Is someone you know going on a trip? Perhaps even to Italy? Say buon viaggio to wish them bon voyage in Italian!
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BON VOYAGE AND BUON VIAGGIO
Buon viaggio means have a good trip or have a good journey in Italian, just like bon voyage does in French. Buon means good in Italian, and viaggio means trip or journey, so buon viaggio literally means good trip, or good journey.
In French, bon means good, and voyage means trip/journey, so the French bon voyage has the same construction and meaning as the Italian buon viaggio.
The pronunciation of buon viaggio is: boo-OHN vee-AH-jee-oh
Listen to how to pronounce buon viaggio here:
A: Domani vado in Spagna. Tomorrow I’m going to Spain.
B: Davvero? Buon viaggio! Really? Bon voyage!
ANOTHER WAY TO SAY BON VOYAGE IN ITALIAN
You can also tell someone to explicitly have a good trip by using the Italian verb fare in the imperative form (l’imperativo), otherwise known as the command form. Fare means to make or to do, as well as to have in this context.
Fai buon viaggio! means Have a good trip! in the informal singular you form. Use it when speaking to someone you know well.
Faccia buon viaggio! means Have a good trip! in the formal singular you form. Use it when speaking to someone you don’t know well, an elder, or someone with superior social status.
Fate buon viaggio! means Have a good trip! in the plural you form. Use it when speaking to a group.
USING THE WORD BUON
Buon isn’t just for trips! You can use the Italian word buon, or good, in a variety of situations, like to wish people a good day, a good weekend, a good vacation, a happy birthday, happy holidays, and much more.
Here are some examples:
| Buon weekend | Have a good weekend |
| Buona giornata | Have a good day |
| Buon appetito | Enjoy your meal, Enjoy your food |
| Buone feste | Happy holidays |
| Buon compleanno | Happy birthday |
| Buona Festa della Mamma | Happy Mother’s Day |
| Buone ferie | Have a good holiday, Have a good vacation |
| Buona vacanza | Have a good holiday, Have a good vacation |
In English, when we tell someone to have a good trip we often mean their whole vacation, not just the part when they are traveling. In Italian, buon viaggio refers to the journey part, when the person is traveling to their destination. If you’d like to give someone best wishes for their entire vacation, say buona vacanza, or buone ferie.
A SONG ABOUT BON VOYAGE! IN ITALIAN
The Italian singer-songwriter Cesare Cremonini’s 2015 hit Buon Viaggio (Share the Love), or Bon Voyage, encourages us to gather our courage to take that trip, no matter where it takes us.
It begins:
| Buon viaggio Che sia un’andata o un ritorno Che sia una vita o solo un giorno Che sia per sempre o un secondo | Bon voyage Whether you’re going out or coming back Whether it lasts a lifetime or just one day Whether it lasts forever or one second |
Buon ascolto!
Happy listening!