Speak easy? The ups and downs of travel translation apps

Traveling to destinations where you don’t speak the local language can leave you lost in translation. Communicating in the local language helps advance cultural exchange and improves engagement with locals. Overcoming language barriers increases travelers’ ability to immerse themselves in the local culture.

Translation apps are not a replacement for organic fluency, but they can help cross important communication barriers regarding local navigation, reading menus, managing public transportation, shopping or getting help, even in emergencies.

Risks and dangers of using translation apps

There are downsides to translation app technology.

For example, if you’re an English-speaking lawyer on vacation in France and want to tell a local person what your profession is, you could ask Google Translate to provide the French version of “I am a lawyer.”

Google Translate will suggest you say, “Je suis un avocat.” Unfortunately, you just told your French friend that you are an avocado. In French, the word “avocat” means lawyer and avocado. The critical distinction is using the French word “un” before “avocat.” With the word “un” before “avocat,,” it means avocado; without it, the meaning is “lawyer.”

However, if you used Microsoft Translator, then it would recommend that you say, “Je suis avocat” – without the French word “un,” and that means you are, in fact, a lawyer.

The lesson here is that these tools, though often helpful, don’t always account for cultural nuances or context, and can stumble, sometimes disastrously, over colloquialisms, leading to bewildering misunderstandings and unintended comedy—or worse—when communicating with locals.

There are several other translation app risks, too, including:

Technical issues: Apps that rely on internet connectivity can be unreliable or costly.

Privacy concerns: Some translation apps require access to personal data, raising privacy issues.

Security risks: Using public Wi-Fi networks to access translation apps can expose sensitive information to potential hackers.

Dependency: Relying too heavily on translation apps may hinder language learning and cultural immersion.

Communication breakdown: In complex or nuanced conversations, translation apps may not be able to convey tone or context accurately, leading to misunderstandings.

What apps are available?

Several translation apps can assist with language translation, text recognition, voice translation and offline capabilities. The following are 10 of the best translation apps for tourists to consider using while traveling:

Waygo specializes in visual translation and is particularly useful for translating text into images and menus in Asian languages.

Papago is a popular translation app in Asia, offering text and voice translation in multiple languages, including Asian languages like Korean, Japanese and Chinese.

TripLingo is explicitly designed for travelers and has language guides, cultural information, and voice translations in multiple languages.

Google Translate is one of the most popular and widely used translation apps. It offers text, speech, and camera translation in many languages and offline capabilities for some features.

Microsoft Translator provides text and voice translation in multiple languages and the ability to translate conversations in real-time with several participants.

ITranslate offers text and voice translation, a dictionary, offline mode and the ability to save favorite translations for quick access.

SayHi provides voice translation in multiple languages, allowing users to have multilingual conversations with real-time translation.

Translate Now offers text and voice translation in numerous languages and the ability to save and organize translations for future reference.

Babylon Translator has text and voice translation in multiple languages and a dictionary and language learning tool.

Easy Language Translator provides text and voice translation in various languages with a simple and user-friendly interface.

Before traveling, it’s wise to download and familiarize yourself with one or more of these translation apps to help facilitate communication and enhance your travel experience. It’s also helpful to have a basic understanding of common phrases or greetings in the local language of the country you are visiting to show respect and courtesy to the locals. Finally, obtaining travel protection services that provide access to an in-person, live translation resource is essential for situations requiring more precision, like ensuring a prescription is filled correctly, sorting out a legal issue, or managing a medical or security emergency.