Things to consider:
- The question says "a place" but don't get confused. A place in this context means an area or a city NOT a specific place like a coffee shop or temple.
- You don't need to talk about a super famous area you visited. It could be a less well-known location.
- Give more examples of what you've done on day one, day two, day three. Mention different activities.
- Try to begin with a few examples of your travels, for instance:
- I've had so many interesting vacations...
- I've visited many interesting cities and natural places like...
- Quite a few locations come to my mind such as...
Part 2: Sample Answer
Alright, so I haven't been on a vacation for at least 3 years, and I’m already feeling exhausted and eager to hit the road. The reason for this gap is, obviously, Covid-19. As the world has been completely shut down the last 2 years, I mostly remained in the same place I work, daydreaming about some paradise beach location. Anyway, I’ll tell you about my last vacation in Thailand.
I'm givind a brief idea about my traveling in the last few years and introduce the vacation.
I went to Thailand 3 years ago, in the autumn. Me and 3 friends prepared and spent about 10 days traveling around Thailand and visiting two main cities – Chiang Mai and Pattaya. I will focus my story on the city of Chiang Mai, as that place completely blew my mind. I have to say I had some of the most amazing moments in my life over there, and that is not an exaggeration.
I introduce the cities I visited and my feelings in general.
Thailand is usually well known for its beach resorts and seaside vacations, however, Chieng Mai is exactly the opposite. It is located inside of the country, and it is an animal sanctuary. I was shocked by how many zoos and animal parks the place had. We stayed for 3 nights in the city, and it was an awesome experience. We visited a few animal attractions like a Night Safari Zoo, where you hop on a train at night and feed all sorts of exotic animals. This was a fantastic experience. Another thing I did was visit a tiger petting zoo and a tiger show. Before this point, I didn't even know tigers can become literally like pets, hugging and kissing people as they go. But the highlight of my whole travel was my experience with taking care of elephants. I spend a whole day at an elephant sanctuary, feeding, bathing, mudding, walking, and playing with elephants. This was the best experience I’ve ever had in my whole life, and I’d definitely return to do it again.
I describe a few activities I've done on that vacation.
I always knew about Thailand, but once traveling to the country, I completely rediscovered the place. The clean streets, the insanely cheap cost of living (everything was two or three times cheaper than any other country I’ve visited), the fantastic food, the friendly and warm people, made me appreciate the country and even start planning many future visits. I can’t wait to go there again.
Explaining my feelings about the building.
Sentence starters and Linking words
Vocabulary related to the topic
PART 3 QUESTIONS
In Part 3 we continue to take a look at some questions related to going on vacations, and we'll discuss people's habits related to going on vacations.
Examiner: What are some popular attractions that people like to visit in your country?
Top Destinations
- People love visiting the top tourist destinations. Everyone has a bucket list of locations like The Great Wall of China, The Eiffel Tower in Paris, The Pyramids in Giza, or Big Ben and the Buckingham Palace in London. These are usually packed with tourists almost all the time in the year including winter.
Little-known Areas
- Thanks to the internet, a lot of people are opting out of the big bombastic attractions and go to visit some less-known natural or peaceful locations. These could be some small villages, natural parks, city suburbs, lakes, or riversides. You can mention a few of these locations that have become popular in recent years.
ANSWER:
* Answer for China, as I live here at the moment.
Well, as you know, China has 5000 years of history. There are so many ancient ruins and places to visit throughout the country. There are famous locations like one of the 7 Wonders of the World – The Great Wall, or many emperor’s palaces like the Forbidden City in Beijing. There is the infamous Terracotta Army, which is a stone army with thousands of soldiers protecting the emperor in his afterlife. And of course, for those who prefer some modern attractions, China has developed into a contemporary futuristic country, with shiny megacities like Shanghai, Shenzhen, or Chengdu. People there can enjoy the sight of skyscrapers and modern technological entertainment such as drone shows.
Examiner: Do old people and young people choose different places to go on a vacation? Why?
For The Old
- Older people are less mobile, and so they can't do long-distance activities. Most of the time they would choose to go to a spa, a big hotel or would join a tour group with a bus, riding comfortably around town. Because of this reason, there are many summer and winter resorts that cater directly to older people with all-included promotions and musical programs at night.
For The Young
- Young people are more adventurous and full of energy and would prefer to make unique experiences. Many would hike or backpack throughout a country, climb a hill or a mountain, do dangerous extreme sports and activities such as bungee jumping or sky diving, and many more. The younger people are definitely more carefree and seek excitement and adrenalin.
ANSWER:
Examiner: What do young people and old people think about when making travel plans?
For The Young
- As mentioned earlier, younger people care about the experience which means they don't need to spend too much money on a fancy stay at a hotel but would prefer to simply rent a room on Airbnb and call it a day. They would use their money for exclusive experiences, parties, food, and activities. Of course, for those who are a young couple, they might prefer going to some romantic place, and that could cost a bit more than usual.
For The Old
- Older people consider comfort above all. This means that they choose better quality hotels, better quality transportation, better quality service, and food. While young people are satisfied with trying street snacks, older people would only dine at a restaurant and that restaurant has to be with good service and proper environment. Older people are more willing to spend for comfort.
ANSWER:
Ok so, for the youth, I believe it’s all about the experience. They want to visit something brand new, something unique, they’ve only read in their encyclopedias and of course, they’d try to save money as much as possible. Young people are willing to sacrifice comfort for experience. On the other hand, the older we get, the higher our standards get. This means we would even refuse to travel if we had to stay in a hostel or a 2-star motel, but instead, we would save more money and spend it on a luxury cruise, or a fancy spa hotel. Again, it is about the experience, but it is about a comfy, satisfying, and a bit lux experience.
Examiner: How do people find out about a new place?
Online
- These days we can get all the necessary information and recommendations online. There are video-sharing platforms, blogs, vlogs, travel guides, panoramic photos, and even Google Earth. A person can see every single place from the world on his mobile phone and then decide on a vacation plan for himself.
Word of Mouth
- Oftentimes, people get influenced by their friends, relatives, or even strangers Looking at Facebook or Instagram and seeing people travel to exotic destinations inspires people to book their own vacations in those places. Moreover, family members and friends would recommend each other vacation places and share opinions or little-known facts about those places.
ANSWER:
These days, mostly on the internet. As many video-sharing platforms like Tik Tok or YouTube exploded with popularity, nowadays people are glued to the screen watching video reviews and the exotic travels of vloggers from all around the world. There is no better way to learn about a new travel destination than watching 5 or 10 video reviews of the location. At a time, you might even get enough by simply watching, and at times people make exquisite travel plans for that location. For instance, I’ve watched multiple short videos about diving in the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, and now this spot has become on the top of my list for traveling.