What language may I use when traveling to Slovakia?

When you travel to Slovakia for a short stay, you do not have to learn Slovak, although it is a good idea to master some simple words and phrases (Did you know that "áno" means actually "yes"?).

If you speak Czech, you may freely use this language in all communication, most people will understand what you say. Very probably they will answer in Slovak as it is usual in a Czech-Slovak conversation. That's why, if you are not native Czech and have only learned the language, you may encounter some problems with several (actually quite a lot of) words which are different in Slovak and these you will not even find in your Czech-Whatever dictionnary. The Czech natives understand them only thanks to the fact, that for several decades, there was a common Czechoslovak television and therefore they had the possibility to get used to the Slovak language.

In Southern Slovakia many people understand also Hungarian, so if you enter a shop, the assistant will greet you in both languages and will continue to converse according to your preferences. Same situation exists near the Polish and Ukrainian borders, the only difference is that Polish and Ukrainian are somewhat similar to Slovak, while Hungarian is not at all related to Slovak. My personal experience shows that Polish is also understandable without studying the language, but may pose minor problems dor those Slovak people who hear it for the first time. However, you may always try.

Using English you may talk to most young people (10-35 years old). Older people (mostly businessmen and other people who work in travel and commercial services, as well as people in larger cities) speak it also, to varying degrees. Maybe you will be pleasantly surprised by the eagerness with which some people are trying hard to communicate with you in their poor English. Please appreciate their endeavour. For many of them the short conversation with you represents a rare opportunity to practice their English.

German was taught also during the communist era (thanks to the existence of the "friendly" German Democratic Republic), so it is spoken by wider range of ages, professions and social groups, although numerically not by that many people. If you can communicate only in French, Spanish or Italian you will find things more difficult.

Russian is a very special case. It was the only compulsory foreign language taught in schools before 1989, so everybody had to learn it. However, after 1989 it almost disappeared from our schools, quickly lost what little popularity it may have had, so young people born after 1979 do not speak it at all. The language is related to Slovak, but the intonation is very different and that makes it hard to understand. You may always try to speak Russian to people over 25 although the nature of their reactions cannot be predicted.

You can just about forget about your Portugal, Dutch, Swedish, Chinese, Japanese or Swahili. Some of these languages are taught at some special universities, but in Slovakia people with these language skills are very rare.

In general, if you cannot speak Slovak or Czech, then English and German are your best choice.

Finally one little hint: if someone seems not to understand you, do not raise your voice, but try to use another language (if you speak one), think of more international words like "automobile" instead of "car", "problem" instead of "trouble" and if you are thirsty, ask for "pivo" instead of "beer". When all else fails, use your hands. Have a nice stay!