Travel phrases

Essential Afrikaans travel phrases

Pack the words that matter. These are the 34 Afrikaans phrases that actually come up on a trip, from your first Hallo to calling for help, grouped by situation and written with a simple pronunciation guide, and read aloud at the tap of a button. Chosen the way a Afrikaans speaker would choose them, which is why the list ends with the phrases you only hear once you are there.

Quick answer

The most useful Afrikaans travel phrases cover greetings, politeness, directions, food, and emergencies. Learn a handful first: Hallo (hello), Asseblief (please), Dankie (thanks), and Waar is die toilet? (where is the toilet?). This free tool groups 34 Afrikaans phrases by situation, each with a plain-English pronunciation and a play button that reads it aloud. They are the phrases Afrikaans speakers really use, not an English list translated into Afrikaans, so the last block is the one a phrasebook never has: what locals say to each other.

Start here

The first 10 Afrikaans phrases to learn

The ones you need on day one. Tap play, say the phrase back until it sounds close, then say it along with the voice: that is shadowing, the drill interpreters train with.

  1. 1 Hallo Hello HAH-loh Works with anyone; Haai is the casual version between friends
  2. 2 Goeiemôre Good morning khoo-yuh-MAW-ruh Often just Môre; goeiemiddag from noon, goeienaand in the evening. Goeiedag is the stiffer all-day form
  3. 3 Hoe gaan dit? How are you? hoo KHAHN dit Asked every time; answer and ask back or you come across as abrupt
  4. 4 Goed dankie, en met jou? Good thanks, and you? KHOOT DAHN-kee en met YOH The set answer to Hoe gaan dit?; en met u to someone older
  5. 5 Totsiens Goodbye tot-SEENS The polite goodbye; friends say Sien jou later or just Baai
  6. 6 Dankie Thanks DAHN-kee Baie dankie is thank you very much; the answer you get is Plesier
  7. 7 Asseblief Please AH-suh-bleef Goes at the end of the request, exactly like please in English
  8. 8 Ja / Nee Yes / No YAH / NEE-uh
  9. 9 Verskoon my Excuse me fur-SKOON may To get attention or to get past; Ekskuus works too, Jammer is a real apology
  10. 10 Ek verstaan nie I don't understand ek fur-STAHN nee A longer sentence takes a second nie at the end: Ek verstaan nie wat jy sê nie
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All 34 phrases, grouped by situation.

Greetings

Hallo Hello HAH-loh Works with anyone; Haai is the casual version between friends
Goeiemôre Good morning khoo-yuh-MAW-ruh Often just Môre; goeiemiddag from noon, goeienaand in the evening. Goeiedag is the stiffer all-day form
Hoe gaan dit? How are you? hoo KHAHN dit Asked every time; answer and ask back or you come across as abrupt
Goed dankie, en met jou? Good thanks, and you? KHOOT DAHN-kee en met YOH The set answer to Hoe gaan dit?; en met u to someone older
Totsiens Goodbye tot-SEENS The polite goodbye; friends say Sien jou later or just Baai

Basics

Dankie Thanks DAHN-kee Baie dankie is thank you very much; the answer you get is Plesier
Asseblief Please AH-suh-bleef Goes at the end of the request, exactly like please in English
Ja / Nee Yes / No YAH / NEE-uh
Verskoon my Excuse me fur-SKOON may To get attention or to get past; Ekskuus works too, Jammer is a real apology
Ek verstaan nie I don't understand ek fur-STAHN nee A longer sentence takes a second nie at the end: Ek verstaan nie wat jy sê nie
Praat u Engels? Do you speak English? praht ew ENG-uls Nearly every Afrikaans speaker does; praat jy is the informal version

Getting around

Waar is die toilet? Where is the toilet? vahr is dee toy-LET Badkamer works too; on a long drive the petrol stations are the clean stop
Hoe ver is dit met die kar? How far is it by car? hoo FER is dit met dee KAHR Distances here are driven, not walked; kar is a car, motor works too
Ry reguit en dan links Go straight on and then left ray ruh-KHAYT en dahn LINKS Directions come back as ry reguit, draai links, draai regs
Is dit veilig om hier te loop? Is it safe to walk here? is dit FAY-likh om heer tuh LOO-up A normal question in South Africa, especially after dark; ask at your hotel or a shop
Maak vol, asseblief Fill it up, please mahk FOL AH-suh-bleef Said to the petrol attendant, who fills the tank for you; a small cash tip is normal

Eating out

Kan ek 'n rooibos kry, asseblief? Can I have a rooibos tea, please? kahn ek uh ROY-bos KRAY AH-suh-bleef The everyday way to order anything; rooibos is the red bush tea served everywhere, with or without milk
Wat beveel u aan? What do you recommend? vat buh-FEE-ul ew AHN
Eet smaaklik Enjoy your meal EE-ut SMAHK-luk Said before anyone starts eating; the answer is Dankie, jy ook
Die rekening, asseblief The bill, please dee REE-kuh-ning AH-suh-bleef A tip of about ten percent is expected, in cash if you have it
Ons gaan braai We're having a barbecue ons khahn BRY A braai is the whole afternoon, not just a meal; take your own drinks

Shopping

Hoeveel kos dit? How much is it? hoo-FEE-ul kos dit
Is dit kontant of kaart? Is that cash or card? is dit kon-TAHNT of KAHRT Card works nearly everywhere; keep cash for car guards and roadside stalls
Ek kyk maar net I'm just browsing ek KAYK mahr net The friendly answer when an assistant offers to help you
Kan jy 'n bietjie afslag gee? Can you give me a bit of a discount? kahn yay uh BEE-kee AHF-slahkh KHEE-uh Only at craft markets and roadside stalls, never in a shop

Emergencies

Help! Help! HELP
Bel die polisie! Call the police! bel dee poh-LEE-see Police is 10111, ambulance 10177, and 112 from a mobile phone
Ek het 'n dokter nodig I need a doctor ek het uh DOK-tur NOO-dukh
Ek het verdwaal I'm lost ek het fur-DWAHL

Locals say

Lekker! Nice, tasty, great LEK-ur Tasty, fun or great; used about food, weekends and just about anything
Ja-nee Yes indeed yah-NEE-uh Agreement, not confusion: quite so, that is how it is
Nou-nou In a little while noh-NOH Soon, but not now. Netnou can mean soon or a moment ago, so ask for a time
Dankie, Tannie Thank you (to an older woman, literally auntie) DAHN-kee TAH-nee Older women are Tannie and older men Oom, strangers included: Dankie, Oom. It is respect, not familiarity
Gesondheid Bless you, and cheers khuh-SONT-hate Said when someone sneezes, and also as a toast when glasses are raised

How to get the most from these phrases

Learn by situation, not alphabetically. Your memory files Hallo next to the moment you would use it, so run through the greetings before you fly, the restaurant block on the way to dinner, and the emergency block once so it is there if you ever need it.

The pronunciation guide is written the way an English speaker would read it aloud, with the stressed syllable in capitals. It is a crutch, not the real sound. Press play, listen once, then say the phrase back: the audio fixes the vowels that plain English spelling cannot capture. Once a phrase feels easy, say it together with the voice, a beat behind, the way interpreters drill: our guide to shadowing explains the sequence.

Phrases get you to the country. What gets you fluent is meeting the same words again and again in context, which is exactly what reading does. Once Asseblief and Dankie feel automatic, the next step is a real Afrikaans sentence, then a page, then a book. That is the whole idea behind reading in Lingo7.

Start reading Afrikaans with Lingo7 →

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Not sure of your Afrikaans level? Take the CEFR test (A1-C2) →

How long does it take to learn Afrikaans? →

Compare Afrikaans to other languages by difficulty →

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Frequently asked questions

What are the most important Afrikaans phrases for travel?

Start with greetings and politeness, then the phrases that solve a real problem: asking directions, ordering, paying, and getting help. On this page that is Hallo (hello), Asseblief (please), Dankie (thanks), Waar is die toilet? (where is the toilet?), and Help! (help!). Learn those few and you can be polite and safe almost anywhere.

What do Afrikaans locals say that a phrasebook leaves out?

A phrasebook translates English, so it gives you the Afrikaans for "hello" and stops. The phrases people there actually trade all day are the ones with no English slot: Lekker! (nice, tasty, great), Ja-nee (yes indeed), Nou-nou (in a little while). The "Locals say" block on this page collects 5 of them and says when each one is used, which is usually what turns a correct sentence into a normal one.

What do these Afrikaans phrases sound like?

Tap the play button next to a phrase and you hear it read aloud, so you can copy the sound instead of guessing it from the spelling. The written pronunciation is a crutch for English eyes, the audio is the real thing. Play Hallo and Dankie a few times, say them back, and they come out right when it counts.

How do you say hello and thank you in Afrikaans?

In Afrikaans, hello is Hallo (pronounced HAH-loh) and thank you is Dankie (DAHN-kee). Add Asseblief (please) and Totsiens (goodbye), and you have the words that carry most short exchanges with a shopkeeper, waiter, or stranger.

How do you ask where the toilet is in Afrikaans?

Ask Waar is die toilet? (pronounced vahr is dee toy-LET), which means "where is the toilet?" in Afrikaans. If you only catch part of the reply, Ek verstaan nie (I don't understand) and a smile usually gets it repeated or pointed out. It is one of the few phrases worth memorizing word for word before you go.

Do I need to learn Afrikaans before traveling?

No, but a dozen Afrikaans phrases go a long way. Locals warm up fast when you open with Hallo and Dankie instead of English. You do not need grammar or fluency for a trip, just the survival set above. For anything past that, the fastest route to real Afrikaans is reading, which is exactly what Lingo7 is built for.