Guest Post: How to Practise Speaking French While Travelling: The Moment You Stop Just Visiting France

This is a guest post from Elske, Dreaming in France, a regular visitor and friend of Manor & Maker.

Bustling street market with colorful stalls and a lively crowd, evoking a vibrant atmosphere of community and commerce. photo by Elske de Groot

Standing at a market stall in France, fumbling through a sentence in French I had been trying to construct in my head for five minutes, I suddenly realised something.

For years I had dreamed about France. I had visited beautiful towns, wandered markets, and sat in cafés under plane trees.

But in that moment, waiting my turn to order in hesitant French, it struck me.

I was still standing just outside the culture, looking in.

As someone who writes about discovering places in France where real life unfolds, I realised that language was what was holding me back.I was going out and enjoying myself. But I wasn’t quite feeling part of the scene.

That’s when I started wondering how to really practise speaking French while travelling in France, especially when I felt shy about making mistakes.

The First Trips: Magical, But Still Outside the Culture

A classic car cruises down a charming street in Périgueux, France, as the evening sun casts a warm glow over the historic architecture and bustling pedestrians, with the iconic Saint-Front Cathedral rising majestically in the background. photo by Elske de Groot

My first few visits to France were magical. I was swept away by the romance and beauty of the landscape. La Belle France!

The light on the worn stone walls. The slate roofs. The rolling countryside. The markets, cafés, and easygoing rhythm of the towns. It was all so lovely.

But there was another feeling too, a quiet hesitation.

I was doing a lot of watching.

I walked through markets admiring everything but interacting very little.

I ordered food cautiously, worried my accent was terrible or that I might accidentally order the wrong dish. At the slightest hint I wasn’t being understood, I switched back to English. Never mind that it was probably just the noise in the restaurant.

I smiled and nodded a lot, even when I didn’t understand. I can only imagine what I might have unknowingly agreed to.

Eventually I realised something.

If I truly wanted to experience everyday life in France, I needed to cross the language barrier. And the Duolingo app wasn’t going to get me there on its own.

How to Practise Speaking French While Travelling in France

A bustling outdoor café scene in a charming Dordogne town, with people enjoying lunch under the shade of colorful umbrellas and lush trees. photo by Elske de Groot

I was in Uzès in southern France at the start of a six-week house sit, alone with the cutest dog, Elwood.

It was January, so there weren’t many tourists around. The weather was unusually rainy too, which meant fewer opportunities to simply sit in the village square and listen to conversations.

So I asked myself a question.

How do I practise speaking French while travelling in France without feeling awkward?

I hopped onto Facebook and posted in the local Uzès English-speaking group asking for recommendations for French tutors.

Three people were suggested. I emailed all of them and arranged to meet one in person.

Her name was Cheryl. She was a native English speaker and a former French teacher at an international school in Germany.

We decided to meet twice a week at a café in the centre of town for the duration of my stay.

Our first meeting went something like this.

Me: “Bonjour!”

Cheryl: “Bonjour. Comment allez-vous? Vous aimez ce temps? Arglebargle… dejwgfk… cowefj…”

I froze.

I was completely lost. I had no idea what she was saying.

Luckily Cheryl immediately noticed the deer-in-the-headlights look on my face and kindly switched to English.

Phew.

Duolingo had definitely not prepared me for a real conversation with a real human.

By the end of that first meeting, we came up with a plan to help me reach my goal of handling everyday situations in French.

We would start with a few one-on-one lessons in the café, then move into real-life practice: the market, the bakery, and ordering food in restaurants.

Just knowing I had someone supporting me made me feel optimistic.

Soon, I thought, maybe I wouldn’t just be watching life in France. Maybe I would start participating in it.

A rustic bakery display showcasing an array of freshly baked artisanal bread, each with a unique crust and texture, invitingly arranged on wooden shelves with chalkboard labels. photo by Elske de Groot

After a few lessons Cheryl decided I was ready to try my French in a real situation.

We headed to the local boulangerie.

I was terrified.

There were about ten people ahead of me in line, and everyone seemed to know exactly what they wanted. Orders were placed quickly and efficiently, and bags of bread and pastries were handed across the counter without hesitation.

Meanwhile, I barely recognised half the items on display.

The handwritten signs were difficult to read, and I wasn’t even sure how to pronounce most of the words.

I turned to Cheryl and whispered, “I don’t think I can do this.”

She smiled and said gently, “You’re ready. You can do this.”

So I chose the one thing I thought I could pronounce: pain de campagne.

Standing in line, I repeated the sentence in my head over and over.

“Bonjour, je voudrais un pain de campagne, s’il vous plaît.”

Honestly, if I had been there alone, I probably would have run away before reaching the counter.

But Cheryl was standing beside me.

When my turn came, I said the sentence exactly as I had rehearsed it.

And the baker handed me the correct bread.

Without hesitation.

Phew.

Outside the shop, Cheryl smiled.

“See? It wasn’t that difficult. And your accent was great.”

Then she added, “Next week, we’ll try the market.”

Oh boy, I thought. That will be the real test.

The Moment Language Turns You From Visitor to Participant

Fresh aubergines piled high at a market stall, with vibrant greens in the background. photo by Elske de Groot

The following week I met Cheryl at the market, Elwood happily ambling beside me.

It was raining, so the market was quieter than usual.

But the stalls were still bursting with colour.

Shiny purple eggplants. Walnuts. Red and white radishes with bushy green leaves. Pale parsnips. Crinkled savoy cabbage. Cauliflowers. Red-skinned potatoes. Loose spinach piled high. Bright orange squash cut into halves. Lettuce overflowing from baskets.

And that was just the produce.

There were also vendors selling meats, cheeses, jams, olives, spices, baked goods, and spring plants.

Wonderful.

And slightly intimidating.

“Well, where do you want to start?” Cheryl asked.

I thought for a moment.

“What am I least familiar with?”

“The cheesemonger,” I said.

There were a few people already in line, which I was grateful for. I could watch how things worked while Cheryl explained the process.

At this particular stall, you first choose the cheese you want. Then the cheesemonger slides his knife across the wheel and asks if you want this much, this much, or this much, each time indicating the size of the slice.

When my turn came, I began confidently.

“Bonjour… je voudrais une tranche chèvre fromage à la lavande, s'il vous plaît.”

The cheesemonger smiled kindly and corrected me.

“Une tranche de fromage de chèvre à la lavande.”

He seemed genuinely pleased that I was trying.

I repeated the order correctly.

And a moment later, I was handed exactly the slice of cheese I had hoped for. (And what a beautiful piece of cheese it was, sprinkled like it was with dried lavender on top).

In that small exchange, something shifted.

I suddenly felt welcomed, part of the market rather than just observing it.

Simple Ways to Practise Speaking French While Travelling

If you’re wondering how to practise speaking French while travelling in France, the good news is that everyday life offers endless opportunities.

You don’t need perfect grammar. Just a willingness to try.

Here are a few simple ways to practise naturally while you travel:

Start at the bakery. Ordering bread or pastries is one of the easiest interactions to practise.

Visit local markets. Vendors are often friendly and patient with beginner French.

Ask small questions. Even simple phrases like “C’est quoi?” or “Vous recommandez quoi?” start conversations.

Stay longer in one place. The more often people see you, the more relaxed conversations become.

Take a few lessons locally. A tutor can help build confidence before trying real conversations.

And if you really want to accelerate the process, spending several days immersed in a French-speaking environment can make a remarkable difference.

Why French Markets Are One of the Best Places to Practise Speaking French While Travelling

Immersion changes everything, especially for adults who want to learn French so they can participate in everyday life.

Immersion helps you learn by:

• speaking daily

• hearing the natural rhythm of the language

• practising in low-pressure environments

• repeating phrases in real situations

Small communities in slightly touristy areas are perfect for this.

Many towns have markets almost every day of the week somewhere nearby. Vendors tend to be relaxed and welcoming, not overwhelmed by huge crowds, and often happy to help beginners practise their French.

I’ve discovered a few such places myself, including Uzès and the northern Dordogne region.

In northern Dordogne, tourists still arrive in summer but not in the overwhelming numbers found in the south of the region.

Visitors are a welcome boost to the local economy and are often warmly received.

When the environment is supportive, perfection stops mattering.

You realise that people are simply delighted you’re trying.

A Full French Immersion Retreat Speeds Up the Process

One thing I realised during my lessons in Uzès is how much faster confidence grows when French becomes part of daily life rather than something you practise occasionally.

Meeting Cheryl twice a week helped tremendously.

But the real progress happened when we stepped outside the lesson and into everyday situations, the bakery, the market, conversations with local vendors.

That’s the beneficial magic of immersion.

A full French immersion retreat takes this idea even further.

Instead of practising the language in short bursts, you live inside it for several days.

You hear French over breakfast.

You speak it during lessons and activities.

You practise it while ordering coffee or chatting with locals in the village.

Gradually your brain stops treating the language like a school subject and begins recognising it as a tool for everyday life.

And a supportive environment makes all the difference.

When you’re surrounded by other learners and encouraging teachers, the pressure to be perfect disappears. Everyone is experimenting, laughing at mistakes, and discovering that simple communication matters far more than flawless grammar.

Instead of memorising vocabulary lists, you begin connecting words with real experiences.

And that’s when real progress happens.

The Real Gift of Learning French

Learning French, even just the first steps of understanding it, brought me something I hadn’t expected.

Confidence. Connection. Unexpected conversations.

Like the day I met a local woman while hiking near Saint-Germain-des-Prés in northern Dordogne.

At the time I was staying for a few weeks in a beautifully renovated pigeonnier nearby.

She was foraging for mushrooms. She spoke enthusiastically about what she was gathering and the traditions of mushroom hunting in the region.

And for the first time, I realised something.I could actually understand most of what she was saying.I could nod and respond appropriately instead of smiling politely and hoping for the best.

I still couldn’t hold up my end of the conversation in full sentences. That will come with time.

But I felt a genuine connection with her. She was proud of this tradition and happy to share it with me. That moment never would have happened if I hadn’t begun learning the language.

For the first time, I felt woven into the fabric of everyday life in France.

And that is the real gift of practising French in France.

The Moment You Finally Start Speaking French

If you’re still wondering how to practise speaking French while travelling, the answer is simple, step into everyday life and start speaking, even imperfectly.

Many people dream about France for years and being part of the joie de vivre that the country is famous for. The moment you start understanding and speaking the language, even imperfectly, the shift starts to happen that brings you closer to that moment.

And environments designed for immersion, like language retreats in small French villages, help that shift happen much faster.

And before you know it you’re no longer just dreaming.

You’re actually living it.