Describing a place is a type of question that is very common in the IELTS Speaking Part 2. This type of question tends to ask you to talk about a place that has left a strong impression on you, whether good or bad (this will be specified in the question). This place can be:
a destination you visited in the past
somewhere you go to frequently
somewhere you’d like to visit in the future.
For example, you may be asked to describe:
an interesting city
a part of town you enjoy spending time in
a special hotel you stayed in
a crowded place you went to
As usual, the prompts as you to talk about:
Where
When
Who
Why
How.
Although the prompt includes several parts or bullet points (4-5) that you need to address, you do not have to give equal time to each of them. Some parts will be easier to expand on than others. For example, you may find more things to say about the Where and How bullet points. You can elaborate on:
where the place is located (e.g. city, country)
what type of place it is (e.g. coastal city, park, museum, or governmental building)
what it is famous for
To describe your feelings toward the place, think about the culture, history, scenic beauty, food, or the people there.
Here's an example of a speech included in the book and the app. Some annotations are added in this post.
Prompt:
Describe a part of a city or town you enjoy spending time in. You should say:
where it is
what it is like
what you do there
and explain why you enjoy spending time there.
Speech (by Linh Phung)
I live in the suburb of a medium-sized city called Pittsburgh, which is in the Northeast of the US, not far away from Washington DC and New York.There are many nice parks and attractions in the city, but one of my favorite places to go to is a park close to my house called Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve.
The park has a big field with wild plants and flowers, some of which attract bees and butterflies in the summer and bloom vibrantly in the fall. Next to the field is a small pond with water plants growing around it as well as birds, ducks, geese, and dragonflies to entertain visitors. It is also next to a hiking trail through a forest, which is perfect for those who want to run or hike in the shade. It is a truly beautiful and peaceful place.
I sometimes take my daughter there to spend the afternoon together. We mostly just walk around and take pictures together. I really like taking pictures of my daughter playing and of flowers. My daughter likes climbing up a treehouse and going through a tunnel there. In the summer, there may be raspberries or blackberries for us to pick and enjoy. If we are up for it, we may go hiking for a mile or so in the woods and then turn around. My daughter is still small, so we don't walk for too long.
Overall, it's just a really nice place to enjoy nature and wild plants and small animals.
Introduction with a lead-in and an introductory sentence
Description of what the park is like
Description of what activities the speaker and her daughter do there
Conclusion and a short explanation about why the speaker likes the place
NOTE:
These are the prompts include in the book IELTS Speaking Part 2: Model Speeches, Strategies, and Practice Activities, which is are available on Amazon to purchase. This book will also be available in Vietnam soon, so check our website for more information later.
They can also be found on the Eduling Speak app with the following names: An Interesting City, Part of Town, A Special Hotel, and A Crowded Place. To find these speeches, open the app, click on Play in Solo Mode, click See all, and use the Search function to locate this. Or browse the 2-Min Speeches there. The Eduling Speak app has 60 speeches in many topics. Download it HERE for daily practice.
This video will be helpful for you to learn to describe your home or dream home: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWCLRE-IeTE
This clip shows Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve in case you'd like to learn more about it: https://youtu.be/Q_thgmUmR5o