What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the honorific prefix o, the noun tanoshimi (enjoyment/pleasure) and the polite imperative kudasai (please).
Which one should you use?
While お楽しみください is formal and used by service providers to customers, 楽しんでください is a standard polite form used between equals or towards subordinates.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
お楽しみください is a highly polite and formal way to say "please enjoy", commonly used by staff in service industries or in public announcements. Adding どうぞ to the beginning of the phrase, as in どうぞお楽しみください, makes it an even more polite expression. For casual situations among friends, you can use the informal phrase 楽しんでね.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses the honorific pattern o + [stem of verb] + kudasai to show respect to the person being addressed.
How do you pronounce it?
otanoshimi kudasai
Did you know?
- While ‘please enjoy’ is common in English, using お楽しみください at the end of a meal in Japan can be seen as strange or even rude because it sounds like you are instructing the host to enjoy themselves instead of thanking them for the food.
- High-end Japanese hospitality staff may replace お楽しみください (otanoshimi kudasai) with ごゆっくり (goyukkuri), which literally asks the guest to 'take their time'.
- Using the highly formal お楽しみください with a close friend or family member can actually backfire. The extreme politeness creates a linguistic distance that makes you sound cold, distant, or even sarcastic.
Examples in context
- お楽しみください 。Please enjoy.
- 遠慮せずにどうぞ 。Please enjoy without hesitation.
- 音楽をお楽しみください。Ongaku o o-tanoshimi kudasai.Please enjoy the music.
- ライブをお楽しみください。Raibu o o-tanoshimi kudasai.Please enjoy the live performance.
- 映画をお楽しみください。Eiga o o-tanoshimi kudasai.Please enjoy the movie.
Example conversation
Ren is welcoming Misaki to a gallery exhibit.
- 蓮 Ren美咲さん、お待ちしていました。Misaki-san, omachi shite imashita.Misaki, I have been expecting you.
- 美咲 Misakiありがとうございます。楽しみです。arigatō gozaimasu. tanoshimi desu.Thank you. I am looking forward to it.
- 蓮 Renそれでは、展示をお楽しみください。soredewa, tenji o otanoshimi kudasai.Well then, please enjoy the exhibit.
- 美咲 Misakiはい、ゆっくり見てみますね。hai, yukkuri mite mimasu ne.Yes, I will take my time looking around.
