Asking for Facilities Toilet / Washing / Luggage

A. Asking for the Toilet

In a private house, use:

• May I use your lavatory?
• Where is the lavatory?

In public place, use:

• Where are the toilets?

For a man, use:

• Where is the gents’?
• I need to use the gents’?

For a Woman, use:

• Where is the ladies’?
• I need to use the ladies’

To be informal in America, use:

• Where is the john?
• I want to meet john.

To be informal in Britain, use:

• Where is the loo?
• I want to use the loo.

B. Asking for a bathroom

In a private house, use:

• May I have a wash?
• I’m rather dirty.
• I’m feeling a bit dirty
• Could I use your bathroom?
• I’d like to wash my hands.

In a public place, use:

• Is there a washroom/bathroom here?
• Is there somewhere here I can clean up?
• I want to wash my hands.

In a hotel or guest house, you may need:

• Where is the shower?
• Where is the bathroom?

C. Washing clothes

To find out where to wash clothes, use:

• Is there a launderette near here?
• Where is the nearest launderette/Laundromat?
• I need to wash/dry clean some clothes.

To get someone else to do the washing, use:

• Is there a laundry here?
• Is there a laundry service here?
• I want to have some clothes washed.
• I want to have some clothes dry cleaned.

D. To ask about left-luggage facilities.

 

• Is there anywhere here I can leave my bags?
• Is there a left-luggage place near here?
• Can I leave my luggage place near here?
• Can I leave my luggage anywhere here?
• Where are the nearest left-luggage lockers?
• I don’t want to carry this around with me.
• Can I leave these here until four o’clock?
• Will your office be open after six o’clock?
• Do I pay now, or when I collect?
• Please be careful with the brown bag.

E. At the lockers

 

To ask someone for change, use:

• Excuse me; have you got change for a pound?
• Have you got any change for this?

To ask someone for help, use:

• Do you know how to work these things?
• Could you give me a hand with this?

If something goes wrong, use:

• Excuse me, are you in charge of the left-luggage lockers?
• My (case) is too big/it won’t fit in.
• I put the money in/I put my luggage in.
• I can’t open it/I can’t make it work.
• I can’t get my luggage out.
• I can’t get my money back.

F. To ask if you can leave bags somewhere

• Would it be possible for me to leave there?
• Can I leave these here (until about six)?
• Could you (please) look after (this) for me?
• I’ll pick it/them up (at six o’clock)
• Could I leave (my luggage) here (for an hour)?
• I’ll be back (in a few hours)

To identify your baggage, use:

• The (green) one is mine.
• Mine is (brown).
• I left (two suitcases) here.