely to speak at least some basic English.

Pretty much any Peru travel guide you can buy will contain a simple phrase book: my advice is to learn as much as you can--even if your Spanish is terrible, it is always an indication of goodwill and respect to attempt to master some phrases in the language of your host.
posted by halogen at 2:34 PM on February 13, 2008

I know maybe 100 Spanish words, and I had no problems in Peru. The country thrives on tourism, and your trip is important to the economy. And I stayed in cheap hostels and made all the arrangements myself. Get a good phrasebook and familiarize yourself with common vocabulary and you'll be fine. I had a great time.
posted by Pater Aletheias at 2:55 PM on February 13, 2008

Nazca is not as touristy as you'd think, there's really nothing much to do except get in, fly over the lines, and get out. You will get the gringo price for the flyover, but other than that you'll be fine.
posted by signal at 3:27 PM on February 13, 2008

Pater is concise and reflects my experience. Phrase book, no guides. My wife and I spent a month in Cusco and the sacred valley and it was a rich trip. Don't miss Pisac.

Aside- Lonely Planet Guide suggested a day trip where you take a bus out to a not too far ruin from Cusco and hike back to Sacsayhuaman. We did this and had a fantastic hike with many small ruins to ourselves. Later that nite and perhaps even the next day we heard stories of people who visited Sacsayhuaman and decided to walk the short way to the next ruin. This was not a good idea for them as they were robbed of everything but their passports and plane tickets. I wondered if we didn't saunter past some Peruvian thugs as we left the last ruin but Sacsayhuaman, with them going, "Where did they come from? What kind of look out are you? Jeez!" This was almost twenty years ago and I believe the security situation has changed.

Anyway, Cusco, Sacred valley, Machu Picchu (arrange for two days) Pisac, phrasebook, no guides. Have a great trip.
posted by pointilist at 6:01 PM on February 13, 2008

I was there in November. If you only speak American, expect to pay American prices for everything. Forget about haggling. Other than that, you will survive just fine.
posted by randomstriker at 6:34 PM on February 13, 2008

i'm constantly travelling in countries whose languages i don't speak.

there's a very basic subset of words & phrases that you can get by on - as somanyamys listed above - although i'd add the word for "where is" and "toilet". you can learn all these in a day or two, probably less.

aside from those stock words & phrases, you can communicate further with any combination of the following:

* "sign language" (gestures, mimes, etc)
* any smatterings of local words you might already know (pollo, cerveza etc)
* whatever smatterings of english the locals already know (thanks, hollywood!)
* any local lingo you pick up on the way
* words from other languages ("wine? vin? vino?" *drinky drinky motion*)
* drawings scribbled onto a notepad
* pointing at things (eg in restaurants)
* help from locals who have reasonably good english (quite common, and many people want to practice, all over the world - ask them questions!)
* help from other travellers who know the local language
* a smile, patience & goodwill

it's nowhere near as hard as you might think, and a hell of a lot of fun.

good luck!
posted by UbuRoivas at 7:04 PM on February 13, 2008

I think you will be fine. I have found if I don't speak the language I pay a lot more attention to what is going on around me. I end up having a much more enjoyable time trying to figure things out as I go along and I come away feeling as if I accomplished something during my trip.
posted by bkeene12 at 8:02 PM on February 13, 2008

I think you will be fine. I have found if I don't speak the language I pay a lot more attention to what is going on being said around me. I end up having a much more enjoyable time trying to figure things out as I go along and I come away feeling as if I accomplished something during my trip.

Could just be a personal thing, but I always find myself approaching languages in foreign countries as a fun kind of intellectual puzzle, with a side benefit that you learn something in the process.

For example, you see a green sign with a person going out a door, with the caption "sortie" - cool, Sortie means exit!

Or you examine a breakfast menu. The most common item is "huevos", and some people around you are eating eggs. Ok, huevos = eggs, that part is now the constant variable. The independent variable is the style of egg. So you go random & select the huevos rancheros. Sounds like ranch-style eggs, whatever that might be. Hey - these are good! *mental note*

Or you listen in to what locals say when they meet each other or try to decipher newspaper headlines (with help from the illustrations), or in places like India or the middle east, slowly teach yourself to read the local script, whenever it appears next to a transliterated version in English (eg on bus timetables etc).

You should find that the parts of the language that are the most important for your travel will inevitably be the ones that you end up figuring out first.
posted by UbuRoivas at 9:01 PM on February 13, 2008

somanyamys wrote...

hello
excuse me
please
thank you
1,2,3
how much?
I'm sorry
I don't speak [language].


That's pretty much the same list I've used in god knows how many countries where I didn't speak the local language. "yes" and "no" are also handy, but "please" and "thank you" are really the only important ones.

But by all means bring along a phrasebook and/or dictionary in case you end up stuck on some point or another. (hint: the most efficient way to use a phrasebook is to look up the phrase you want and then point it out to the person you're trying to communicate with)
posted by tkolar at 11:40 PM on February 13, 2008

I've traveled alone around a bunch of Eastern European countries where I did not know a single word of the languages but brought a pocket phrase guide along. I studied it a couple weeks before my trip, on the plane, and all throughout the trip. I bookmarked and highlighted phrases I anticipated that I'd use a lot.

In bigger cities, it was pretty easy to find someone with some English knowledge, but when I ventured further afield I was really glad I had my little guide. I got a lot of laughs and puzzled looks, and there were definitely some awkward situations, but in general I think people appreciate when you at least make an effort to learn something of the local language.
posted by medeine at 11:52 PM on February 13, 2008

I travelled to Tokyo. I don't speak any English. My friends and I managed to wander around the city just fine. No one really spoke any English, but you'll be surprised at just how much people can communicate.
posted by chunking express at 8:06 AM on February 14, 2008

I travelled to Tokyo. I don't speak any English.

Uh...
posted by tkolar at 10:10 AM on February 14, 2008

My comments are all typed by a robot I dictate to -- in Esperanto.
posted by chunking express at 10:21 AM on February 14, 2008