Travel abroad without English, is it possible?!!

NO, definitely not!!! Of course, at least knowing how to scratch in English is already of great help, but this should never be a factor for you to stop traveling abroad. If that's your case, if the language is a barrier and you don't feel safe, discover these 6 tips for traveling abroad without English and without fear!!!

Ah, before giving the tips, I must say that there are two essential things you need to be able to manage under any circumstances … stick face and laugh at yourself!!!

Cara de pau is essential for any traveller, even those fluent in English or the local language, because at some point you will need someone's help on the street, information, or even at the hotel … don't you know how to speak?! Go mime, this is the true universal language and with goodwill everyone manages to communicate like this at the time of the squeeze.

Knowing how to laugh at yourself will leave that shame of not knowing how to speak another language in the background and the perrengues or embarrassing situations of the moment will become funny stories that will be part of the journey... it's part, everyone goes through these situations, the idea is just take it in a good mood hahahaha.

Travel abroad without English ?! Tips for you to lose your fear and explore the world !!

1. Study your destiny

This should be a tip for any traveler but I know that a lot of people just choose the destination, buy the tickets and go with an open itinerary, without much planning… ok, but when you don’t know how to speak English, this lack of planning and especially of knowing it very well the destination you are going to can give you a headache.

Imagine yourself in London, for example, deciding which tours to take on the spot and knowing almost nothing about the city… at least you'll have some setbacks, not to mention that you'll go through some hassles hahahaha.

So, in advance, study about the destination that is going, what is important to know about the city; the location of your hotel and what is close to it, including, if you are going to use public transport, book a hotel that has easy access to these transports; make a script day by day, even if basic, just to serve as a guide and you can already study the public transport routes.

Speaking of public transport, most big cities have app that can be downloaded onto your cell phone with information and routes for you to trace and locate yourself even before arriving in the city. We use a lot of CityMapper app, which is an online map with complete information on subways, trains, buses and even bikes in different cities around the world, it is worth downloading.

2. Internet chip

Another tip that is essential for any traveler, but especially for those who don't speak another language… don't travel without a local internet chip!!!! In other words, don't even leave Brazil without an internet chip abroad, because that way you'll already arrive at your destination with working internet, in addition to optimizing your time, it will make your life easier too.

Even if you are not a person connected to social networks and if you do not post stories and photos during the entire trip, never count on the luck of only using the wifi in the hotel and public places… definitely this is an economy that does not suit anyone want to travel without speaking English.

Certainly at some point during the trip (not to mention many times) you will resort to google maps, searching for some information about the city or the itinerary and also to google translator… it is not exactly a perfect translator but it is a super life saver and everyone gets along with it, don't be ashamed to use it, ever!!!

By the way, internet while traveling is a real life saver, from looking for a simple restaurant nearby to solving bigger problems.

Need an internet chip tip to use abroad? We ALWAYS travel with the MySimTravel or Easysim4u chip… we highly recommend both and we already left Brazil with it and arrived at the destination with working internet.

3. Flexible Itinerary

For those who like to travel with a super complete itinerary and without time to breathe, I suggest being more flexible if you don't know how to speak English or the local language... to find and understand yourself in places.

Travel with time to do things calmly, even if for that you remove some program from the script or at least leave it on stand-by, if there is great time, otherwise, at least you won't be frustrated of not being able to do it.

List the main tours you want to do that day and focus on them, study the route, the nearby restaurants, the shops you want to visit, the nearby beach you want to visit but schedule this and the other tours of the day with time to spare, after all if you are late at another attraction, getting lost more than once, taking the wrong public transport or getting off at the wrong station is normal, it's part of everyone's trip.

4. Know how to laugh at yourself

I already said this at the beginning of the post but I'll say it again... know how to laugh at yourself!!! He went through a difficult, embarrassing situation, some perrengue, ok, now breathe, turn the page and collect funny stories during the trip… nobody comes out of these stories unscathed, you bet hahahaha.

Even with my ability to speak English, I've been through some funny situations and others not so much because I don't know how to speak the local language and in the end they became stories to tell and have fun.

I've already been to a restaurant in Croatia, before the tourism boom there, where they only had a menu in Croatian!!!!!! The main things, like meat, seafood, pasta were even in English but how to know what I would order????? hahahahaha After a lot of mime, google translate, google images of ingredients and a good dose of laughter from the waiter with us, everything worked out and I think I know what I ate… I hope! hahahahah. In a super traditional restaurant in Barcelona I was not so lucky, I understood the waiter explaining one thing but it was a completely different one, I thought it was a grilled meat when in fact it was a meat stew and I hated it hahahahaha. In Greece it was even worse, I rented a car at a small rental company, which nobody spoke English, despite the lease agreement being in English (??), I had an accident, I had a total loss of the car, due to a failure in the handbrake, which I had already found out and was going the next morning to change the car... there was no time, it was a huge mess because I wanted to explain that the car was defective but no one understood me... I tell this story in detail today to friends and everyone dies laughing, including me but at the time it was really tense not being able to express myself and make myself understood.

5. Hire a local guide

If even with these tips you still don't feel safe traveling without knowing how to speak English, arrive in the city and hire a local guide who speaks Portuguese!!!

It is very, very common for us to find Brazilian guides scattered in every city around the world, especially the big cities, tourist cities... so, hire a guide to show you the city, the tourist points, tell you a little about the history of the place… and also gain several tips that only the locals know.

Social networks are excellent places for people to meet people (after all, this connection is the true meaning of social networks, right) and with that you can end up meeting Brazilians who are not even guides but who are residents of the destination you are going to visit and encourage you to make new friends and give you tips on cool tours and even offer to walk with you around the city.

6. Start traveling to non-English speaking countries

For you to get used to it and feel that traveling without knowing how to speak another language is not a big deal, start traveling to destinations where you can speak our good old Portunhol!!! Okay, I know you don't speak Spanish either (I don't speak either!!!) but anyone is able to communicate with that Portuguese language that we learn in soap operas, believe me hahahaha.

Start by traveling around South America, such as Argentina, Uruguay, Chile; or go and enjoy the beaches in the Caribbean, such as Cancun, Cozumel, San Andres, Punta Cana, Aruba… these are some examples of amazing places where you don't need to know how to speak English.

If you want to dare a little more, you can even get to know the USA without speaking any English, believe me!!!! Florida is one of the places in the world with the highest concentration of Brazilians, after Brazil … every two steps, you stumble upon a Brazilian … it is certainly a destination that you will not go through without the help of someone who also speaks your language !!

I fully understand that this language barrier is a limiting factor for MANY people, but with planning, a brave face and a good sense of humor, you can pack your backpack and discover any place in the world… just go!!!! And then come back here and tell me about the experience.