General Listening Quiz

Listen to the recording on budget hotels and read along with the conversation. Review the key vocabulary and the sample sentences.

Man: Hi. I have a reservation for tonight, and I just want to check in.

Hotel Clerk: Sure. What’s your name?

Man: Uh. Mike Adams.

Hotel Clerk: Okay. Let me check here. Um. Here’s your key to open your door. You’re in room 360. Just walk down [Okay.] this hall, and you’ll see the elevators on your right.

Man: Oh, okay, and what time is the restaurant open for breakfast?

Hotel Clerk: It serves breakfast from 6:30-10 a.m.

Man: Oh, okay. And, uh, where’s the exercise room? I’d like to, you know, run a couple of miles before going to bed tonight.

Hotel Clerk: It’s on the second floor, and it’s open ’til 10 tonight [Okay.], but the treadmill isn’t working.

Man: Oh, oh, well . . . Um, and one final question. Do you have wireless Internet in the rooms?

Hotel Clerk: We DO [Ah!]. . . for $7.95 a night.

Man: Uhhh, I thought something like that would be free.

Hotel Clerk: No, sorry, sir but you can get free wireless access if you sit in the parking lot on the north side. [Oh!] You see, the hotel next to us has wireless and . . . .

Man: Oh, great. Um, and uh . . . oh, forget that. And every room has a refrigerator, right?

Hotel Clerk: Well, we can have one put in your room for an additional ten dollars a night.

Man: Ahhhh. I thought something like that would be included in the price of the room.

Hotel Clerk: Sorry, sir.

Man: Well, you know, it . . . it kind of irks me when hotels nickel-and-dime their customers like this. I mean, I checked with several . . . I mean I checked with several (hotels) . . .

Hotel Clerk: You really should have checked this one too, shouldn’t you have, buddy.

Man: (Laughing) I . . . I guess that I . . . I’m all flustered now. I mean all the other hotels provide these amenities for free.

Hotel Clerk: Sorry, sir. It’s just the way it is at this hotel.

Man: And the bed? Is that extra too?

Hotel Clerk: Of course . . . NOT.

Man: Oh. I’ve had it. I’ll just try the hotel across the street. I’m sure they’ll . . . they’ll give me better service.

Hotel Clerk: Okay, but you’ll be canceling your reservation here, so we’ll have to charge you a cancellation fee of 50% of the cost of the room.

Man: Ahhhh, forget it. I can’t win either way. What’s my room again?

Hotel Clerk: Three sixty (360).

Man: Ughhhhhh!!!

• mile (noun): 1 mile = 1.6 kilometers 
  – Drive down this road about three miles, and you’ll see the hotel on the right side of the street.
• treadmill (noun): a piece of exercise equipment that moves a belt as you run or walk on it 
  – The exercise room at the hotel has two treadmills, so you should be able to run a little before we go out tonight.
• irk (verb): bother someone or something
  – It really irks me whenever a hotel room isn’t clean.
• nickel-and-dime (verb): take away someone’s money by making the person pay small amounts for something (also an adjective as in “a nickel-and-dime store”)
  – That hotel will nickel-and-dime you to death for every service they provide. It’s not worth staying there.
• buddy or buddy boy (noun): used when speaking to a man or boy, especially when you are annoyed with that person (use with caution because it can be rude depending on the situation)
  – Look, buddy. I’m in the room next door, so if you don’t turn down the TV and start the loud party, I’m going to call the hotel’s front desk and complain.
• be flustered (adjective): be in a bothered or confused state
  – The hotel guest was really flustered when I couldn’t figure out how to open his hotel room door.
• provide (verb): give or make something available
  – The mall can provide you with everything that you need for the trip.
• amenities (noun): things or services that make you comfortable 
  – We chose this hotel because of the many amenities available to guests.
• I’ve had it (idiom): used to say that someone is tired, annoyed, and done with something
  – My wife has had it with this hotel’s poor service, so we’ve decided to check out and go somewhere else.
• fee (noun): an amount of money you pay for something
  – Many hotels charge additional fees for wireless Internet and other services, so be sure to check carefully before making a hotel reservation.