B1 Vocabulary — Hotels & accommodation
Key words and review language to describe different places to stay and what they are like when you travel.
B1 Intermediate
Travel & tourism
Hotels & stays
1. Places to stay when you travel
Common kinds of accommodation:
- hotel a large building with many rooms for guests; can be basic, mid-range or very luxurious. We stayed in a small family hotel near the beach.
- B&B (bed and breakfast) a small place, often a private house or above a pub; the price includes breakfast. The B&B was cosy and the breakfast was excellent.
- vacation rental / holiday let a flat or house rented only for holidays; guests use the whole property and its kitchen, bathroom, etc. We booked a holiday let with two bedrooms and a balcony.
- guest house a small hotel-like place, usually run by the owners, with a friendly, homely feeling. The guest house was quiet and felt very personal.
- homestay a room in a local family’s home; you often eat with the family and practise the language. During my language course I stayed in a homestay.
- resort a hotel complex with pools, restaurants and activities; food and entertainment are often included. The resort had three swimming pools and a private beach.
- lodge / cabin a small house in the countryside or mountains, usually with several rooms and cooking facilities. We rented a wooden cabin by the lake.
- youth hostel very budget accommodation, popular with young travellers; guests usually sleep in shared dormitories. The youth hostel was cheap but clean and friendly.
- motel a simple hotel next to a main road; designed for people travelling by car and always with parking. We stopped at a roadside motel for the night.
2. Staff & service
- attentive staff listen carefully and react quickly to guests’ needs. The waiters were very attentive in the hotel restaurant.
- friendly staff are warm and welcoming. Everyone at reception was friendly and smiled a lot.
- helpful staff give good advice or solve problems. The concierge was extremely helpful with taxi bookings.
- rude staff are impolite or speak in a bad way. The receptionist was quite rude on the phone.
- inattentive staff do not listen or ignore guests. The service in the bar was slow and inattentive.
- understaffed = there are not enough employees for the number of guests. The hotel was understaffed during the high season.
3. Cleanliness & space
- clean / spotless = very clean; spotless means perfectly clean. Our room was spotless when we arrived.
- untidy = not organised; things are in the wrong place. The room looked untidy, with towels on the floor.
- dusty / dirty = covered in dust / has not been cleaned for some time. The shelves were dusty and the carpet was dirty.
- stained = has marks that do not come off. The curtains were stained and needed changing.
- spacious = big enough to move around comfortably. The apartment was bright and spacious.
- cramped = very small with little free space. The twin room felt cramped for three people.
4. Décor & furniture
- modern décor follows current styles and looks fresh. The lobby had a modern design with lots of glass.
- great décor = design that guests really like. The rooms were simple but the décor was great.
- old-fashioned = looks out of date and needs updating. The dining room felt dark and old-fashioned.
- comfortable furniture is pleasant to sit or lie on. The armchairs were very comfortable.
- uncomfortable / tatty = not pleasant to use / old and in bad condition. The sofa was tatty and uncomfortable.
5. Bedding & noise
- firm mattress = hard enough, not too soft. I slept well because the mattress was firm.
- crisp sheets = very clean, smooth and freshly ironed. The crisp white sheets felt wonderful.
- overused / worn bedding shows a lot of use and is no longer in good condition. The blankets looked worn and a bit grey.
- quiet / peaceful = with very little noise. The hotel was peaceful at night.
- noisy = full of loud or unpleasant sounds. It was noisy because of traffic outside.
6. Location & price
- convenient = easy to reach everything you need (shops, transport, sights). The location was very convenient for the city centre.
- central = in the middle of the town or city. We chose a central hotel close to the station.
- inconvenient = difficult to get to or far from main places. The campsite was beautiful but inconvenient without a car.
- cheap / expensive = low price / high price. The rooms were cheap but basic.
- reasonable / affordable = good value; not too expensive. Breakfast was included at a very reasonable price.
- overpriced = costs more than it is worth. The minibar was convenient but completely overpriced.
7. Food & overall experience
- tasty / delicious = has a good flavour / extremely tasty. The breakfast buffet was delicious.
- tasteless / bland = with little or no taste. The soup was hot but quite bland.
- amazing, great, incredible = very positive adjectives for a stay or hotel. We had an amazing weekend at the spa hotel.
- disappointing = not as good as you expected; leaves a negative feeling. The room looked nice online, but the stay was disappointing.
Try using these adjectives in your own hotel reviews to describe staff, rooms and your overall stay.
Exercises:
Hotels & Accommodation
Choose the correct option to complete each sentence below.
1
On our city break we stayed in a large building in the centre with a reception, lifts and room service; it was a
.
Correct:
A hotel is a large building with rooms, reception and services for guests.
2
We stayed in a small house where the owners live there and give you a room and breakfast; it is called a
.
Correct:
A B&B (bed and breakfast) is a small place where you get a bed for the night and breakfast.
3
For two weeks they booked a whole apartment online, not a hotel room; this type of place is a
.
Correct:
A vacation rental is a flat or house you rent for a short holiday stay.
4
In British English, a cottage by the sea that you rent for a week in summer is often called a
.
Correct:
A holiday let is a house or flat you rent for a short holiday in British English.
5
On the coast we stayed in a small, family-run place with a few rooms and breakfast, like a small hotel, called a
.
Correct:
A guest house is a small hotel-style place, usually run by a family.
6
On her language course she lived with a local family, ate with them and slept in their home; this arrangement is a
.
Correct:
A homestay is when you live in a local family’s home while you study or travel.
7
The hotel complex had several pools, restaurants, a spa and many activities; it was a beach
.
Correct:
A resort is a large holiday hotel complex with many facilities and activities.
8
When we went hiking in the mountains, we stayed in a small hotel-style building for walkers, a mountain
.
Correct:
A lodge is a small hotel, often in the mountains or countryside.
9
They rented a small wooden house in the forest for the weekend, a
.
Correct:
A cabin is a small wooden house, usually in the countryside or forest.
10
To save money, backpackers stayed in a cheap place with shared rooms and bunk beds, a
.
Correct:
A youth hostel is cheap accommodation with shared rooms for travellers.
11
On the road trip they stopped at a place by the highway where you park your car right in front of your room, a
.
Correct:
A motel is a hotel by the road where you can park next to your room.
12
The staff saw when our glasses were empty and brought more water before we asked; they were very
.
Correct:
Attentive staff notice quickly when guests need something.
13
Everyone at reception smiled, asked about our day and made us feel welcome; they were very
.
Correct:
Friendly staff are warm and kind to guests.
14
They carried our bags, booked a taxi and gave us a map of the city; the staff were very
.
Correct:
Helpful staff do things to solve guests’ problems.
15
The receptionist spoke in an angry, impolite way and did not say please or thank you; he was very
.
Correct:
A rude person is impolite and not respectful.
16
We waited a long time because the waiter looked at his phone and did not notice us; he was
.
Correct:
Inattentive staff do not watch guests or see when they need help.
17
At breakfast there were only two waiters for many guests, so everyone waited a long time; the hotel was
.
Correct:
If a place is understaffed, it does not have enough workers.
18
The room was tidy and there was no dirt on the floor or furniture; it was
.
Correct:
A clean room has no visible dirt or mess.
19
The bathroom was so clean that you could not see even one mark or speck of dirt; it was
.
Correct:
Spotless means completely clean, with no spots or marks at all.
20
There were clothes on the chair and papers on the floor, but the room was not dirty, just
.
Correct:
An untidy room is messy, with things in the wrong place.
21
Nobody cleaned the shelves for a long time, so there was grey powder everywhere; the room was
.
Correct:
A dusty room has a lot of dust on surfaces.
22
The carpet had mud and old food on it, and the bathroom floor was brown; the room was really
.
Correct:
A dirty room has a lot of dirt and needs cleaning.
23
The white sheets had brown marks that did not go away after washing; they were
.
Correct:
If something is stained, it has marks that are difficult to remove.
24
We could put a sofa, a big bed and a desk in the room and there was still lots of empty space; it was very
.
Correct:
A spacious room is large with a lot of space to move.
25
The bathroom was so small that you could hardly move; it felt very
.
Correct:
A cramped room is too small and has almost no space.
Hotels & Accommodation
Match the sentences with the hotel & accommodation words
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