J'ai besoin d'aller faire les courses

Question

There are a couple of examples where it says "aller faire les ...". Is this really needed, or at least natural in French? Would it make a difference to say "Je dois faire les courses", or "J'ai besoin de faire les courses"?

Cécile Janty-Davies · Accepted Answer

Hi Diego,
The expression 'aller faire les courses' is widely used in French for, to go shopping / to do your regular shopping-
Je dois/J'ai besoin de faire les/mes courses = I must go shopping/ do my shopping 
Chris, I think you are thinking of the expression 'avoir envie de' to express want/wish.
To express something you need to do/have to do you would use 'devoir' or 'avoir besoin de faire', or even 'falloir' -
Il faut que je fasse mes courses ce matin= I have to do my shopping this morning
Hope this helps!

Chris Wirt · Answer

It wouldn't be wrong, really.J'ai besoin de faire les courses. -- I want to shop.J'ai besoin d'aller faire les courses. -- I want to go shopping.