Describe a park or garden you like to visit

The cue card

Describe a park or garden you like to visit. You should say:

• where it is
• what it looks like
• what people do there
• and explain why you like it

You have 1 minute to prepare and should speak for 1 to 2 minutes.

🎙 Practise this card with the examiner

Notes you could make in 1 minute

Write key words only, one line per bullet point:

• Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney
• harbour, big trees, lawns
• picnics, runners, tourists
• peaceful in the city

Band 7+ sample answer

A place I love to visit is the Royal Botanic Garden in Sydney. It's right in the centre of the city, next to the Opera House, and it stretches along the edge of the harbour, so it's in an amazing location.

It's huge, with wide lawns, enormous old fig trees and lots of different themed gardens, like a rose garden, a section with tropical plants and an area with native Australian species. There are paths that wind along the water, and at the far end there's a famous spot where you can see both the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge in the same view, which is always full of tourists taking photos.

People do all sorts of things there. In the mornings you see a lot of runners and people doing yoga or tai chi on the grass. At lunchtime office workers come to eat their sandwiches in the sun, and on weekends families have picnics, and there are often weddings or couples having photos taken.

I like it mainly because it's so peaceful, even though it's a stone's throw from the busiest part of the city. You can walk in from a noisy street, and within a few minutes all you can hear is birds. I often go there after work to clear my head, especially if I've had a stressful day. It's also free, which is a big plus in an expensive city like Sydney. I think the best time to visit is late afternoon, when the light on the water is beautiful.

🔊 Listen to the sample answer

About 256 words, or roughly 2 minutes at a natural speaking pace.

Useful vocabulary for this topic

• a green oasis
• well-maintained
• to have a picnic
• a stone's throw from
• to take in the view
• peace and quiet

Why this answer works: it covers every bullet point, tells a short story with specific details (names, places, numbers), uses a range of tenses, and finishes with the "explain" point, which is where you show your best vocabulary.

Follow-up and Part 3 questions

Examiner's follow-up (Part 2): When is the best time to visit it?

Part 3 discussion questions:

• Why are parks important in cities?
• Should more land be used for parks or for housing?
• Who should pay to maintain public parks?
• Do people value nature more than in the past?

Answer Part 3 questions in 3–4 sentences: your view, a reason, an example, and the other side.

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