En resumen (the short version)
- Locals usually switch to English to help you, not because your Spanish is bad. One friendly sentence is often enough to switch back.
- Go where people have time to chat, like a bar counter, a market stall or an intercambio, and ask them about their town.
- Swap a few textbook phrases for everyday ones (vale, quedar, el finde), and when you get on with someone, suggest a specific plan.
✌🏼 ¡Hola aventurero!
You've practised for months. You walk into a little bar in Spain, order in your best Spanish… and the waiter answers in perfect English 🙃
Or maybe you don't live anywhere near Spain, and the Spanish speakers in your life are mostly on a screen.
Either way, the question is the same: how to speak Spanish with locals, real people who aren't your teacher, and keep the conversation going. Let's go paso a paso (step by step).
Why locals switch to English
First, don't take it personally. When someone switches to English, it's almost never a verdict on your Spanish. Usually it's one of these:
- They want to make things easier for you.
- They're busy, and English feels quicker.
- They want to practise their English. (Yes, they're learners too!)
The good news is that a friendly sentence usually changes it. Most people are happy to stay in Spanish once they know you'd like to.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Podemos seguir en español? | Can we carry on in Spanish? |
| Es que quiero practicar. | It's just that I want to practise. |
| Te entiendo bien, ¡de verdad! | I can understand you fine, honestly! |
| Si no entiendo algo, te lo digo. | If I don't understand something, I'll tell you. |
| ¿Hacemos mitad y mitad? Un rato en español y un rato en inglés. | Shall we go half and half? A bit in Spanish and a bit in English. |
Teacher bit 🤓 Look at Es que… in the second one. Spanish speakers use it all the time to explain or soften something, a bit like "It's just that…". Es que tengo prisa (It's just that I'm in a hurry). Put it in front of your reason and you sound polite, not pushy.
The last one is for people who clearly want to practise their English. That's fair, and a swap means you both win.
If someone switches to English, don't follow them straight away. Answer your next line in Spanish anyway. Lots of people switch back without you having to ask 😉
Go where people have time to chat
A busy supermarket checkout isn't the place for a conversation. You want places where people have a minute, or are already in a chatty mood.
| Where | Why it works | Something to say |
|---|---|---|
| The bar counter, not a table | Staff and regulars chat across it all day | ¿Qué tapa me recomiendas? |
| A market stall | Stallholders love talking about their food | ¿Esto cómo se cocina? |
| A free walking tour | The guide is there to answer questions | ¿Hay algún sitio que no salga en las guías? |
| An intercambio (language exchange) | Everyone's there to talk | ¿Qué tal llevas el inglés? |
| A weekly class: dance, hiking, cooking | You see the same faces every week | ¿Llevas mucho tiempo viniendo? |
Not in Spain? Look for Spanish speakers where you live: a Spanish or Latin American restaurant, a cultural centre, a local intercambio. There are more ideas in where to practise speaking Spanish when you don't live in Spain.
Ask them about their town
The easiest topic with a local? Their town. Everyone has opinions about where to eat, what's overrated and where tourists never go 😄
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Qué es lo típico de aquí? | What's the local speciality? |
| ¿Qué no me puedo perder? | What shouldn't I miss? |
| ¿Dónde sueles comer tú cuando sales? | Where do you usually eat when you go out? |
| ¿Hay algo que esté sobrevalorado? | Is there anything that's overrated? |
| ¿Cómo se llama esto aquí? | What do you call this here? |
The last one is a little gem, because lots of things have local names in Spain. A toasted ham and cheese sandwich is a mixto in most of Spain, but in Catalonia people call it a bikini. Ask about one word and you'll often get a whole story.
When they answer, ask ¿Y por qué? and let them talk. You listen, react and pick up local words for free. If the chat starts to dry up, read why your Spanish conversations die after two lines.
Next time you're somewhere new, even a new part of your own city, ask three different people ¿Qué no me puedo perder? Compare their answers. You'll practise the same question three times, and you'll get a plan for the day.
Swap textbook Spanish for everyday Spanish
Textbook Spanish is correct. It's just not always how people talk. A few swaps make you sound much more like someone they can chat with:
| Textbook | Everyday | |
|---|---|---|
| Saying OK | De acuerdo. | Vale. |
| Meeting up with someone | Encontrarse con alguien | Quedar con alguien |
| The weekend | el fin de semana | el finde |
| Asking how someone is | ¿Cómo estás? | ¿Qué tal? / ¿Qué tal todo? |
| Talking to a group of friends | ¿Qué quieren tomar? | ¿Qué queréis tomar? |
That last row matters in Spain. In most of the country, ustedes is for formal situations. With a group of friends, people in Spain use vosotros: ¿Qué queréis tomar?, ¿Venís esta noche? If your course only taught you ustedes, this is one to add.
People in Spain usually play compliments down. If someone says ¡Hablas muy bien español!, a natural answer is ¡Qué va! (Not at all!) or Gracias, pero todavía me queda mucho (Thanks, but I've still got a long way to go).
Turn a good chat into a plan
You get on with someone. Now what? The word you need is quedar: to arrange to meet.
Keep it small and specific. A day, a place, a time. "Let's get a coffee sometime" often never happens. "Coffee on Thursday at six" usually does.
Majo is a very Spanish word for nice or friendly. You can use it for places and people: Tu amiga es muy maja.
Don't wait for the other person to suggest a plan. They might be just as shy as you are. Suggest one, and if they can't make it, suggest another day.
Before your next chat with a local
Learn your "let's stay in Spanish" line
Pick one phrase, like ¿Podemos seguir en español? Es que quiero practicar., and say it out loud until it comes out without thinking.
Get two questions about their town ready
For example, ¿Qué es lo típico de aquí? and ¿Qué no me puedo perder? They work in any town, including your own.
Suggest one specific plan
Next time you get on with someone, suggest a day and a place: ¿Quedamos el jueves para un café?
If the very first line is what scares you, start with how to start a conversation in Spanish without feeling awkward.
Recap ✨
- Locals usually switch to English to help. Ask in Spanish to carry on: ¿Podemos seguir en español? Es que quiero practicar.
- Go where people have time to chat, like a bar counter, a market stall or an intercambio.
- Ask locals about their town: ¿Qué es lo típico de aquí? and ¿Qué no me puedo perder?
- Use everyday Spanish: vale, quedar, el finde, and vosotros with groups of friends in Spain.
- When you get on with someone, suggest a plan with a day, a time and a place.
If you'd like to practise all this before you try it on a real waiter, come and join the Aventureros Club. It's full of aventureros speaking Spanish every day, and nobody there will switch to English on you 🎉
Now I want to know 👀 Has a local ever switched to English when you spoke Spanish? What did you do? Cuéntame in the comments!
¡Un abrazo!
Lucía ☕
Lucía · Linguist, translator, Spanish teacher and author of the Visual Spanish Grammar Book.
Come and learn Spanish with me and other aventureros like yourself at skool.com/learnspanish 🎉