Erin Julian

Travel Industry Insider

“Do they speak English here?”

Posted by Industry on June 16, 2007

This is what I overheard one tourist asking another tourist in a store here…I’m not sure what nationality they were, but they were speaking English.

Think about it, they are in Western Canada (French is only really spoken in Quebec - a province of Canada no where near British Columbia), they must have arrived at an airport, border crossing or cruise terminal where I am sure they were spoken to in English (I have never had anyone speak another language to me) or they are staying somewhere & would have had to speak English and  the only time I ever hear another language is when they are tourists.

Their question does bother me a bit, because who would go travelling to a country without knowing what language they speak!!! Plus everything is in English - the street signs, the menus, the item they were holding! It makes me wonder how they booked their holiday?!

7 Responses to ““Do they speak English here?””

  1. keil Says:

    I bet they were my passengers! :)

  2. TMA Says:

    yes, unfortunately there are are lot of ignorant tourists like that out there. I wonder why they even travel abroad if they have no interest in the destination…

  3. erin Says:

    Talk about unprepared - there’s no excuse for it, not when you can look up info about anything on the Web.

  4. Costa del Sol Says:

    It is incredible !!!
    I live in a country where does not speak English but is a tourist country: Spain
    Here speak English very few persons
    We arein Europe but we do not study other languages

  5. rome Says:

    I work in tourism for many years, I am Italian and I know what it means to have difficulty with the language, in Italy a few speak English, my English is not very good too.

    But if my client come on holiday in Rome (Italy) not knowing what language we speak, it seems incredible!

    Congratulations! Your blog is very interesting. Ciao!

  6. Jana Says:

    Ha! Interesting. It’s crazy how tourists are these days. Funny enough that they could recognize from their surroundings that they were in an English speaking country. I love going to new towns, countries, experiencing the life, the travels…new hotels. It’s great. You should check out this site: http://www.roomforyourimagination.com. It’s has some really funny videos, and I think it showcases the whole point of hotels–to fit your personality and your style. My favorite video is from room 223 called Labels. It’s so hilarious! Gymnasts is good too! You need to go check it out! These videos are awesome…I work with them so I have the inside scoop!

  7. Navtej Kohli Says:

    Language guide is Numero Uno in anybodys travel checklist. They must have in rush and came unprepared..

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