Guiding a tourist in town:
Excuse me, can you speak English?
Yes, of course. Can I help you?
Yes, we’ve just arrived on holiday here. Have you got a map of the town?
Yes, here you are. The tourist office is just here. I’ll mark it with a cross. If you walk down this street here, you get to the beach. It’s about 5 min.
Thank you. Where is the old part of the town?
Over here. You can see lots of narrow winding streets and there’s the church.
How long would it take to walk there?
About 10 or 15 min. The easiest way from here is to turn left and go straight along the road until you reach the bus station, and then turn right.
Is there a train station as well as a bus station?
Yes, the train station is here on the edge of the town. I’ll just get you some timetables. Here you have a train timetable and one for the buses.
Thanks very much. Do you have any information about things to do in the area?
Yes of course. Over there you’ve got leaflets about attractions. And this free guide here tells you what’s on this month. It has information about concerts, festivals, children’s events.
That looks very useful, thank you.
There are also some guided tours you can take from here. There’s a walking tour of the old town. It takes a couple of hours and it’s very interesting. And there are coach tours. There’s one which takes you round the castles in the area. I don’t know if you know that this region is famous for its castles.
No, I didn’t. Would we need to book in advance?
Yes, for the coach tour you need to book at least one day in advance and you can do that from here. For the walking tour you just turn up outside this office at ten o’clock in the morning on Tuesday or on Thursday.
Right, well, thank you very much. You’ve been most helpful.
Not at all. I hope you enjoy your stay here and if you need to know anything else, please feel free to ask.
Comprehension check:
How far is the beach from the tourist information office?
How does the woman describe the streets in the old town?
How do you get to the bus station from the tourist office?
How can tourists find out what’s happening each month?
Order the adjectives:
1. Tree-filled beautiful palm slice paradise a of
2. Egyptian an oasis idyllic
3. Rich an incredibly culture
4. Shawls embroidered lavishly
5. Furnished traditionally rooms lit by oil only lamps.
Types of accommodation
Campsite hostel camping barns bunkhouse
Self-catering cottage farm accommodation guest house
Country hotel B&B
Quiet serviced accommodation in its own grounds (country h)
Provides some meals on a working farm (farm
Private house that provides a bedroom and breakfast (B and B
Small hotel that provides breakfast and sometimes dinner - guest
No meals provided and may have to be booked for whole weeks - self
Has dormitories but sometimes private rooms as well - hostel
You can sleep in a tent or a touring caravan -campsite
A simple hostel - bunkhouse
Very basic accommodation in remote areas – camping barns
amenities / We are located downtown, so we are close to all of the amenities.booked / I'm afraid the hotel is booked tonight.
check-in / You can check-in anytime after four o'clock.
check-out / Please return your parking pass when you check-out.
complimentary breakfast / All of our rooms have complimentary soap, shampoo, and coffee.
cot, rollaway bed / If you need an extra bed, we have cots available.
damage charge / We will have to add a damage charge for the hole you put in the wall.
deposit / You will not receive your deposit back if you cancel.
front desk, reception / Towels are available at the front desk.
hostel / In the hostel you probably won't get your own room.
housekeeping, maid / Put a sign on the door if you want housekeeping to come in and change the sheets on the bed.
king-size bed / A room with a king size bed costs an extra ten dollars a night.
kitchenette / Your room has a kitchenette so you can prepare your own breakfasts and lunches.
late charge / You will be charged a ten dollar late charge for checking out after 11 am.
linen / We will come in and change the linens while you are out of your room.
lobby / You can stand in the lobby and wait for your bus.
luggage cart / Please return the luggage cart to the lobby when you are finshed with it.
parking pass / Display this parking pass in your window to show that you are a hotel guest.
pillow case / Room 201 doesn't need their sheets changed, but they requested one new pillow case.
queen size bed / They have a queen size bed so the small child can eaily fit in the middle.
rate / Our rates change depending on the season.
towels
noun / You can get your swimming pool towels at the front desk.
vacancy
vacant / We only have one vacancy left, and it is for a single room.
valet / If you leave your car keys with us, the valet will park your car underground.
vending machine / The vending machine on the fifth floor has chocolate bars and chips.
view / The room is more expensive because it has a spectacular view of the beach
Wake up call / What time would you like your wake up call?
We do not have any vacancies. We’re completely……….
I’ll call housekeeping and ask them to bring you some fresh………….
Please put your used ………… in the basket and leave the unused ones on the rack.
If you need a midnight snack, there’s a ………….. full of potato chips on your floor.