Know Tokyo before you land.
Say where you're going and when you fly. Ody writes a short daily course for that exact city: the phrases you'll actually say, the customs nobody warns you about, how the trains work, what to do with your hands at dinner. One lesson a day until you land.
23 days to go.One short lesson a day gets you there.
Hi, I'm Ody. Where are you headed?
One lesson a day, paced to your flight.
Your trip date sets the pace. Ody writes the course for your city, puts First Words first, and lays the rest out so the last lesson lands before you do.
Each one takes three to five minutes: tap, match, listen, fill the blank. Anything you get wrong goes into the Mistakes jar and comes back until it sticks.
Ody asks. You guess.
The third screen of the app, for Tokyo.
The sceneYou have just finished a delicious bowl of tonkotsu ramen in Shinjuku and go to pay.
How much should you leave on the table as a tip for good service?
Spot on.Not quite.Spot on, keep your yen in your wallet and offer a polite bow instead.Hold onto your coins, your server might actually chase you down the street to return them!
WhyTipping does not exist in standard Japanese hospitality and can make staff feel awkward. Exceptional service is considered the baseline and is already built into the price.
The sceneYou toss a coin over your left shoulder into the Trevi Fountain.
Where does the roughly 3,000 euros scooped from the Trevi Fountain each day go?
Spot on.Not quite.Spot on! Your wish helps feed Rome's most vulnerable residents every single day.A noble guess, but your loose change is actually buying groceries for locals in need.
WhyRome's municipal workers sweep the fountain each morning and deliver every cent to Caritas, a local Catholic charity. The donations fund food banks, soup kitchens, and shelters across the city.
The sceneYou ask a barista for a double espresso, and he tilts his head side to side with a gentle shake.
What did your barista just tell you?
Spot on.Not quite.Spot on. Sit tight, your espresso is definitely coming.Do not leave the counter just yet: you might actually be getting that coffee.
WhyIn traditional Albanian body language, a side-to-side head roll means yes, while an upward nod means no. Younger locals often use Western gestures, but the classic motion still catches visitors off guard.
The sceneYou just landed at Suvarnabhumi and hop into a cab headed downtown.
What name do locals actually use when referring to Bangkok?
Spot on.Not quite.Spot on, you are already thinking like a local insider.Not quite, though almost every first-time visitor makes that exact guess.
WhyLocals refer to the capital as Krung Thep, short for its full ceremonial name which holds the world record as the longest place name. Foreigners adopted the older village name of Bangkok, but Thai speakers rarely use it.
The sceneYou are mapping out your daily walking routes around the historic center.
At what elevation does Mexico City sit above sea level?
Spot on.Not quite.Spot on, you are way higher in the clouds than most travellers realize.Not quite, your lungs will notice the altitude before your eyes do!
WhyMexico City rests in a high mountain valley higher than Denver. Take it easy on your first afternoon while your lungs adjust to the thin air.
The sceneYou are chatting with a local barista about where government decisions get made.
Which city serves as the official capital of Türkiye?
Spot on.Not quite.Spot on! Ankara holds the title, even if Istanbul steals the spotlight.Fooled by Istanbul's star power! Ankara is the official capital.
WhyWhile Istanbul is the economic and cultural heart, Ankara has been the nation's official capital since 1923. The new republic moved the capital inland to mark a fresh start after the Ottoman era.
The sceneYou are looking to spend a sunny afternoon tasting local white wine.
Where are the vineyards that produce Vienna's famous Gemischter Satz wine located?
Spot on.Not quite.Spot on. Vienna grows its crisp signature wines right within its own city borders.You packed for a long road trip, but you only need a quick tram ticket for this vintage.
WhyVienna is the only world capital with significant commercial wine production inside its official municipal boundaries. You can ride a local tram straight to traditional hillside taverns called Heurigen nestled among 1,700 acres of vineyards.
The sceneYou are strolling through the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II and notice a crowd gathered around a specific floor mosaic.
Why are people lining up to spin on their heel over a mosaic on the floor?
Spot on.Not quite.Spot on: spin three times on your right heel, and good luck is yours.A dignified guess, but the real tradition is much sillier and involves a mosaic bull.
WhyCenturies-old local superstition says spinning three times on the mosaic bull's privates brings good fortune. The ritual is so popular that the specific tiles require regular restoration.
Nine chapters. You pick the order.
First Words always comes first. After that, tap what you're curious about and the path grows deeper there. Here is what Ody has written for Tokyo:
- First Words
- History
- Culture and Customs
- Cuisine
- Art and Architecture
- Lay of the Land
- Beliefs and Rituals
- Getting Around
- Money and Street Smarts
- First Words
- History
- Culture and Customs
- Cuisine
- Art and Architecture
- Lay of the Land
- Beliefs and Rituals
- Getting Around
- Money and Street Smarts
- First Words
- History
- Culture and Customs
- Cuisine
- Art and Architecture
- Lay of the Land
- Beliefs and Rituals
- Getting Around
- Money and Street Smarts
- First Words
- History
- Culture and Customs
- Cuisine
- Art and Architecture
- Lay of the Land
- Beliefs and Rituals
- Getting Around
- Money and Street Smarts
- First Words
- History
- Culture and Customs
- Cuisine
- Art and Architecture
- Lay of the Land
- Beliefs and Rituals
- Getting Around
- Money and Street Smarts
- First Words
- History
- Culture and Customs
- Cuisine
- Art and Architecture
- Lay of the Land
- Beliefs and Rituals
- Getting Around
- Money and Street Smarts
- First Words
- History
- Culture and Customs
- Cuisine
- Art and Architecture
- Lay of the Land
- Beliefs and Rituals
- Getting Around
- Money and Street Smarts
- First Words
- History
- Culture and Customs
- Cuisine
- Art and Architecture
- Lay of the Land
- Beliefs and Rituals
- Getting Around
- Money and Street Smarts
Every phrase, respelled.
Konnichiwa is kohn nee chee WAH. Every phrase in the book carries its sounds in plain letters, with the stressed one in capitals, so a new alphabet is never a wall.
Tap the speaker and Ody says it. The phrasebook stays on your phone after the trip, searchable in any language, ready for the next one.
The countdown lives on the outside of your phone.
Your days to go and how ready you are sit on the Home Screen and the Lock Screen, so the trip stays in view without opening anything.
Ody sends one nudge a day at most, half an hour before the time you studied yesterday, and none on a day you already did a lesson. More than thirty days out, twice a week.
Finish before you land. Earn the stamp.
Complete the path and your passport gets that city's stamp, slammed down with the heaviest haptic in the app. Come home and the page is complete.
Start the next trip and your phrasebook, your XP and your passport all carry over.
Questions people ask
Is Odyvel a translator?
No. A translator helps you at the counter. Odyvel is for the weeks before, so you reach the counter already knowing the word. It isn't an itinerary planner either, and it isn't a five year language course you'll quit in March. It is the wait before your flight, spent well.
What does it cost?
The first lesson is free. Everything after it is Premium: every chapter, the phrasebook, the passport, every trip you take. There is a yearly plan with a 3 day free trial and a monthly plan. The exact price shows in your own currency before you subscribe, and it varies by region.
Which cities does it cover?
Any city you can type. Tokyo, Rome, Bangkok and Mexico City are on this page; the town nobody has heard of works the same way. The first traveller to ask for a city waits about a minute while its course is written. Everyone after them gets the shared copy in seconds.
Who writes the courses?
A language model writes each city's course when the first traveller asks for it, from a brief that fixes the nine chapters, the six exercise types and the respelling rules. Every exercise is checked against those rules before it is shown, and anything a local would correct can be reported from the profile screen.
Does it work on the plane?
Yes. Once a city is written, its path, its lessons and its phrasebook are stored on your phone. Progress syncs when you're back online, and it follows you to a new phone when you sign in.
Who makes Odyvel?
Hysa Tech, a small independent studio in Tirana, Albania. The app speaks English and Albanian. The courses are in the language of wherever you are going.
Where next?
Your first lesson is free. Pick your city and hear what day one sounds like.