Rick Steves' German Phrase Book & Dictionary

by Rick Steves

Book Overview

Guten Tag! From ordering bratwurst in Munich to making new friends in the Rhine Valley, it helps to speak some of the native tongue. Rick Steves, bestselling author of travel guides to Europe, offers well-tested phrases and key words to cover every situation a traveler is likely to encounter. This handy guide provides key phrases for use in everyday circumstances, complete with phonetic spelling; an English-German and German-English dictionary; the...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1566915198
• ISBN13: 9781566915199
• Release Date: May 2003
• Publisher: Avalon Travel Publishing
• Length: 279 Pages
• Weight: 0.34 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 4.1" x 6.1"

Customer Reviews

Great book!

This is a great beginners book to visiting Germany. The information is well-organized and helpful.

german phrase book

this little book will be a great help to me in traveling in Germany--although I do have a rather spare knowledge of the language, the idiom often escapes me--hence this will be a genuine positive, too, thanks to its small size.

Wir sprechen keine English hier!

I bought Rick Steves' German Phrase Book before making a business trip to Leipzig last month. I had three years of high school German almost 40 years ago, but was told that "everyone in Germany speaks fluent English." I feel strongly that Americans should get over their arrogance about speaking English only, so I brushed up on essential phrases hoping that I would have a chance to practice my very rusty German. Did I ever! I discovered that many, perhaps most, older people in the former DDR do not speak English at all, but were overwhelmingly patient and encouraging of my efforts to communicate in their language. Whenever I knew that I would be dealing with a specific activity, such as buying a train ticket,I got out my phrase book and reviewed the language I would need to complete the transaction. Rick Steves' books are easy and practical to use, and I found that this one prodded my memory of German vocabulary and syntax to the point that I was chatting away quite comfortably by the end of the week! I was so pleased with my German phrase book that I ordered the Spanish version for my daughter and her beau, who are planning a trip to Puerto Rico during Spring Break!

Humor, too.

This is the greatest phrase book I have ever used. It is funny and list phrases people use in real conversation. I honestly didn't have to use mine much because I found most Germans and Swiss eager to practice their English. However, it was a great tool. It is also small in size, which is important if you are trying to travel light!

Keep this book within reach as you travel.

My wife and I recently traveled through Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and France. I had both the German Phrase book and the French version. They read very easily and consist of enough common phrases to get you by, but not so many that you are overwhelmed or confused. Handy tips and observations are sprinkled throughout the book that make reading it fun and enlightening. I especially liked the United States Map (showing the states and their boundries). I used this to show my hosts where I was from (and to generate some lively discussions). The pronounciation guides for the phrases are very good and can make you easily understood by the natives. If you're planning on traveling in Europe, I strongly recommend that you read and review this book before you go (to get familiar and practice) and take it with you as you travel (for fast reference).