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IELTS Speaking Part 2: IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card.

Describe the best holiday you ever had.

You should say:

• when and where you had it
• how you reached there
• what you did, and with whom you spent the holiday

and explain why it was so special.

[You will have to talk about the topic for one to two minutes. You have one minute to think about what you are going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish.]

Model Answer 1:

Holidays come and go in our lives. While some of those holidays feel really “special” to us, the others make us feel really “disappointed”.  However, today, I would like to talk about one such holiday which I would call the “best” one of my life.

It was about 6 years ago when I was studying in the final year at my university, and things were getting tough as far as the classes and assignment tasks were concerned. Besides, an “unusually” hot summer, “unusual” for the time of the year in my country, made the things even tougher. So, I was desperately looking for a holiday. But, “where would I go” was the first question that came into my mind. However, after giving some thoughts, I finally decided that I would visit one of my cousins, having almost the same age as me, who was living far, far away from my hometown in one of the most beautiful countrysides of my country called (... say the name of a place...) with my loving aunt. So, the next day, I took a non-stop train and arrived at my cousin’s place after travelling for almost 16 hours or so. After arriving there, the first thing, my cousin wanted me to do, was to visit the lake and swim in its crystal clear water to “cool” myself down. The next couple of days, of course, we mostly walked through the meadow while enjoying the mesmerizing beauty of the countryside, followed by bird-hunting and having a picnic in the bush.

It was arguably the best holiday of my life and so special mainly because it allowed me to enjoy the beautiful nature of my country, while breathing some fresh air also at the same time, which just couldn’t be found at a 5-star luxury hotel in a city, even after costing a “fortune. Besides, sometimes, doing the “simplest” things in life is what really makes us feel happy, when everything else fails, like reuniting with some very special family members, who love you so dearly, or listening to the chirping of some special birds at early dawn without actually ever getting out of your bed.

Model Answer 2:

The best holiday of my life was the vacation I had with my parents and sisters two years ago. I work in the capital city and visit my hometown 2-3 times a year. My hometown is a 7-hour drive from my current city. That time I got a week’s holiday and planned to surprise my family members. I reached home at around 1.00 am and my parents and siblings were delighted and quite surprised at the same time to see me. They were excited when they heard that I had got a vacation for the whole week. My mother called my elder sister the next day and she came to visit us on the same day with her children.

The next day we went to watch a movie in the theatre and we ate dinner in a Thai restaurant. We return home late at night and then played cards together. My nephew and niece kept me busy all day long and I spent some exciting time with them.

Next day we went to a nearby picnic spot and that was a very pleasant experience. We cooked our own food and I personally prepared the grilled fish item, which, to our surprise, was delicious. We played outdoor games, ran in the fields and swam in the water. This was a truly great day that I enjoyed thoroughly.

Since my vacation was getting over, my parents planned to visit our grandparents’ (parents of my father) house. Though our grandparents both had passed away a few years ago, we still cherished our time in this very house and enjoyed our stay there. The next morning, we drove to my grandparents' house. It was a bit tough for the car to accommodate all the luggage and us and yet we decided to travel together in a car. We drove for several hours and discussed so many things we have not discussed for a long. It was nostalgic and yet exciting!

In the evening we reached to our grandparents’ house where two of my uncles and their families live in. Later on, we went to visit the nearby river and enjoyed the open and fresh air. In the evening we returned home and had our family dinner.

Our two days’ stay at my grandparents' house passed very pleasantly and quickly. I returned to our home the next day, and the day after that I returned to my city (where I live and work) by train. This holidays I had with my family is a memorable one, and the best I ever had, as I scarcely get a chance to meet and spend time with all of my family members together whom I love and miss dearly. 

Similar Cue Card topics:

Your ability to talk about this Cue Card Topic would enable you to talk about the following Cue Card Topics as well:

1. Describe a vacation you recently had.
2. Describe something interesting you did recently.
3. Describe your idea of an ideal holiday.
4. Describe a picnic or recreation you recently had.
5. Describe an outdoor meal you recently enjoyed.
6. Describe a holiday you spent with your friends.  

• IELTS Cue Card
• IELTS Speaking
• Candidate Task Card

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