Words by Pat Eggleton
Most people you need to speak to for tourist purposes in Italy will happily speak English to you and this often goes for business too. But sometimes you need Italian to get through to the person you want to speak to!
To introduce yourself you say:
Sono + your name
Sono la signora Jane Smith
To ask if you can speak to someone you say:
Posso parlare con + name
Posso parlare con il signor Rossi, per favore?
If you want to speak to someone who speaks English you say:
Posso parlare con qualcuno che parli inglese, per favore?
To be put through to another department you say:
Mi passa….?
Mi passa L’ufficio prenotazioni, per favore?
(English: Can you put me through to the booking office, please?)
Mi passa l’ufficio informazioni, per favore?
(English: Can you put me through to the information office, please?)
It is always nice to be able to sign off in Italian, even if you have been talking in English.
You can say,
Grazie per l’aiuto. Arrivederci.
(English: Thank you for your help. Goodbye.)
You can also say:
Buona giornata.
(English: Have a good day.)
