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Ask for directions in Spanish

By Bilvo · Updated

The short answer

¿Dónde está la estación? asks where the station is. Siga recto means go straight ahead; gire a la derecha means turn right. This dialogue uses formal usted commands when one adult gives another directions.

Follow the conversation

Read both roles, then cover one speaker’s lines and try to respond.

  1. Visitor

    Disculpe, ¿dónde está la estación?

    Excuse me, where is the station?

  2. Local

    Siga recto y gire a la derecha.

    Go straight ahead and turn right.

  3. Visitor

    ¿En la primera calle?

    At the first street?

  4. Local

    Sí. La estación está junto al museo.

    Yes. The station is next to the museum.

  5. Visitor

    ¿Está lejos?

    Is it far?

  6. Local

    No, está a cinco minutos a pie.

    No, it’s a five-minute walk away.

  7. Visitor

    Muchas gracias.

    Thank you very much.

Ask about a particular place

Use dónde está for the location of one place. If you do not have a particular place in mind and only want to know whether one is nearby, hay can ask about its existence instead.

¿Dónde está el museo?

Where is the museum?

You ask for the location of a particular museum.

¿Hay una farmacia cerca?

Is there a pharmacy nearby?

You need a pharmacy, without identifying a particular one.

Recognise turns and ask to hear them again

Derecha means right and izquierda means left. Directions can come quickly, so keep a repetition request ready. In this conversation, gire is the formal instruction; the informal tú version is gira.

Gire a la izquierda.

Turn left.

A la izquierda gives the direction of the turn.

¿Puede repetir, por favor?

Could you repeat, please?

Puede matches usted here; repetir stays in the infinitive.

Try it yourself

Complete the sentence for the situation. Say it aloud before revealing the answer.

  1. Ask for the location of the station.

    ¿Dónde ___ la estación?

    Check answer 1

    ¿Dónde está la estación?

    Use estar to locate the station. The singular form is está.

  2. Ask someone to turn right.

    Gire a la ___.

    Check answer 2

    Gire a la derecha.

    Derecha means right; izquierda means left.

  3. Ask someone to repeat using repetir.

    ¿Puede ___, por favor?

    Check answer 3

    ¿Puede repetir, por favor?

    Use the infinitive repetir after puede.

Make it your own

Imagine a route with one turn. Ask where the destination is, answer with the route, and then ask for repetition without reading.

Usage references

These Spanish-language references support the usage explained here. Examples, dialogues and exercises are written for Bilvo.