The 36 most important foreign phrases you'll need for your ski holiday

Language isn’t usually a problem when you’re in the Alps – after all, service staff often speak English, and you can usually make do by pointing at what you’d like to eat if you find yourself lost for words in a mountain restaurant. Embarrassing, yes, but at least you won’t go hungry.

Still, a little fluency can go a long way. Perhaps you’re on a romantic break and you want to impress your partner with your sophistication. Or maybe it’s a family holiday and you’re trying to encourage your children to practise their skills.

Besides the basic essentials – “please,” “thank you,” “sorry” – it’s always good to express yourself. Whether you’re heading to France, Switzerland, Austria or Italy, language learning app Babbel has shared some skiing-themed lines to help you connect with (or complain to) the locals, even if those lessons you took at school are a distant memory.  

First things first – how do you get on the chairlift and keep your cool when people around you don’t seem to grasp the basics of queuing etiquette?

Of course, perfect grammar isn’t always the most important thing. You could look up the French phrases for “I can’t slow down”, “Help!” and “Watch out!” but a loud yell will usually get the message across before you can remember how to say “Je n’arrive pas à ralentir.”

For many of us, après is an integral part of the ski holiday experience, and a couple of drinks is the perfect way to round off a day on the slopes.

If you want to get away from parties of rowdy Brits making a spectacle of themselves, find out where the locals hang out. Even if you can’t pass as a native speaker, throwing in a few foreign phrases can help win people over if you want to make friends – or to chat someone up.

Babbel currently offers courses in 14 different languages, so for adventurous travellers who fancy a trip to Norway or Russia instead, there's no need to miss out on a chance to get chatting. Viel Glück, and bon voyage!