A Language Barrier-Free Vacation with Babbel

Berlin, Germany, July 22, 2010 --(PR.com)-- When traveling abroad, even just a few words in the local language can go a long way. A survey by the online language learning system Babbel found that it is considered impolite when visitors cannot manage to learn the simplest words. Babbel (http://www.babbel.com), the online learning system, helps potential travelers learn a little Spanish, French, or other languages to stay on the locals’ good side.

Just in time for the summer vacation season, Babbel has compiled a compact travel vocabulary, “Polite on Holiday” that brings together essential words and phrases to polish up etiquette abroad. The first introductory lesson on greetings can be tested for free, without any obligation. There are then numerous other exercises for digging deeper into a language.

Friendly vocabulary
Tourists cannot always assume that everyone they meet understands and speaks English. It is always a good idea to brush up just a little on the local language before setting off. Basics for being polite are greetings and niceties like “please” and “thank you”. Even “hello, how are you?” or “could you help me?” glide over the lips with ease thanks to Babbel’s language courses. This pleases the locals, and they will be more inclined to share where the best beaches or bars are. Practicing is also possible on the go with Babbel Mobile for iPhone or iPod Touch, even when there is no internet connection available.

Prep for travel in the Babbel Community
Right before the summer vacation season, Babbel embarked upon a worldwide survey among more than 500 of its language-learning members. Around 90 percent of those who took part in the survey thought learning the language was very important for travel abroad. 68 percent thought it impolite when tourists don’t know basic words in the local language like “thank you” or “excuse me.” For half of the members surveyed, better communication when traveling abroad is the most important reason for studying a foreign language. For this they rely not just upon language courses and vocabulary lessons, but also on the international community. It is there that they meet language exchange partners or pen-pals, exchange insider tips and give one another, for example, ideas on how to get the best prices on their vacation abroad.

Here is a direct link to the travel vocabulary: http://www.babbel.com/go/holidays-polite

About Babbel:
Babbel is an online language learning system. Along with the website Babbel.com, there are apps for iPhone and a downloadable vocabulary trainer. Both beginners and continuing learners will find interactive exercises for studying English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Brazilian Portuguese and Swedish. Among diverse kinds of courses there are basic and advanced vocabulary, grammatical exercises and pronunciation training. More than 700,000 people from over 200 countries have already registered with Babbel, while the iPhone app has passed the 100,000 download mark.

The company behind Babbel, Lesson Nine GmbH, operates out of Berlin, Germany. Founded in August 2007, it now has around 40 fulltime and freelance employees. Since July 2008 Lesson Nine has been funded by Kizoo AG and VC-Fonds berlin. Further information at http://www.babbel.com/home/about

Press Contact
Corinna Staedel
Städel PR
Phone: +1 404 865 1423
E-Mail: press@babbel.com;
corinna@staedelpr.com
Phone: +1 404 865 1423

Babbel Contact
Markus Witte
Managing Director
Lesson Nine GmbH
Tel.: 30 346 55 93 87
E-Mail : mwitte@babbel.com

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