Traveling to Quebec City, and my French language skills are awful! Problem?

[luvavacation]

I posted here a few months ago for help with a 25th anniversary trip driving through Canada, and you all were very, very helpful, so I am back with a rather stupid question, I am sure! Please forgive me.

We decided to plan on 4 nights in Quebec City, 2 nights in Montreal, and 2 nights in Toronto visiting my Godmother (I was a born there, going home! ). It is our 25th, first vacation without kids ever, and we are now empty nesters. We are doing it up good, staying at Fairmont in QC and Ritz in Montreal, just because we have never done anything like this before. I figure the people at these hotels will be able to help us if we need it (because I am paying an arm and a leg to them, you know), but I wonder about when we are away from the hotel exploring?

Now that our trip is close, I am doing some research into what to see each day, and I am getting panicked. You see, my French language skills are awful! I have a book to try to help me relearn something, but I only took 2 years in High School, and have forgotten most of it. Instead, I keep thinking of phrases in German (speak it a bit) and Hungarian (fluent in this), but French, nope, not coming back! Even my Russian returns, but not that French!

I figure I am fine in Montreal, as the websites I am visiting for tourism seem to be in both English and French, so if I mangle my French, I figure someone will be able to help me, right? However, in Quebec City, I find most things to be just in French, and I am not sure how we are going to manage to get around. If I am lost or unsure of something, will I be able to find someone that can help me?

We picked Quebec City and Montreal because I wanted to go somewhere that didn't just feel like an extension of America, but where it was ok if I wouldn't have time to prepare linguistically, and didn't think that would be a problem. Normally, when I go to a place that speaks a different language, I try to learn some conversational phrases so I am not lost. This time, nope, the French language eludes me. And QC looks like it might be a problem.

So what do you think? As long as I say, "Bonjour", and try to use my phrasebook, will we perhaps find people that will be able to help us in English if we are lost? I would not expect to find English speaking people in every country I go to, but I kind of thought QC, being in Canada, would appear more bilingual, you know?

I am so excited to go back to the land of my birth! I haven't been there in 26 years, so I am sure the places I remember are very different now, but I am just happy to go and be Canadian again!

 

[souris]

Congrats on your 25th! Sounds like it will be a romantic trip

I wish all of Canada was bilingual! I. Reality, only one province, New-Brunswick, is officially bilingual. Just as I don't expect to be helped in French in Toronto, one should not be expecting English in less travelled areas of Québec.

Québec city is gorgeous! Simply bring a travel translation guidebook/ smartphone app... You will be fine. If you get lost, you can simply point to the sentence in the book or say it out loud. It is a very friendly city. There are also a few tourist info offices (Bureau d'information touristique). http://www.quebecregion.com/en/contact you can call for information. They will have brochures, maps in English. The staff is also multilingual.

I have travelled to a few places without any knowledge of the language... South America, Russia... I've always managed to find my way with a travel conversation book. I'm strange in that I like to challenge myself trying to speak to the locals in their language. With your knowledge of so many languages, you will get your message across just fine. .

 

[souris]

Oops.. Just retread it was not your 25th anniversary trip . Happy return to Canada! I'm sure it has changed quite a bit! Have a wonderful time!

 

[luvavacation]

You were right the first time, souris, it is indeed our 25th wedding anniversary trip!

When I last was in Canada 26 years ago, I had been dating my husband - boyfriend then - for one month, and my parents invited him along to go visit our friends and some relatives in Toronto and Thunder Bay. I guess my parents liked him, and were hoping we would get serious? It worked, because one year later we were married!

Thanks for the website, I will go and check it out. My husband did not enjoy France when he was there as a teen, and is not so thrilled with going someplace where I am not able to speak enough to get by (I enjoy languages, he does not, so I am the guide!). I told him that this would be great, I am sure I remember enough French to get by! Oops, sorry, I was wrong!

If nothing else, this shall be an adventure, and we will hopefully have something more to talk about now that the kids are gone. Now if only I could remember that "el bano" is not the correct word for bathroom! I just keep mixing up those languages!

 

[Ted in Halifax]

As an anglophone, Ive had no difficulties traveling in Quebec. The people in Quebec are friendly and I doubt you will encounter any problems!

 

[Sandy1892]

Hi I have vacationed in and around the Montreal area beautiful places with great people. My school girl French isn't very good but when people could see that I was trying they where more than helpfull. I think it important to know the basics in there language, hello,thank you,please and excuse me. I don't think that you will have a problem,

 

[Gigi22]

Here is the most important phrase, without the accents as I can't find them on my keyboard, "Ou sont les toilettes?" (Where are the washrooms?)
The other important things are, "S'il vous plait" (Please). "Merci" (Thank you). Other things, "A droit" (To the right). "A gauche" (To the left). And very importantly, "Tout droit" (Straight ahead).
Most Quebecers will be happy to help you, especially in touristy areas. However, a few will not help out any anglophone, tourist or not.

 

[myzel]

You will have no issues. If you do just use your best french (I can butcher the language with the best of them) and even in the outer towns I have found people with as much english as I have french and been ok.

 

[star72232]

I honeymooned in Quebec City in 2004 and my French is poor at best. It really didn't matter - even when we said "Bonjour" to someone, they would say "Hello" back and (in restaurants) hand us the English version of the menu. Almost everyone in the service industry in QC speaks English - you will be fine. Have fun!

 

[fredgirls]

Congratulations!
Quebec city is so beautiful. You will have a wonderful time.

If you just do your best, it will be appreciated.

I always start the conversation in french and see where it goes.
Like someone said, locals often change to french, especially in a queue for coffee!
As both my girls speak French they think it's hysterical when I try! There was one instance where I was trying to order a strawberry tart but was asking for a raspberry one, which they didn't have. For some reason the server thought it would be fun to keep the charade going, and my kids were almost rolling around on the floor, talking with the server in french, saying who knows what! I just kept repeating 'raspberry, raspberry'.
I promise you won't come across anyone as rude as my girls!