Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor. - We go up to the second floor in the elevator.

For nosotros, the present and preterite forms of many verbs are identical in spelling and pronunciation, including subimos. So Subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor could mean:

“We go up to the second floor in the elevator.” (present, habitual or current action)
“We went up to the second floor in the elevator.” (past action)

You know which one it is only from context or from additional words:

Ayer subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor. → clearly past (“Yesterday we went up…”).
Cada día subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor. → clearly habitual present (“Every day we go up…”).

Why is it subimos and not vamos in this sentence?

In Spanish, subir means “to go up, to move upward, to climb, to go up (a floor, stairs, etc.)”.

Subimos al segundo piso = We go up to the second floor / We went up to the second floor.

Ir (vamos) means “to go (to a place)” in a more general sense, without the idea of going up:

Vamos al segundo piso. can be understood as “We go to the second floor,” but it does not emphasize the upwards movement. It’s more like just “We go to the second floor.”

In practice, native speakers strongly prefer subir for going up floors or stairs:

Subimos al tercer piso por las escaleras. – We go (up) to the third floor by the stairs.
Bajamos al primer piso. (from bajar, to go down) – We go down to the first floor.

So subimos is used because we’re specifically talking about going up.

Could I say nos subimos instead of subimos? What’s the difference?

Both forms exist, but they don’t mean exactly the same thing:

Subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor.
- Focus on the movement upward: “We (go) up to the second floor in the elevator.”
Nos subimos al ascensor.
- Reflexive / pronominal use of subirse a = “to get on / into” (a vehicle, an elevator, etc.).
- Meaning: “We get onto the elevator.”

So:

Use subir a X to highlight going up to a higher place:
- Subimos al segundo piso. – We (go) up to the second floor.
Use subirse a X to highlight getting on/in a vehicle or something you climb onto:
- Nos subimos al ascensor. – We get on the elevator.
- Nos subimos al autobús. – We get on the bus.

You could have a sequence like:

Nos subimos al ascensor y subimos al segundo piso.
“We got into the elevator and (then) went up to the second floor.”

Why is it al instead of a el in al segundo piso?

Al is a standard contraction in Spanish:

a + el = al

So:

a el segundo piso → al segundo piso

You must use the contraction al (and similarly del = de + el) whenever a (or de) is immediately followed by el (the masculine singular definite article), except in a few set expressions like proper names (a El Salvador keeps it separate).

So a el segundo piso is grammatically wrong; it must be al segundo piso.

Why is it segundo piso and not segunda planta? Is this a Latin American thing?

Yes, there’s a regional preference:

In Latin America, piso is the common word for “floor / story” of a building:
- primer piso, segundo piso, tercer piso, etc.
In Spain, you will very often hear planta:
- primera planta, segunda planta, tercera planta, etc.

Both piso and planta are understood in most Spanish-speaking regions, but:

This sentence is in Latin American Spanish, so segundo piso is the natural choice.
Piso also often means “apartment” (especially in Spain):
- Vive en un piso en el centro. – He lives in an apartment in the city center.

Note also agreement:

piso is masculine, so segundo piso (not segunda).
planta is feminine, so segunda planta.

What’s the difference between en el ascensor and por el ascensor? Could I use por here?

In this exact sentence:

Subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor.
Means we were inside the elevator when we went up. Literally: “We go/went up to the second floor in the elevator.”

About por:

por el ascensor in the sense of “by means of the elevator” is possible, but you’d more often drop the article:
- Subimos al segundo piso en ascensor. – We go up to the second floor by elevator.
- Subimos al segundo piso por ascensor. – Also “by elevator,” but less common in many areas.
por el ascensor can also sound like “through/by way of the elevator (shaft/area)”, depending on context, which isn’t the usual meaning.

So:

en el ascensor = physically inside the elevator.
en ascensor / por ascensor = by elevator (means of transport), more abstract.

Your sentence with en el ascensor is completely natural and clear.

Why don’t we say nosotros subimos? Where is the subject?

In Spanish, the subject pronoun (yo, tú, él, nosotros, etc.) is usually omitted because the verb ending already shows who the subject is:

subo → I go up
subes → you go up
sube → he/she/it goes up
subimos → we go up
suben → they go up

So subimos on its own already means “we go up / we went up”.
You only add nosotros (we) for:

Emphasis or contrast:
- Nosotros subimos al segundo piso, ellos se quedan abajo.
  We go up to the second floor; they stay downstairs.
Clarity in a confusing context (e.g., when several people are being talked about).

In your sentence, there’s no special emphasis or ambiguity, so the natural version is just:

Subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor.

Can the word order change? Could I say En el ascensor subimos al segundo piso?

Yes, Spanish allows some flexibility in word order, especially with adverbial phrases like en el ascensor. All of these are possible and natural:

Subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor.
Subimos en el ascensor al segundo piso.
En el ascensor subimos al segundo piso.

They all mean essentially the same thing. Differences are mostly about rhythm and focus:

Putting en el ascensor first (En el ascensor subimos…) can slightly highlight the location/means (the elevator).
Keeping al segundo piso right after subimos keeps the destination close to the verb:
Subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor.

For a learner, the original order is probably the clearest.

Does piso always mean “floor”? Are there any traps with this word?

Piso is versatile. Main meanings:

Story/floor of a building:
- Vive en el quinto piso. – He lives on the fifth floor.
Apartment (especially in Spain):
- Compraron un piso en Madrid. – They bought an apartment in Madrid.
Surface/floor (the thing you stand on):
- Hay agua en el piso. – There’s water on the floor.

In some Latin American countries, you’ll also see distinctions like:

planta baja = ground floor (street level)
primer piso = one floor above ground
segundo piso = two floors above ground, etc.

In English, “first floor” can mean either ground floor (US usage) or one floor above ground (British usage). Spanish piso vs English “floor” can cause confusion mainly because the numbering systems differ by country, not because of the word piso itself.

In Latin America, do people say ascensor or elevador, or are both correct?

Both exist, but usage varies by region:

ascensor:
- Widely used in Spain and many parts of Latin America.
- This is the more international/standard term.
elevador:
- Very common in Mexico, some parts of Central America, and in regions with strong U.S. influence.
- Comes from English “elevator”.

In Latin America you might hear:

Subimos al segundo piso en el ascensor.
Subimos al segundo piso en el elevador.

Both are correct; just be aware of regional preference. If you want a safe, widely understood word, ascensor is a good choice.

Could I say al segundo suelo or al segundo nivel instead of al segundo piso?

suelo mainly means “ground / floor (surface)” as in what you walk on inside a room or outside:
- Hay polvo en el suelo. – There is dust on the floor/ground.
  It is not used to mean “story of a building.” So al segundo suelo is not natural for “to the second floor.”
nivel means “level” and can be used in certain contexts:
- Vive en el segundo nivel del estacionamiento. – He lives on the second level of the parking structure.
- El agua subió al nivel dos. – The water rose to level two (e.g., a measuring scale).

But when talking about floors of a building for people to live/work on, the normal, idiomatic choice is:

piso (Latin America and Spain)
planta (especially Spain)

So for regular building floors, stick with segundo piso (LatAm) or segunda planta (Spain), not segundo suelo.

Is there any difference between Subimos al segundo piso and Subimos hasta el segundo piso?

Yes, a small nuance:

Subimos al segundo piso.
- Neutral: we go/went up to the second floor.
- Just states the destination.
Subimos hasta el segundo piso.
- hasta adds the idea of “up to (and stopping there)” or a kind of limit.
- Can subtly emphasize that the second floor is the final point or maybe the maximum we went up.

Example difference:

Subimos al segundo piso para hablar con el doctor.
We (just) go/went up to the second floor to talk to the doctor.
Subimos hasta el segundo piso, pero no más.
We went up as far as the second floor, but no farther.

In many everyday contexts, especially without contrast, al and hasta el will be interpreted almost the same, but hasta always has that “up to a limit” flavor.