Chcę is blunt at a counter. Polish softens it with the conditional, built from the past stem plus by plus the personal ending. It still carries gender, so a man says chciałbym and a woman says chciałabym. Poproszę is an even simpler polite option.
Examples
- Chciałbym bilet w obie strony do Warszawy.
- I would like a return ticket to Warsaw.
- Chciałabym podróżować pierwszą klasą.
- I would like to travel first class.
- Poproszę dwa bilety.
- Two tickets, please.
The mistake to avoid
The conditional keeps the gender of the past tense: chciałbym or chciałabym, never one for both.
Where this fits in
Travel & directions, Polish A2: Get around in a Polish-speaking city: take transport, ask the way, check into a hotel, and buy a ticket.