Travel English
Lessons focused on the practical, real-world English students need when traveling, from planning a trip to navigating airports, hotels, restaurants, and city streets. The series is carefully sequenced to build vocabulary, functional language, and confidence step by step, helping learners communicate clearly and independently in common travel situations.
The features mentioned in this article are available to all Teachers on paid and free subscriptions. However, only a limited number of lessons are available on free subscriptions.
Table of contents
What are Travel English lessons?
Our Travel English lessons (formerly Functional Language) are a practical, real-world language series designed to help students confidently navigate every stage of a trip—from planning a destination and booking accommodation to checking in at the airport, ordering at a restaurant, asking for directions, and shopping for souvenirs. Each lesson focuses on essential travel vocabulary and functional expressions that learners can immediately apply in authentic situations, building both fluency and confidence. For teachers, this series offers engaging, situational content that naturally supports communicative teaching and real-life role plays. For students, it provides the language they truly need when traveling abroad, making English more meaningful, purposeful, and immediately useful beyond the classroom.
Target students
As a collection of general travel-focused English lessons, Travel English can be used with all students who are thinking of traveling to an English-speaking destination. However, the lessons assume some basic English proficiency so they are most appropriate for pre-intermediate (CEFR B1, WIDA 3.0 Developing) and higher proficiency levels. Teachers can use the lessons to introduce new concepts to students, fill gaps in student knowledge, or provide practice for building fluency.
Key features
All Travel English lessons feature:
- Clear, situational language focus: Each lesson introduces essential travel-related vocabulary and functional expressions in realistic contexts, helping students understand not just what to say, but when and how to say it.
- Step-by-step skill building: Lessons guide learners through common travel scenarios—from planning and booking to navigating transport, hotels, restaurants, and sightseeing—building confidence at every stage of a trip.
- Communicative practice: Students engage in structured speaking activities, role-plays, and practical tasks that simulate real travel situations, promoting real-world fluency and immediate application of the target language.
Lesson details & links
The lesson name (with link) and objectives are listed below for a quick overview of each lesson. Click a lesson name to launch it directly from this article. To see a spreadsheet of all Off2Class lessons, click here.
| Lesson & Link | Objectives |
|---|---|
| TE1.1 Planning your destination | At the end of the lesson, students can use vocabulary and expressions to plan a vacation destination, such as How about…?, Let’s…, Why don’t we…?, I think…, You can…, I’d really like…, I like to… |
| TE1.2 Booking accommodation | At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions to select accommodations and transport options for a trip. |
| TE1.3 Before you leave home | At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions related to things people need to organize before leaving home, including vaccines, travel insurance, visas, etc. |
| TE1.4 At the airport | At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions specific to an airport, such as checking in, passport control, gate, customs, boarding pass, security, etc. |
| TE1.5 At the bus or train station | At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions specific to trains and bus stations, such as ticket booth, information, platform, luggage rack, direct, express, regional, international, etc. |
| TE1.6 At a hotel | At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions specific to being at a hotel, such as Reception Desk, facilities, service, opening times, suite, air-conditioning, check-in, check-out, etc. |
| TE1.7 Eating out | At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions specific to eating out, such as specialty, local, traditional, culinary, cuisine, menu, tip, check, etc. |
| TE1.8 Sightseeing | At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions specific to sight seeing, such as wander, tour, guide, landmark, brochure, entrance fee, etc. |
| TE1.9 Shopping and souvenirs | At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions specific to souvenirs such as hand-made, genuine, factory-made, haggle, traditional, deal, discount etc. |
| TE1.10 Directions when traveling 1 | At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions specific to directions, such as turn, head, go, straight ahead, toward, on a street, at the corner, next to, opposite, facing, in front of, behind, past, beyond, by, etc. |
| TE1.11 Directions when traveling 2 |
At the end of the lesson, students will be able to use vocabulary and expressions specific to eating out, such as Can you tell me..? Do you know where...? How do I get to..? until, past, by, beyond, around, across, toward, to, through, etc. |
From 25 February 2026, the updated Travel English lessons replace the original Functional Language lessons in the drop-down menu in the Lesson Library. However, the original lessons can still be accessed from the search bar and the Teacher Panel for a 5-week transition period. From 8 April 2026, the original lessons are no longer accessible.