Name: _____________________ Subject of study: _________________Enrollment number: ______

English Test for tourism students – January 2024

1. Reading: Coconut Island. Read the text and answer the questions.

I was told Coconut Island was developing fast. Presumably this meant it was a once pristine island on
the downhill slope to environmental ruin caused by uncontrolled tourist development. Perhaps they
meant it in a more positive light. I wasn’t sure. I went there to find out.

Driving down the east coast expressway, you don’t see much. The landscape is pretty flat most of the
way with just a few trees and roadside shacks selling pineapples. Oh, and of course the usual
construction teams in the never-ending process of widening and ‘improving’ the road. However, once
you get to the end of the road and the ferry terminal, you look across the sea and see a huge
mountainous, almost forbidding, island rising up in front of you. I felt a frisson of excitement, or was I
just a bit nervous, as I had also just seen a rusting car ferry approaching the small pier?

We crossed without mishap, but left the ferry stuck behind a convoy of trucks carrying construction
materials ready to concrete over this beautiful island. From the ferry stop, the road rises abruptly
over a small hill and then as it comes down the other side we enter tourist land. Although we knew
the sparkling white beach was just metres from the road, we were denied a first sight for quite some
time. Not by rows of palm trees but by rows of shops selling tourist tat. We couldn’t even see these
too well because of all the dust thrown up by the trucks. Fortunately the tourist shops thinned out
within 20 minutes and shortly afterwards we arrived at our destination: Seaview Resort.

We weren’t disappointed. We had been promised fine white sand and clear turquoise water and we
got it. Only problem was there was just a few feet of white sand and that was mostly covered in
beach towels from the overweight European tourists who had got there before us. Ah well not to
worry, we could explore up the beach for a quiet spot later. We checked out the rooms and facilities
and everything was just as you would expect from a mid-range hotel. It also had quite a nice little
restaurant right on the beach and therefore great for a cold beer and our first sunset – perfect!

The following morning after cold bacon and eggs for breakfast it seemed that the same people from
yesterday were hogging the sun beds and beach space again so we decided to walk down the beach
and explore a little further afield. In actual fact I was very pleasantly surprised. I was expecting the
whole beach to be lined with resorts packed side to side but actually on this beach there was still
plenty of space for developers. The closest buildings to us were a couple of beachside family-run
cheap and cheerful restaurants with bamboo chairs and tables. At 300 metres away, they were also
just too far away for most of the package tourists. And this was generally where we spent most of
our days. An added bonus was that at the shack – White Sands to give it its official name (the name
was on a piece of driftwood tacked to a nearby palm tree), the food was far, far superior to the
resort. Whereas the resort chefs had removed any local flavour from their creations, the White Sands
staff had managed to keep their food authentic. (…)

One day we steamed south on a ‘Fun’ cruise for a trip round the island. From the sea we could see
the extent of the development on Coconut Island. There were plenty more resorts being built, the
backdrops of swaying palms had become construction sites and the lush green hillsides had become
bare red scars soon to be covered with tourist developments. However, our day was spent steaming
from one little island to the next with plenty of opportunity for snorkelling and swimming. At four we
turned around and were dropped off at our hotel just after sunset. I’m usually sceptical of these
organized trips but I would certainly recommend this one. Not too bad for the price – Oh, I forgot to
mention the lunch on board was excellent also. (…)

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Name: _____________________ Subject of study: _________________Enrollment number: ______

1. I went to Coconut Island … 2. Down the east coast expressway I saw …

a) to discover a pristine raw piece of land a) all the way mountainous island landscape
b) to make out how it was developing b) lots of trees and roadside shacks
c) to discover natural and cultural places c) a flat landscape mostly
d) to spend a notable sum of money d) damaged roads in need of reconstruction

3. How did I feel at the ferry terminal? 4. After the ferry stop …
a) quite excited a) we got stuck behind a convoy of trucks
b) relaxed b) we made a break at a motorway restaurant
c) forbidding c) we saw sparkling white beach
d) very nervous d) we went up and then down

5. What did the roadside shops sell? 6. How was the resort?
a) junk goods for tourists a) disappointing
b) palm trees b) not as advertised
c) white sand c) a little crowded
d) works of art d) low-range

7. The next day … 8. What were the benefits of White Sands?

a) we stayed at the hotel beach a) better tourist packages
b) we explored the beach further b) a family-run surf school
c) we took the ferry c) a high-range hotel
d) we enjoyed our all inclusive packages d) local food

9. How was the development on Coconut Island as 10. What were the benefits of the boat trip?
seen from the boat?
a) sea diving
a) A few resorts were being built.
b) sky diving
b) Swaying palms were being planted.
c) horse riding
c) Red scars were to be covered with tourist
d) an excellent breakfast
facilities.
d) They kept their island unchanged.

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Name: _____________________ Subject of study: _________________Enrollment number: ______

2. Put the words below in the correct order to make the questions.
1. of are kind tourist you What?
________________________________________________________________________________
2. your What tourism in of there town kind is?
________________________________________________________________________________
3. such tourism is Why industry big a?
________________________________________________________________________________
4. or area What benefits do tourists bring to a town?
________________________________________________________________________________
5. you reading article Did like this?
________________________________________________________________________________
6. of have bad behaviour What can kind tourists?
________________________________________________________________________________
7. being tourist Do like a you?
________________________________________________________________________________
8. like Would guide to be a tour you?
________________________________________________________________________________

3. Put the words from the list into the correct spaces.

holiday ∆ operator ∆ sightseeing ∆ hot spots ∆ welcome ∆ again ∆ Mediterranean ∆

pools ∆ resorts ∆ destinations

Matt: Good morning and _________________________ to „Holiday Options”. I’m Matt Scott and
later today in the studio we have Lisa Barton – our very own tour _________________________.
Lisa’s going to tell us which _______________________ are going to be _______________________
this summer. But first of all, we asked some of our listeners about their favourite holiday
_________________________ .
Lisa: So, what’s your favourite holiday destination?
Listener 1: My favourite place for a _________________________ ? Corfu, Greece. We went there
last year. It was great. Something for all the family.
Listener 2: Oh, it’s got to be Majorca. I love it – there’s sun, sea and sangria. I’ve been to Majorca
twice now and I’ll definitely go _________________________ .
Listener 3: I don’t really have a favourite resort, but I’ll probably go to the _____________________
again, especially Turkey. The _________________________ is great. There’s a fantastic place called
Pammukale. Yeah, and there are these incredible _________________________ . It looks like snow,
but it isn’t.

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 Name: _____________________ Subject of study: _________________Enrollment number: ______

4. Look at these hotel staff titles. Where do they work?

1. kitchen manager Hotel front office:

2. chambermaid
3. concierge
4. front office manager
Food and beverages:
5. chef
6. head waiter
Housekeeping:
7. housekeeper
8. porter
9. front desk clerk

5. Listening: Roberta is the General Manager of the hotel Concordia in Milan. Listen to her
talking about the staff structure of the hotel and complete the diagram.
Link to the audio: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1H6R877gtgV9zakgYcuY3sEIWjgK3JJKc/view

General Manager

Front Office Housekeeping Food and beverages

Rooms Maintenance Restaurant, bar Kitchen

and cafeteria

1 4 6 7

Waiters Junior Chefs

2 5

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Name: _____________________ Subject of study: _________________Enrollment number: ______

6. Driving in Florida: Fill in the gaps using the words in the box.

insurance / leave / paying / under / rent / lowest / for / supplementary /

considerate / charge / automatic / need

Driving in Florida is a delight. Most highways are uncrowded, and Floridians are _________________
drivers. Gasoline is inexpensive and car rental rates are the _________________ in the United States.
Car rental costs in Florida are quite cheap and you can save money by booking and _______________
before you leave home. Fly-drive deals can be 50 percent cheaper, but be careful of “free” car rental.
Extras like state tax and _________________ are not included in these offers.
If you rent when you arrive, it is usually cheaper to _________________ a vehicle at the airport than
in town. All you _________________ to rent a car is your driver’s licence, passport and a credit card.
The minimum age for car rental is twenty-one, but drivers _________________ twenty-five
sometimes pay extra.
Make sure your car rental includes Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) – also known as Loss Damage
Waiver (LDW) – or you will be responsible _________________ any damage to the car. Rental
agreements include third party insurance, but it’s best to buy additional or ___________________
Liability Insurance.
Some companies add a premium if you want to leave the car in another city and all
___________________ a lot for gas. Make sure you ___________________ the car with the same
amount of gas.
Most international car rental agencies offer a range of vehicles from economy models to
convertibles. All rental cars come with an _________________ transmission, power steering and air
conditioning.

7. Write a short text about the diagram below. (How many international tourists have visited …)
_________________________________
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