speaking Italian

If you stick to mostly the tourist related areas you will find enough people speaking English so you will not have any problems. However, it is helpful and polite to learn a few phrases. You have time to learn ten good phrases - hello, good-by, how much, where to ....., etc.

Blair, I agree with Frank. While it does help to be able to function in Italian, knowing a few of the polite words and phrases should suffice. Yes, you might find it helpful to pick up an Italian Phrasebook to get some idea on common phrases, and what type of responses to expect. Given your home location, you might check the Travel Classes page from time-to-time, as they sometimes offer beginner's Italian classes. Presumably it's not a long drive from Bellevue to Edmonds? You can pick-up a Phrasebook when you're there. An iPhone App is only a good idea if it operates in "off line mode". If cellular data is accessed, you'll risk getting a horrendous data roaming bill. Whether your iPhone will even work in Europe depends on which network you're with and which iPhone model you're using. Most of the people you'll be dealing with are able to function well in English, so you shouldn't have any problems. Buon Viaggio!

It really does depend on where you're going. What's your itinerary?

Rick Steves has an Italian phrase book/Dictionary. I used it on my 4 trips and had no problems. As others said, learn the polite words-please, thank you, excuse me, boun giorno (good morning), etc. and also menu items. You do get better service when you order in Italian!

I've been to Spain, France, Italy and Germany and didn't have any touble speaking only English however it does make me ashamed to speak only English.

It is interesting that Rick Steves speaks only English. But you should definitely learn the "polite" words. The more you can learn the better, and it's fun to try. Pimsleur CDs are long-winded but you really learn what they teach. We found that north of Rome most of the people we have encountered speak a lot of English; south of Rome very few do. We muddled through our southern trip with what we had crammed into our heads and managed to get rooms every night and meals.

Agree with the other responses. Learning a few common words and phrases is helpful. People are very appreciative that you went to the trouble to learn them and it's fun to try them out. In addition to RS phrase book we used Living Language Italian. It is very inexpensive, under $30, and comes with four CDs and a lesson book to follow along as well as a dictionary. We found the CDs and book to be helpful and had fun repeating the sentences. While it's true that we didn't remember much that we had studied, it made the trip a little more interesting as we tried to converse with shopkeepers in their own language. The problem we encountered was that many people wanted to practice their English on us, so just a few basic words would have been fine.

Rick does speak a little Italian. It's just that it's so horribly pronounced that the locals beg him to stop. :-)

I have a similar experience as Larry has....I did not encounter any hostility when using only English in Spain, France and Germany, even in parts of the country that were far removed from any "tourist" area. Me and my girlfriend drove from Paris to the Normandy area and back last year and stopped along the way and never encountered any hardship for not speaking French (when filling up for gas, or buying groceries at a local market). With most of Europe's economy in the tank, especially Italy and Spain, tourist-associated business, such as restaurants/cafes and hotels will not be hostile to you if you only speak English. I'll caveat my reply with that it does help to know and recognize some words, especially if you plan to explore on your own and take public transportation, so as you don't get on the wrong train/bus :-)

We were in Italy for 3 weeks and the only place we were treated poorly by locals for speaking english was in Amalfi. There was one place in Orvieto that the bartender said he didn't speak english, but he was nice and we got what we wanted.

I found it quite humorous while I was in Italy with my parents, the Italians knew we were American before we even asked them if they spoke English. The Italians spoke English to us right when we came up to either order food, ask questions, etc. I guess we looked like tourists.

The first time we went to Italy it was a running joke with us. We would say "Buona sera" and they would respond "Good evening!"

I have also found, fairly frequently, that Italians can be very intolerant of mispronounced words, and will sometimes not try to understand what you are saying. You might leave out a letter, or change a syllable slightly, or something, and they will pretend to have NO CLUE what you are talking about, as if you are an alien speaking a martian language. Just stick to phrasebook stuff and speak English with those who speak English. Incidentally, I was in Poland a few months ago -- I don't speak any Polish, and very few of them, it seems, speak English, or any other language that I speak (Italian, Spanish) -- but somehow we got along just fine. It is amazing how much communication can take place even if you don't know speak a common language.

You will be fine (assuming you're in Rome or north of there), but the RS Phrasebook will be a huge asset. If for no other reason than helping you translate the menu options (and Gelato Flavors!). Generally, you'll find that most people know some english, so you can get by. If you ask, they'll often say "no", but when you then proceed in your terrible italian, they realize that their english is better than your italian, so they switch over. Always to everyone's relief...
Even if you're in the South, you can make it, but the phrasebooks will be REALLY helpful down there.

Interestingly, I think it better to know a few words and polite phrases and handle them roughly, but try, than to work and learn enough to hold a short conversation. While I do not claim to speak Italian, I could usually walk into a restaurant, greet them, ask for a table, etc....then have a rapid fire response of many words I had no idea (or caught a word or two) what they were saying...then having to backtrack, claim little knowledge and ask if they speak English. This is further complicated by many assuming I am German, so after a failed Italian (or Spanish, or French) episode, they switch to trying their German out. In the end, we do always get what we need, learn a few words, and enjoy ourselves.

Yup! I agree with Paul if you pronounce things too accurately they respond with a quick flowing sentence and you have NO idea what was said, however, I am a firm believer in knowing enough to hopefully not have them think that I am an arrogant American. One word I don't need to learn (even though I do know it) because I am never going to use it is, "why". If they answer that question in Italian, I would have no idea what they said. :) We do try to order in the native language of the country we are in and ask the cost of something, say hi, bye, thanks, etc. Last trip to Germany, I had a trip to the hospital. That was the first time I ever felt uncomfortable with not knowing the language. Hopefully, that won't be an issue again but I do intend to keep traveling through Europe.

I've been to Italy 7 times now. First time I had no clue, no understanding of anything Italian. After the 2nd trip, we took a few Italian lessons. Now I'm using Rosetta Stone to learn as much as I can before my next planned trip. Without the guides we had on our first trip (bike tour) I don't know how well we would have done. We've traveled to France and Germany and Switzerland. My high school French and understanding of Yiddish got us by in these countries, but Italian? Nothing! I highly recommend that you get a CD/DVD program from your library, or download an Italian lesson program from iTunes and study up on some phrases. Learn hello, goodbye, key, bathroom, etc. If not to speak, just to understand when spoken to. No problem for you in the hotels, they will speak English, it's just when you are in small towns, trying to order lunch/dinner, or getting directions (which by the way...in my experience, Italians are terrible at giving!) you might have problems finding an English speaker. I'd recommend asking the younger people, the older generation seems to have not learned any English (not that I blame them, look at us Americans!) The younger kids are exposed to our music, so learn more, plus they get it in school as well... A phrase book, and Marling's Menu translator book is a great resource to have with you...

Altlough we learned key Italian phrases vis UTube, we found that off the beaten track in Tuscany, spanish worked well which we are fluent in.

Spanish works better than any other language, but it would be courteous to make it clear to the Italians that you know you're not speaking Italian. You can memorize "Nello spagnolo, e'..." which means "In Spanish, it is..." It's pronounced "NELL-low spahn-YOLL-oh eh..." And do learn and use basic polite Italian words phrases like "Grazie" instead of "Gracias". Happy travels.

Terry kathryn, "I downloaded the Spanish one, but I am pretty sure they had Italian as well." Jibbigo does not have an Italian language version available yet. They're working on it, but no time line yet on when it will be released.

Just downloaded an app that I took to Guatemala per recommendation here and it worked great for when I needed a phrase or a few words translated to help with signage. It was about $5 and called jibbigo, and it works off line. I did not want to carry a phrasebook, and this works great as it speaks the words to you as well, so really helps you work on your language skills. I did not use the dictation part, I just typed it in. A few glitches here and there, but it was extremely helpful. I downloaded the Spanish one, but I am pretty sure they had Italian as well. But, if you choose not to do that you can still get by... I have been all over Europe and to the East many times and only speak a few words of Spanish and somehow people are willing to help and figure out what you need. Have a great time.

I just downloaded TripLingo for my B&N Nook. $10 and I like it. It doesnt need to be online and speaks the words(a little hard to hear). It has several different versions for the same phrase, formal-casual-slang, etc. phonetic spelling and you can customize it for your needs, subject matter and level of ambition.

I had an Italian roommate in college. He used to say, "Italians either love you or hate you, there is no in-between," (usually followed by, "You're lucky I love you," because he was mad at me about something). Speaking some Italian is the best way to get on their love side. Before I visited Italy I crammed on Italian. I could get a decent sentence out (after a minute of thinking about it). The response I got always started with a very animated "Bello l'Italiano!" followed by all the help they could provide. My biggest problem was confusing it with Spanish, which is really close on lots of words. For the most part it doesn't matter, they appreciate the effort because not every tourist even tries.

Pimsler is a great course that you can download to get the basics of the language. But just remember Conto or you will never get the check at a resturant.

I also highly recommend Pimsleur~! It doesn't do any good to know how to say "dove La Piazza San Marco" if you don't know what the heck they're saying back, like go straight for two bloks and take a right on via crappola! There's a short version that you can really get through in about 3 or 4 weeks. It's just as important to be able to understand. I've graduated to the longer version, and even though I forget my Italian between trips, now when I get there it somehow comes out of my brain....