En Ruta
Buy the ticket, find your line, and get off where you meant to — out loud.
Getting around runs on two structures: ir en + transport (voy en autobús, voy en metro — but a pie on foot) and the route question ¿Qué línea tomo para ir al centro? Buy un boleto in Latin America, un billete in Spain — and always tomar the bus, never coger, which is vulgar in much of Latin America. The bus itself changes name at every border: el camión in Mexico, el colectivo or el bondi in Argentina, la guagua in the Caribbean, la micro in Chile. In the En Ruta lessons there are no flashcards — you learn all of it by saying it, out loud, mid-journey.
Below: the words lesson by lesson, what riders actually say to the driver, the regional traps — and a way to rehearse the whole trip out loud.
The warm-up pack
What you'd actually say to the driver, the taxi and the ticket window — not what the textbook calls them.
01 · How you say you're taking the bus
Voy en autobús.
I'm going by bus. (El camión in Mexico, el colectivo or el bondi in Argentina, la guagua in the Caribbean — same idea, different word everywhere.)
The structure ir en + transport never changes. Only the word for 'bus' does, city to city.
02 · Asking which line to take
¿Qué línea tomo para ir al centro?
Which line do I take to get downtown?
This single question gets you unstuck at any metro map, anywhere.
03 · Buying the ticket
Dame uno ida y vuelta, pana.
Give me a round-trip, buddy. (Caribbean — pana is a casual 'buddy'.)
Ida y vuelta for round trip, sencillo or solo ida for one way — the two words that matter at any ticket window.
04 · Loading the transit card
Recargar la tarjeta.
Top up the card. (Colombia — said instead of buying a fresh ticket in cities that use a transit card.)
In card-based systems you don't buy tickets at all — you just recargar, over and over.
05 · Telling the driver where you get off
Aquí me quedo, jefe.
This is my stop, boss. (Mexico — said straight to the driver.)
Jefe here is friendly, not literal — it's just how you address a bus driver.
06 · Asking someone if this is their stop
¿Bajás en la próxima?
Are you getting off at the next stop? (Argentina — voseo.)
Asked to the person blocking the aisle in front of you. Reflexive verbs like bajarse are made for exactly this.
07 · Calling out your stop
¡La parada, por fa!
This stop, please! (Colombia — called out to the driver.)
Short, loud, and it works. Por fa is the everyday clip of por favor.
08 · Getting the taxi driver's attention
Che, ¿me llevás a...?
Hey, can you take me to...? (Argentina — che plus voseo.)
Che opens almost any Argentine request. Fill in the destination and you're moving.
09 · Telling the taxi where to stop
Parame en la esquina.
Stop me at the corner. (Argentina — voseo command.)
One word, imperative, done. No need to build a longer sentence than this.
10 · Checking the fare
¿Cuánto me cobra, mi hermano?
How much do I owe you, brother? (Cuba and the Caribbean — warm, informal.)
Asking upfront is completely normal — it's not haggling, it's just how the ride starts.
11 · When the ride is delayed
El subte está demorado de nuevo, qué bajón.
The subway's delayed again, what a bummer. (Argentina.)
Qué bajón is the all-purpose 'that's a bummer' — useful for way more than just late trains.
FLUENT
Finally, someone to talk to in Spanish.
Ten-minute spoken lessons. A teacher who answers back — and gently fixes what you got wrong.
First 10 lessons freeandbefluent.com/spanish/en-rutaRegional Spanish
Textbooks teach one word. Locals use several — pick your region's and stay consistent.
| English | Mexico | Argentina |
|---|---|---|
| bus | el camión | el colectivo / el bondi |
| metro / subway | el metro | el subte |
| transit card | la tarjeta del metro | la SUBE |
Watch out
The part no drill site can do
Olivia
Your vocabulary teacher for this pack
No flashcards, no route maps to memorise. In the En Ruta lessons you talk, and Olivia puts you in transit: you're at the stop and need to know which línea goes to your destination — so you ask. At the taquilla you buy ida y vuelta. On board, you work out where to bajarse and say it the way locals do: me bajo en la próxima. Then a taxi: give the dirección, ask ¿cuánto cuesta?, and land aquí, por favor — every phrase spoken, not studied.
Blank mid-sentence and nothing bad happens — she waits. That's the practice, without unnecessary judgement.
Finish the 5 lessons and En Ruta is yours — earned, not given.
First 10 lessons free · 10-minute spoken lessons · your AI coaching team remembers you
Quick answers
The textbook word is el autobús, but locals rarely use it: it's el camión in Mexico (not a truck!), el colectivo or el bondi in Argentina, la guagua in the Caribbean, la micro in Chile, la buseta in Colombia.
La parada is a stop — buses and trams. La estación is a station — metro and trains. Chile adds its own twist: a bus stop there is el paradero.
Ask for un boleto (Latin America) or un billete (Spain) at la taquilla — ida y vuelta for round trip, solo ida for one way. In many cities you instead recargar la tarjeta: Mexico's metro card, Buenos Aires' SUBE.
Avoid it — coger has a vulgar meaning in many Latin American countries. Say tomar el autobús instead; it's what everyone expects to hear.
Me bajo en la próxima — note the reflexive: me subo (I get on), me bajo (I get off). In Colombia you call out ¡la parada, por fa!; in Argentina, a polite permiso, voy a bajar.
