Want to Learn a Language Before You Travel? There's An App For That!

Well, Marina and I are getting ready for another fun trip to Europe this Summer--we will be retracing some of our steps from 2017, flying Norwegian airlines into Paris (still the best direct flight option), but this time we are exploring Italy and Switzerland!  One thing we learned last year is that while many restaurants and shops will have employees that speak some English, most signs and menus outside of touristy areas are in the local language, so it is VERY helpful to have some contextual knowledge of the relevant language.  For example, on a menu you can always just point to an item that you want to order, even if your waiter doesn't speak English.  However, if you don't know the translations for key words, you may (like me) lose your confidence in exploring places and cuisines that aren't necessarily geared toward English-speakers.

To that end, I decided to put down my "Italian/German for Travelers" guides and pick up my phone--sure enough there are a LOT of apps focused on helping English-speakers learn other languages, and most of them are free (to start).  I tried a few out to see how they differed, and I found that Duolingo was the best match for my learning style.  Rosetta Stone, Busuu, and Babbel are the other most popular apps you can try for free, but I felt like they all either tried hard to push me into buying their services, or were much more focused on verbal repetition without a challenge.

Here's what I like about Duolingo:  It's fun--they make it more like a game with rewards and cute graphics, and your mistakes hurt your "health-bar", which can be replenished by watching short ads  or (of course) spending real money.  For us introverts, Duolingo makes verbal participation optional, which is great for me when I don't want to bother other people or embarrass myself.  And for the extroverts, it offers the possibility of connecting with fellow app users around the world, though I haven't explored this myself.  It's also easy to fit it in a little practice every day--most learning rounds should only take you five minutes.  Finally, you can learn multiple languages simultaneously at no extra cost (I'm working on French, Italian and German currently).

Of course there's a few drawbacks to the app:  My main complaint is that there's no plain grammar instruction of any kind (yet).  Usually in a more formal setting you'd be getting conjugation charts before you start a lesson, or at least at some point--Duolingo (and Busuu and Babbel from what I could tell) doesn't offer this.  The easy solution, of course, is to supplement these apps with a beginner's level language book or simply searching online when you are confused--I just wish it was part of the Duolingo app.  Also, many of the sentences you'll be translating become VERY repetitive--you don't want to know how many times I've translated "she is a woman" and sentences like that.  But, the repetition is helping you absorb the information for the long-term (so you don't forget everything once you get overseas!).

As mentioned, Duolingo can be used offline via their free mobile app, and online on your computer.  Both experiences are basically the same, but the desktop computer version offers more information about your progress, etc.  Just be sure to write down your password so you can log into your account on both platforms.

So if you're like me and find that you don't absorb that much by just thumbing through little language guides, and want more of an interactive challenge without committing to an in-person course or an expensive set of books/CDs/DVDs, be sure to investigate these apps--you'll no doubt find one that suits your learning style and save money!


*All images are copyrighted property of of Duolingo, Inc. We have received no incentives monetary or otherwise for publishing this article.