Finding Your Way - Directions and Transport

Finding Your Way: Essential Direction Words#

Getting around in a new country can be stressful, especially when you do not speak the language well. In Germany, you will need to ask for directions to find the train station, your doctor's office, the nearest supermarket, or your new workplace. While smartphone navigation is helpful, knowing basic direction vocabulary in German will save you when your phone battery dies, when you are underground without signal, or when a friendly German tries to help you find your way.

The most important direction words are: links (left), rechts (right), geradeaus (straight ahead), zurück (back), hier (here), dort / da (there), oben (up/above), unten (down/below), gegenüber (opposite/across from), neben (next to), zwischen (between), an der Ecke (at the corner), and die Kreuzung (the intersection/crossroads). When someone gives you directions, these are the words you will hear most frequently. Practice recognizing them by sound, because when someone is speaking quickly, you need to pick out these key words even if you do not understand every word in the sentence.

To ask for directions, use these phrases: Entschuldigung, wo ist...? (Excuse me, where is...?), Wie komme ich zum/zur...? (How do I get to the...?), Ist es weit? (Is it far?), Kann ich zu Fuss gehen? (Can I walk there?). Note the grammar: 'zum' is used before masculine and neuter nouns (zum Bahnhof = to the train station), and 'zur' is used before feminine nouns (zur Post = to the post office). Do not worry too much about getting this perfectly right at the A1 level — Germans will understand you even if you mix them up.

A typical response to your question might sound like this: Gehen Sie geradeaus, dann an der zweiten Kreuzung links. Der Bahnhof ist auf der rechten Seite. (Go straight ahead, then at the second intersection turn left. The train station is on the right side.) Key phrases in directions: Gehen Sie... (Go..., formal), Biegen Sie links/rechts ab (Turn left/right), die erste/zweite/dritte Strasse (the first/second/third street), auf der linken/rechten Seite (on the left/right side), am Ende der Strasse (at the end of the street), nach der Ampel (after the traffic light), vor der Brücke (before the bridge).

Practical landmarks to know: der Bahnhof (train station), die Haltestelle (bus/tram stop), die Apotheke (pharmacy — marked with a red 'A'), das Krankenhaus (hospital), die Post (post office), das Rathaus (town hall/city hall), der Marktplatz (market square), die Kirche (church), die Ampel (traffic light), der Parkplatz (parking lot). These landmarks are commonly used as reference points when giving directions. For example: Es ist neben der Apotheke (It is next to the pharmacy) or Gegenüber vom Rathaus (Opposite the town hall). Learning these landmark words will help you both when asking for directions and when someone is trying to guide you.