Dreamtime Travel Agency: listening answers and explanations
A customer phones Dreamtime Travel to ask about the Whale Watch Experience, a two-day coastal tour. The receptionist explains the transport, group size, dates, hotel and what the price covers, then the booking rules and a reference number.
All ten answers come in order and almost all come from the receptionist. Questions 1-4 are tour facts, 5-6 come from one long list of activities, and 7-10 cover price, booking rules and the reference number she reads out at the very end.
Answer key and self-check
Type what you wrote and hit mark. Hide the key first if you haven't done the part yet. Every question number jumps to its explanation.
Q
Your answer
Answer
Questions 1-4 · Note completion (NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER)
Note completion (NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER)
Questions 1-4
How to attack this block: Four short facts in a row: transport, group size, date and hotel name. Each one comes with a distractor said right next to it (coach, twelve or thirteen, June the 2nd, Paris). Wait for the receptionist to settle on a detail before you write.
Question 1
Answer: minibusRight after the customer asks if it's by coach
Also accepted: by minibus / a minibus
How do people travel on the tour?
Actually it's by minibus. We like to keep those tours small and personal so we don't take a whole coachload of people.
Question says → You hear
Type of transportationit's by minibus
Why: The customer guesses coach and the receptionist corrects her with 'Actually'. That word is your signal that the real answer is coming.
The trap: Coach is the customer's guess, and 'coachload' is said again a second later. Both are about what the tour is not.
Question 2
Answer: 15Straight after the minibus answer
Also accepted: 15 people / fifteen
What is the largest number of people on a tour?
In fact, we only take up to fifteen people on this tour, although we do run it with just twelve or thirteen.
Question says → You hear
Maximum group sizewe only take up to fifteen people
Why: 'Up to fifteen' is the maximum. Write 15 in digits, which is safer than spelling it.
The trap: Twelve or thirteen come straight after, but they are the minimum numbers they will still run the tour with, not the maximum.
Question 3
Answer: April 18thWhen the customer asks when the next one is going
Also accepted: April the 18th / 18th April / 18 April / April 18
When does the next tour leave?
there's one in three weeks' time which is April the 18th, and then we don't have another one until June the 2nd.
Question says → You hear
Next tour datethere's one in three weeks' time which is April the 18th
Why: The next tour is the first date she gives: April the 18th. Any normal date format is accepted, for example 18 April.
The trap: June the 2nd is the tour after that one. 'In three weeks' time' is not a date, so it doesn't fit the gap either.
Question 4
Answer: PallisadesWhen the receptionist starts on the hotel's facilities
What is the hotel called?
It's called The Pallisades. … The Paris what? … No, it's actually The Pallisades
Question says → You hear
Hotel name: TheIt's called The Pallisades
Why: The name is said twice and spelled out letter by letter: P-A-L-L-I-S-A-D-E-S. 'The' is already printed, so write only Pallisades, with double L and a capital P.
The trap: Spelling is the trap. The customer mishears it as 'Paris', and the usual English spelling 'Palisades' has one L. The key wants the spelling you hear.
Multiple choice (choose TWO)
Questions 5-6
How to attack this block: All five activities are mentioned in one long answer, so listen for the price attached to each: 'no extra charge' and 'part of the accommodation package' mean included; 'extra $12', 'costs the same' and 'pay by the hour' mean not included.
Question 5-6
Answer: B and D (in either order)When the customer asks what else is included in the price
Which two activities cost nothing extra?
bushwalk through the national park near the hotel, and there's no extra charge for that … But there are table tennis tables downstairs and they're part of the accommodation package.
Why: B: the guided bushwalk has 'no extra charge'. D: the table tennis tables are 'part of the accommodation package', so they are covered by the tour price.
The trap: Tennis (E) is the closest distractor: the hotel has tennis courts, but 'you have to pay for those by the hour'. The fishing trip is an extra $12 and the reptile park costs about the same, so A and C are out too.
Sentence completion (NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER)
Questions 7-10
How to attack this block: Numbers come thick and fast here: two prices, two periods of days, two percentages and a reference code. For each sentence, decide what the number refers to before it arrives, then pick the figure that matches.
Question 7
Answer: 280When the customer asks for the basic tour price
How much does the tour cost?
At this time of year it's usually around $300 but let me check … it's actually $280.
Question says → You hear
The tour costsit's actually $280
Why: She gives a rough figure from memory, checks, and corrects herself. The checked price, 280, is the answer. The $ sign is printed, so write only the number.
The trap: $300 is said first and with confidence. 'Usually around' and 'let me check' warn you it's not the final figure.
Question 8
Answer: 14Right after she confirms there are places for two people
Also accepted: fourteen
How many days before travel must you book?
we require all bookings to be made at least fourteen days before you travel to avoid cancellations of tours.
Question says → You hear
no later than ... days in advanceat least fourteen days before you travel
Why: 'At least fourteen days before you travel' means you can book no later than 14 days in advance. Write 14.
The trap: Seven days is said in the next sentence, but that's the cancellation rule: cancel within seven days and you pay 50%.
Question 9
Answer: 20%Right after the cancellation rule
Also accepted: 20 per cent / 20 percent
How big a deposit do you pay?
And you also need to pay a 20 … deposit at the time of booking
Question says → You hear
deposit is requiredyou also need to pay a 20 … deposit at the time of booking
Why: She says a 20 per cent deposit is due when you book. Write 20%; '20 per cent' is also accepted.
The trap: 50% comes just before, as the charge for a late cancellation. Match the figure to the word 'deposit'.
Question 10
Answer: 39745TThe end of the call, after the provisional booking
What is the customer's reference number?
OK, it's three nine seven, four five. T. That's T for tango.
Question says → You hear
reference numberthree nine seven, four five. T
Why: She reads five digits and then a letter, and confirms the letter with 'T for tango'. Write it as one code: 39745T.
The trap: The pause after 'seven' makes some students write two numbers, and some drop the letter. The whole code is one answer.
A five-digit number plus a letter. Write it all together as 39745T; missing the T or mishearing a digit loses the mark.
Words from this recording worth keeping
peak times(How often tours run)
the busiest periods of the year
facilities(The hotel)
things provided for guests to use, like a pool or courts
accommodation package(What's included)
everything included in the price of your stay
extra charge(What's included)
money you pay on top of the basic price
cancellations(Booking rules)
bookings or events that are called off
departure(Booking rules)
the time when you leave on a trip
deposit(Booking rules)
part of the price paid in advance to hold a booking
provisional booking(End of the call)
a booking that is held but not yet confirmed
Sit this test on Langujet, then come back
The full Cambridge 5 Test 1 listening paper with the real audio: all four parts, played once, marked the moment you finish. Already done it? Take it again and listen for the traps this page showed you.
Cambridge IELTS 5, Test 1, Listening Part 1. The recording, transcript and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts of the transcript only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full material, or sit the test on Langujet.
The rest of Cambridge 5 Test 1 Listening
Part 1 · Questions 1-10 · You're hereDreamtime Travel Agency
