Section 1 - Practice 6
Man: Good morning. Can I help you?
Woman: I hope so! I have a friend in Spain and her two daughters are coming to the city to study for a month. So I thought the Tourist Information Centre was the best place to ask hostels. Can you recommend any?
Man: Of course. Ah, I usually suggest one of the Hostelling International places. Hi West End is a big hostel in a residential area, but it’s only ten minutes from downtown (Example) if you take a bus. It’s really popular.
Woman: OK. Sounds good! I need to know how much it costs. The girls want a double room to themselves. They don’t want to share with other people.
Man: That makes it more expensive. The price is under $30 for a bed in a dormitory but they’ll be paying $50 a night. (1) But if they become members of Hostelling International, the price comes down to $41 a night. Membership costs $35.
Woman: Right.
Man: And membership offers them benefits too on all kinds of activities.
Woman: Ah, what kind of things?
Man: Oh, er, skydriving and white-water rafting. Things like that.
Woman: Mm, I don’t think they’re interested in that kind thing. (2) If they become members, will they get cheaper entrance tickets to museums?
Man: Oh, yes and also discounts on bicycle and car hire.
Woman: OK. It’s problably worth it. Is the hostel very noisy? They’re coming here to do some studying.
Man: Ah, I think it is quite noisy as it’s a really big hostel. And if they want to use the Internet this hostel still makes a charge unfortunately. It’s $1 for 15 minutes and (3) $3 for an hour.
Woman: Mm… it might not be ideal for them. What else can you recommend? Is there anything in a quite area?
Man: There’s Elliscoat Hostel.
Woman: Mm, how do you spell that?
Man: (4) E-L-L-I-C-O-A-T.
Woman: I’ve never heard that name before. And where is that?
Man: It’s on the beach looking over the bay. Here, look on the map. It’s quite but not far from Dragon Island – there’s plenty going on there in the evening.
Woman: Oh, that’s a nice area. And if they want to go to Dragon Island (5) it only takes a couple of minutes to walk down to the ferry. So how much is a room there?
Man: It’s in such a nice spot that the rooms area a bit more expensive. They’re $62.
Woman: Does that include any meals?
Man: Unfortunately not. It is possible to buy meals in a hostel at a reasonable price but because it isn’t very busy in the winter, (6) they only cook in summer.
Woman: Oh, I think I know the place you mean. It’s an old building isn’t it?
Man: Yes, it’s well known as it’s one the hostels in the city. (7) There’s been a hotel there since 1887 when it was first built. It was turned into a hostel in 1985 and they’ve invested a lot of money restoring it inside.
Woman: Mm, they’d like that but I’m just looking on the map at where their college is – it’s right in the centre. It is a bit far for them from there.
Man: (8) The hostel actually has scooters for hire at a very good price. So they could do that. Er, it would be quicker than cycling or walking to the centre.
Woman: Mm, it is a bit expensive… But it sounds like the best one so far unless there’s something a bit cheaper?
Man: OK. Er, well, what about the Backpackers Hostel? That’s not so expensive. It’s in a side street (9) in the entertainment district. They wouldn’t need to go far to find everything they want – they could walk everywhere. And it’s very reasonable. Only $45 and another $5 if they want to have breakfast.
Woman: Mm, but what about the other meals?
Man: There’s no café but on each floor in this hostel (10) there’s a kitchen for residents to cook in. I’m not sure how well equipped they are but it should be fine for basic meals.
Woman: Well, that’s really very helpful. I’ll pass all this information on now.
Man: Do ask your friends to ring me if they need to know anything else.
Woman: I will. Thank you.