Holidays (Leaving Cert Spanish): Revision Notes
Holidays
This revision note covers essential vocabulary, phrases, and conversation patterns for discussing holidays in your Spanish Leaving Cert oral exam. You'll learn how to describe past holidays, discuss future plans, and express your travel preferences confidently.
Exam Strategy: Holidays is one of the most common topics in Spanish oral exams. Mastering this vocabulary and these sentence patterns will give you confidence to handle related questions that often appear in the personal conversation section.
Model sentences for describing past holidays
When talking about your summer holidays, you'll mainly use past tenses. Here are some useful sentence structures that examiners expect to hear:
Describing activities:
- En julio fui de vacaciones a Portugal con mi familia - In July I went on holiday to Portugal with my family
- Fuimos a la playa y nos bañamos en la piscina - We went to the beach and swam in the pool
- Pasé mucho tiempo tomando el sol - I spent a lot of time sunbathing
- Hicimos senderismo por la montaña - We went hiking in the mountains
Describing accommodation:
- Nos alojamos en un hotel de cuatro estrellas - We stayed in a four-star hotel
- Mi familia tiene una caravana cerca de la playa - My family has a caravan near the beach
Describing work and study:
- Tuve un trabajo de verano en un supermercado - I had a summer job in a supermarket
- Hice un curso de irlandés en un colegio - I did an Irish course at a college
- Hice un intercambio con una chica española - I did an exchange with a Spanish girl
Sample Conversation: Building Your Response
Examiner: ¿Qué hiciste el verano pasado?
Student: En julio fui de vacaciones a Portugal con mi familia. Nos alojamos en un hotel de cuatro estrellas. Fuimos a la playa todos los días y pasé mucho tiempo tomando el sol. También hice un trabajo de verano en un supermercado donde gané dinero para comprar ropa.
Examiner: What did you do last summer?
Student: In July I went on holiday to Portugal with my family. We stayed in a four-star hotel. We went to the beach every day and I spent a lot of time sunbathing. I also had a summer job in a supermarket where I earned money to buy clothes.
This response uses multiple model sentences and shows variety in vocabulary and tenses.
Typical examiner questions
Essential Questions: These are the most frequently asked questions about holidays in Spanish oral exams. Prepare detailed answers for each one.
- ¿Qué hiciste el verano pasado? - What did you do last summer?
- ¿Cómo sueles pasar las vacaciones de verano? - How do you usually spend your summer holidays?
- ¿Qué vas a hacer este verano? - What are you going to do this summer?
- ¿Te gusta viajar? - Do you like travelling?
- ¿Has estado en España antes? - Have you been to Spain before?
- ¿Cuáles son las diferencias que notaste entre España e Irlanda? - What differences did you notice between Spain and Ireland?
- ¿Si te tocara la lotería, adónde viajarías? - If you won the lottery, where would you travel?
Model answers
Short responses
Use these concise answers when you need to respond quickly or as building blocks for longer responses:
Past holidays:
- El verano pasado fui a Portugal. Lo pasé fenomenal - Last summer I went to Portugal. I had a fantastic time
- Visité a mis primos en Kerry. Hicimos senderismo - I visited my cousins in Kerry. We went hiking
Future plans:
- Este verano iré a Magaluf con mis compañeros - This summer I'll go to Magaluf with my classmates
- Voy a buscar un trabajo para ganar dinero - I'm going to look for a job to earn money
Travel preferences:
- Sí, me encanta viajar porque me gusta aprender sobre otras culturas - Yes, I love travelling because I like learning about other cultures
- No me gusta mucho viajar. Prefiero estar en casa con mi familia - I don't like travelling much. I prefer being at home with my family
Extended responses
These longer responses demonstrate fluency and variety in your Spanish:
Worked Example: Extended Past Holiday Description
En julio fui de vacaciones a Portugal con mi familia. ¡Lo pasé fenomenal! Fuimos a la playa, nos bañamos en la piscina y comimos comida típica. Pasé mucho tiempo tomando el sol y jugando al voleibol con mi padre en la playa. Nos alojamos en un hotel de cuatro estrellas. También tuve un trabajo de verano en un supermercado pequeño donde gané mucho dinero.
Translation: In July I went on holiday to Portugal with my family. I had a fantastic time! We went to the beach, swam in the pool and ate typical food. I spent a lot of time sunbathing and playing volleyball with my father on the beach. We stayed in a four-star hotel. I also had a summer job in a small supermarket where I earned a lot of money.
Why this works: Uses multiple tenses, specific details, and shows personal engagement with the topic.
Worked Example: Future Holiday Plans
Este verano iré a Magaluf con un grupo grande de mis compañeros del instituto. Vamos a ir después de los exámenes. Tengo muchas ganas de tumbarme en la playa, tomar el sol y disfrutar del buen tiempo en Mallorca. Tengo suerte porque mis padres me regalaron los billetes de avión cuando cumplí dieciocho años el mes pasado.
Translation: This summer I'll go to Magaluf with a large group of my school friends. We're going to go after the exams. I'm really looking forwards to lying on the beach, sunbathing and enjoying the good weather in Mallorca. I'm lucky because my parents gave me the plane tickets when I turned eighteen last month.
Why this works: Shows enthusiasm, uses future tense correctly, and includes personal details that make the answer interesting.
Cultural comparisons
Cultural Awareness Tip: Demonstrating knowledge of Spanish culture shows deeper understanding and can impress examiners. These comparisons are commonly discussed in oral exams.
When discussing differences between Spain and Ireland, you can mention:
- Los españoles cenan muy tarde, entre las nueve y las once - Spanish people have dinner very late, between nine and eleven
- En España se usa el aceite de oliva más que la mantequilla - In Spain they use olive oil more than butter
- Se celebran más fiestas en España que en Irlanda - More festivals are celebrated in Spain than in Ireland
Grammar notes
Conditional responses to hypothetical questions
When answering questions like ¿Si te tocara la lotería, adónde viajarías? (If you won the lottery, where would you travel?), use the conditional tense:
- Iría a Nueva York - I would go to New York
- Viajaría a Australia para visitar a mis primos - I would travel to Australia to visit my cousins
- Iría de crucero por el Mediterráneo - I would go on a cruise around the Mediterranean
Conditional Formation: The conditional is formed by adding these endings to the infinitive: -ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían
This is one of the most tested grammar points in holiday-related questions!
Pronunciation tips
Pronunciation Focus: Clear pronunciation of these holiday-related words will help you sound more confident and natural in your oral exam.
Stress patterns:
- Vacaciones - stress on the final syllable: va-ca-CIO-nes
- Mediterráneo - stress on the accented 'a': Me-di-te-RRÁ-ne-o
- Fenomenal - stress on final syllable: fe-no-me-NAL
Tricky sounds:
- Intercambio - the 'mb' combination sounds like 'mb' in English 'number'
- Senderismo - roll the 'rr' sound clearly
- Alojamos - the 'j' makes an 'h' sound like 'hot'
Key holiday vocabulary
Essential Vocabulary for Holiday Topics:
Activities: tomar el sol (sunbathe), bañarse (swim), hacer senderismo (hike), ir de compras (go shopping), esquiar (ski), montar a caballo (ride horses)
Accommodation: alojarse (stay), hotel, casa (house), piso (flat), caravana (caravan)
Key expressions: lo pasé fenomenal (I had a fantastic time), me encanta (I love), tengo ganas de (I'm looking forwards to), ganar dinero (earn money)
Key Points to Remember:
- Use past tenses (preterite and imperfect) when describing previous holidays
- Express enthusiasm with phrases like ¡Lo pasé fenomenal! and ¡Me encanta!
- Include specific details about activities, places, and people to make your answers more interesting
- Use the conditional tense for hypothetical travel questions
- Practice cultural comparisons between Spain and Ireland to show cultural awareness
- Prepare both short and extended responses for flexibility in the exam