IELTS Speaking Questions: Travel and Holidays
Travel questions in IELTS Speaking Part 1 are personal and present-focused: whether you enjoy travelling, where you last went, and how you like to plan a trip. The examiner wants a direct answer with a specific detail attached, not just a country name. In Part 3, the same topic turns abstract - the benefits and costs of tourism, its effect on the environment and local culture, whether travel is becoming easier - and you are expected to reason about tourism as an industry rather than describe your own holiday.
Prepare two or three real details before the test: an actual trip you have taken, one specific thing you enjoyed or disliked about it, and one honest opinion about how you like to travel. A natural mix of these details, adapted to the exact question asked, sounds far more convincing than a rehearsed answer.
Part 1 questions
Short, personal, present-tense. Answer the question directly first, then add the one detail the tip suggests — the extension is what separates a one-line answer from a Band 7 one.
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Do you enjoy travelling?
How to extend itSay yes or no, then add a short reason.
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Where did you go on your last holiday?
How to extend itName it, then add one detail.
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Do you prefer travelling alone or with others?
How to extend itPick one, add a short reason.
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What kind of places do you like to visit?
How to extend itName one type, add a reason.
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Did you travel much when you were a child?
How to extend itSay yes or no, give a detail.
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Do you prefer holidays in your own country or abroad?
How to extend itPick one, add a short reason.
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How do you usually plan your holidays?
How to extend itName one step, add a detail.
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What do you usually pack when you travel?
How to extend itName one item, add a short reason.
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Would you like to visit a new country?
How to extend itName it, then say why briefly.
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Do you prefer relaxing holidays or active ones?
How to extend itPick one, add a short reason.
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What was the best holiday you have ever had?
How to extend itName it, then add one detail.
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Do you like trying local food when you travel?
How to extend itSay yes or no, then explain briefly.
Part 3 questions
The same topic, pitched at the abstract level the examiner moves to after your cue card. These want reasoning — a position, a cause, an example, a concession — not a description of your own life.
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Do you think tourism brings more benefits or problems to a country?
How to structure itCompare both sides, then favour one.
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How has international travel changed over the past few decades?
How to structure itCompare past and present, then an example.
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Should governments limit tourist numbers in popular destinations?
How to structure itState a position, then a likely consequence.
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Do you think tourism damages local culture and traditions?
How to structure itGive a cause, an effect, then a concession.
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Is it better to travel independently or with an organised tour?
How to structure itCompare both, then favour one.
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How does tourism affect the environment in popular destinations?
How to structure itGive a reason, then a specific example.
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Do you think people travel more than previous generations did?
How to structure itCompare past and present, then a concession.
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Should more be done to make travel more environmentally friendly?
How to structure itState a position, support it with a reason.
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Is it becoming easier or harder for people to travel abroad?
How to structure itDescribe the change, then explain a cause.
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How might travel and tourism change in the future?
How to structure itPredict a trend, then give a reason.
Say the answers out loud, then sit the whole test
Reading a question and answering it are different skills. Work through the list above aloud, then put the topic inside a full timed test where you cannot stop to think.
- Describe a place you visited that you would recommend to others Part 2 cue card, with the one-minute prep timer
- Describe a natural place you have visited Part 2 cue card, with the one-minute prep timer
- Travel and holidays vocabulary 30 band-graded phrases and a self-test
Part 1, a cue card, then Part 3 — timed, in your browser, about 13 minutes.
One cue card a day on Telegram
A new Part 2 card every morning, a vocabulary topic on Sundays.
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