10 everyday questions to ask in Croatian!

You have recently moved to Croatia or you’re just planning to visit? Check out our tips and tricks on how to successfully use Croatian and book, order, park or find important places!

#1 Get a taxi!

You’ve arrived at Zagreb airport (aerodrom) or main bus or railway station (autobusni kolodvor and željeznički kolodvor) and you need to order a taxi. Apart from using well-known taxi applications, you can simply call the taxi service and tell them: Molim Vas taksi od aerodroma/ autobusnog kolodvora/ željezničkog kolodvora. (Could I have a taxi from the airport/ main bus station/ railway station?). If you need to tell the taxi driver the exact address, you can say: Molim Vas taksi na adresu Amruševa 6. (Could I get a taxi? The address is Amruševa 6.)

#2 Buy a tram ticket!

You can buy a 30-minute tram ticket for 4 kuna at one of Zagreb kiosks. All you need to say is: Molim jednu kartu za tramvaj. (Could I please get one tram ticket?). You can also buy a tram ticket in the tram, using the same sentence. Bear in mind, though, that if you buy your tram ticket in the tram, it costs 6 kuna.

#3 Buy a bus/ train ticket!

At a bus or tram station, you can buy a ticket to any destination they’re offering. You can use the phrase: Molim jednu kartu za Split/ Zadar/ Beč. (Could I please get a ticket for Split/Zadar/Vienna?). If you want to buy your ticket in advance, you can also use the apps or web pages and buy your ticket online. 

#4 Order food!

If you want to use the phone to order food, you’ll need to say: Dobar dan! Želim naručiti pizzu sa sirom! (Hello! I’d like to order a pizza margherita!) You’ll probably need to state your address as well, so you can continue and say: Moja adresa je Amruševa 6. (My address is Amruševa 6.). When politely ending a phone call, we usually say: Hvala, doviđenja! (Thank you and goodbye!).

#5 Ask for directions!

If you got lost and you need to ask for directions, you can say: Oprostite, kako mogu doći do trga bana Jelačića? (Excuse me, how can I get to Ban Jelačić square?). You can also simply ask: Oprostite, gdje je trg bana Jelačića? (Excuse me, where is Ban Jelačić square? After you get the directions, you can say: Hvala puno, ugodan dan! (Thank you very much, have a nice day!)

#6 Book a room in a hotel/hostel!

When booking a room, the expression you’ll need is: Dobar dan, mogu li rezervirati sobu u hotelu/ hostelu? (Hello, could I book a room in a hotel/hostel?). If you need a room for 1 person, you’ll say: Mogu li rezervirati sobu za jednu osobu?. If you need to book a room for 2, 3 or 4 people, then you’ll say: Mogu li rezervirati sobu za dvije/ tri/ četiri osobe?

#7 Ask about the price!

It doesn’t matter whether you’re not sure about the price of a bus ticket or a hotel room, you’ll just need to ask: Koja je cijena? (How much does it cost?). If you’re booking a room, then you can ask about the price of 1 night by saying: Koja je cijena jednog noćenja?

#8 Ask about a hospital, police station or post office!

When you’re trying to find a hospital, you can ask: Oprostite, gdje je bolnica? If you’re looking for a police station, then you’ll ask: Oprostite, gdje je policijska postaja? And if you need a post office, then you can use: Oprostite, gdje je pošta? 

#9 Where is the nearest ATM?

If you are in need of cash, you’ll probably need a cash machine or a bank. To ask about the nearest ATM, you can say: Oprostite, gdje je (najbliži) bankomat? and if you want to go to a local bank branch, you’ll need to say: Oprostite, gdje je (najbliža) banka?

#10 Where to park?

If you are driving and you need to find a place to park, you can simply ask: Oprostite, gdje je parking? (Excuse me, where’s the parking place?) or: Oprostite, gdje je garaža?  (Excuse me, where’s the garage?). If you want to know if the parking space/ garage is free or not, you can use: Plaća li se parking? (Do I have to pay for parking?). The answers can be: Da! (Yes!) or Ne! (No!). If you want to know about the price of 1 hour of parking, you’ll ask: Kolika je cijena parkinga po satu?. If you want to buy a daily ticket, then you can ask: Koliko je dnevna karta? (How much does a daily ticket cost?)

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