Dictionary / Where is the bathroom?
How to Say "Where is the bathroom?" in French
Où sont les toilettes ?
/u sɔ̃ le twa.lɛt/
Literally: Where are the toilets?
Où
where
sont
are
les
the
toilettes
toilets
Good to know
Où sont les toilettes ? is neutral and usable anywhere. Adding excusez-moi in front and s'il vous plaît after it is what most French people actually say in a restaurant. Les WC, pronounced vay-say, is equally common and slightly more discreet.
Correct
Où sont les toilettes ?
What people say wrong
Où est la salle de bain ?
where is the room with the bathtub
The mistake to avoid. English speakers reach for salle de bain because bathroom contains bath. But a salle de bain is the room with the bath or shower in it, and in a great many French homes that room does not contain a toilet at all. The toilet is a separate cubicle. Ask a waiter for the salle de bain and you have asked to use the restaurant's shower. Note also that toilettes is always plural, even for a single one.
In context
Excusez-moi, où sont les toilettes, s'il vous plaît ?
Excuse me, where is the bathroom, please?
Les toilettes sont au fond à gauche.
The bathroom is at the back on the left.
L'appartement a une salle de bain et des toilettes séparées.
The flat has a bathroom and a separate toilet.