Adult ESL Travel Conversation Practice

What you need

• Printed or screen-displayed role-play cards.
• Optional blank city map, fictional transit timetable, or hotel booking note.
• Paper and pens for writing a route or repeating key details.

How to play

1. Choose two to four cards and assign the traveler and staff, host, or travel-companion roles. Let learners pass on a scenario they do not want to perform.
2. Give partners different information. One person should have a goal; the other should hold a route, schedule, booking, or fictional policy note.
3. Pre-teach a few phrases for asking directions, requesting repetition, and confirming details. Model one short exchange without reading a full script.
4. Give learners one minute to plan key words and check unfamiliar place names.
5. Run the role-play for three to five minutes. The traveler should finish by repeating the route, time, or agreed next step.
6. Swap roles or change one detail, such as the destination or departure time, and repeat.
7. Review whether the information was understood. Ask learners which phrase helped them repair a misunderstanding.

Useful language for travel situations

Practice these expressions before the role-play, then leave them visible as a support menu. The goal is to help learners ask for information and confirm what they heard, especially when a place name or number is unfamiliar.

• Directions: “Could you tell me how to get to ___?” “Is it near ___?” “Should I turn left or right at ___?”
• Transit: “Does this train stop at ___?” “Which platform does the fictional timetable show?” “Could you repeat the stop name?”
• Hotel: “I have a reservation under ___.” “Could you check the dates on this booking note?” “What time should I leave the room in this fictional scenario?”
• Repair: “Sorry, I didn’t catch the last part.” “Let me repeat that back.” “Do you mean the blue line or the green line?”
• Planning: “We have time for one more stop.” “Would you rather visit ___ or ___?” “Let’s agree on a meeting place.”

Make fictional maps and schedules clear

A travel role-play works best when its information is visible and consistent. If you add a map, use a small invented place with a few landmarks, such as a station, library, museum, and square. If you add a timetable, label it “practice schedule” and keep every time the same on the role card and answer key.

For a beginner group, provide the route as a sequence of three steps and ask the traveler to repeat it. For a more open task, give the information holder two possible routes and one constraint, then have the traveler ask questions before choosing. These are teaching adaptations, not official CEFR placements.

• Simplify: underline the destination and use one route option.
• Extend: add a missed connection, a changed meeting point, or a request to explain the route a second way.
• For a real journey, check current operator information separately; never use an invented practice schedule.

Facilitator note

Travel rules, schedules, fares, and hotel terms can change by place and provider. Keep all in-card details explicitly fictional, and do not ask learners to share passport, immigration, booking, or personal safety information. If learners adapt a prompt for an actual trip, they should verify current details with the relevant provider or authority.

• Offer a low-pressure observer role for anyone who prefers not to perform.
• Give feedback on clarity and confirmation questions rather than on accent or speed.

All cards and prompts

For games with secrets, keep this page with the host.

1. N_ESL_TRAVEL-001

   Traveler A wants to reach the Harbor Museum from Central Station. Staff B has a fictional route note: take the blue line two stops to Dock Square, exit north, and walk past the library. Ask for directions and repeat the route in order.

2. N_ESL_TRAVEL-002

   Traveler A is unsure which platform serves Pine Street. Staff B has a practice board showing the green line at Platform 2 and the blue line at Platform 4. Ask for the correct platform and confirm the line color.

3. N_ESL_TRAVEL-003

   Traveler A wants to know whether the next fictional bus stops near the art museum. Driver B has a route card listing Market Square, River Park, and Art Museum. Ask about the stop and repeat the landmark where you will get off.

4. N_ESL_TRAVEL-004

   Traveler A missed a fictional train departure by one minute. Information desk B has a practice timetable with another train later and a transfer option. Explain what happened, ask about both choices, and select one.

5. N_ESL_TRAVEL-005

   Traveler A hears an unclear announcement about a platform change. Staff B repeats the invented change: the train to Lakeview now leaves from Platform 5. Ask the speaker to repeat the destination and confirm the new platform.

6. N_ESL_TRAVEL-006

   Traveler A arrives at a hotel with a fictional booking under the name Morgan Lee for two nights. Receptionist B has a list with one similar name and different dates. Spell the name, state the dates, and ask the receptionist to check.

7. N_ESL_TRAVEL-007

   Traveler A sees a room type on a fictional confirmation that differs from the room listed at check-in. Receptionist B checks a practice record. Explain the mismatch and ask what options are available in this scenario.

8. N_ESL_TRAVEL-008

   Traveler A wants to ask for a later checkout in a fictional hotel. Receptionist B has a practice note with two possible times, one available and one unavailable. Ask about the options and repeat the agreed time.

9. N_ESL_TRAVEL-009

   Traveler A needs directions from the hotel to the ferry terminal. Receptionist B has a map note: walk to Cedar Square, take the eastbound tram three stops, then follow signs to Pier 2. Ask for the route and summarize it.

10. N_ESL_TRAVEL-010

    Traveler A is at a visitor-information desk and has one free afternoon. Staff B has three fictional options: a museum, a riverside walk, and a public garden. Ask about travel time and choose one activity.

11. N_ESL_TRAVEL-011

    Traveler A cannot find the meeting point for a walking tour. Tour host B has a practice note: meet beside the clock at Union Square, not at the station entrance. Ask for a landmark and confirm the time.

12. N_ESL_TRAVEL-012

    Traveler A is calling a hotel to change a fictional arrival time from 4:00 to 6:00. Staff B has the booking note and asks for the guest name. State the new time and ask the other person to repeat it.

13. N_ESL_TRAVEL-013

    Traveler A is checking out and sees an unfamiliar line on a fictional practice bill. Receptionist B can explain that the line is a made-up room-service charge. Ask what it refers to and confirm the corrected practice total.

14. N_ESL_TRAVEL-014

    Traveler A left a scarf in a fictional hotel lobby. Staff B works at the front desk and has a found-items note with two descriptions. Describe the scarf and answer questions that help identify it.

15. N_ESL_TRAVEL-015

    Traveler A and companion B have two hours before a fictional train. One wants a quiet café; the other wants to see a nearby gallery. Compare the two options using a made-up map and agree on a meeting time.

16. N_ESL_TRAVEL-016

    Traveler A needs to ask a driver to stop near a particular fictional landmark, Green Market. Driver B is unsure which Green Market is meant. Spell the name, describe the cross street on the practice map, and confirm the stop.

17. N_ESL_TRAVEL-017

    Traveler A is unsure whether to take the orange or purple line to North Hall. Staff B has a practice route card: orange requires one transfer; purple is direct but leaves later. Ask about the trade-off and choose.

18. N_ESL_TRAVEL-018

    Traveler A’s companion has walked ahead and the group needs a new meeting point. Companion B suggests the fountain outside the fictional city library. Ask for a clear landmark and repeat the meeting time.

19. N_ESL_TRAVEL-019

    Traveler A is at a train station and needs to find an elevator shown on a fictional station map. Staff B has a route note: use the west entrance, follow the signs to the lower hall, then turn right. Ask for the route and repeat it.

20. N_ESL_TRAVEL-020

    Traveler A wants to ask whether a fictional museum is open on the group’s planned day. Visitor-center staff B has a practice schedule showing Monday closed and Tuesday open from 10 to 4. Ask for the day and hours, then confirm.

21. N_ESL_TRAVEL-021

    Traveler A has a practice luggage tag and needs to report a missing suitcase at a fictional hotel desk. Staff B asks for color, size, and one identifying feature. Describe the bag and write down the next step.

22. N_ESL_TRAVEL-022

    Traveler A is on the phone with a host and cannot understand the building entrance instructions. Host B explains: enter at the courtyard gate, take the stairs to level two, and ring apartment 8. Ask for repetition and summarize.

23. N_ESL_TRAVEL-023

    Traveler A and companion B need to revise a fictional day plan because rain has started. Their practice cards list an indoor museum and an outdoor garden. Discuss opening times from the cards and choose a new order.

24. N_ESL_TRAVEL-024

    Traveler A asks a transit employee for a step-free route shown on a fictional map. Staff B has two routes: one includes stairs and one uses an elevator and takes longer. Ask for the second route and confirm each turn.

Hosting questions

Sources and references

• British Council TeachingEnglish adult-oriented role-play uses role cards for asking for and giving directions, a simple map, question preparation, repetition, and role swaps; all travel scenarios here are original.
• British Council TeachingEnglish role-play guidance covers preparing topic language, modeling, pair work, swapping roles, and monitoring; referenced for facilitation structure only.