Whether you’re hitting the road, boarding a train, catching a plane or heading for the high seas, this unit will help you check out the timetables and find the best routes using natural, confident Spanish.
In English we use I’m going to to talk about where we’re going and what we’re going to do. It’s just the same in Spanish. You use voy a (I’m going to) before the name of a place or before another verb.
I’m going to…
| La semana que viene voy a Segovia. | I’m going to Segovia next week. |
| Voy a pasar un día en Pamplona. | I’m going to spend a day in Pamplona. |
| Primero vamos a Madrid. | First, we’re going to Madrid. |
| Luego vamos a Vigo. | Then we’re going to Vigo. |
| Vamos a coger el tren de las siete. | We’re going to get the seven o’clock train. |
If you want to say what you’re planning to do on your travels, you can use tengo la intención de (I’m planning to) followed by the infinitive. tengo comes from the verb tener (to have). For more information on tener, see here.
I’m planning to…
| Tengo la intención de ir a Málaga. | I’m planning to go to Málaga. |
| Tengo la intención de alquilar un coche. | I’m planning to hire a car. |
| Tenemos la intención de ir por la costa. | We’re planning to travel along the coast. |
To talk about things that you want to do, use quiero (I want) followed by the infinitive. quiero comes from the verb querer (to want). For more information on querer, see here.
I want to…
| Quiero hacer varias excursiones. | I want to go on several trips. |
| Quiero ver el Museo Guggenheim. | I’d like to see the Guggenheim Museum. |
| Queremos conducir los dos. | Both of us want to be able to drive. |
If you want to say what you feel like doing, you can use tengo ganas de (I feel like) followed by an infinitive.
I feel like…
| Tengo ganas de parar en Cuenca para dar una vuelta. | I feel like stopping in Cuenca to have a look around. |
| Tengo ganas de hacer una parada. | I feel like stopping for a bit. |
When you want to explain what you’re hoping to do, use espero (I’m hoping) followed by an infinitive.
I’m hoping to…
| Espero llegar allí en unas tres horas. | I’m hoping to be there in about three hours. |
| Espero llegar allí antes de que se haga de noche. | I’m hoping to get there before nightfall. |
| Espero visitar el monasterio. | I’m hoping to visit the monastery. |
| Esperamos ir a ver Montserrat. | We’re hoping to go and see Montserrat. |
When discussing your travel plans, you may want to say what you’d like to do. To do this you can use me gustaría (I’d like) followed by a verb in the infinitive.
I’d like to…
| Me gustaría ver Madrid. | I’d like to see Madrid. |
| Me gustaría alquilar un quad. | I’d like to hire a quad bike. |
| Nos gustaría asistir a la feria del vino. | We’d like to go to the wine fair. |
When planning your trip, of course you won’t just want to say what you like and what you’d like to do, you’ll want to say what you’d rather do. Use prefiero (I prefer or I’d rather) or preferiría (I’d prefer or I’d rather) to talk about your preferences.
I’d rather…
| Prefiero ir a pie. | I’d rather walk. |
| Prefiero viajar en tren. | I prefer travelling by train. |
| Yo preferiría ir en autobús. | I’d prefer to go by bus. |
| Nosotros preferiríamos quedarnos en casa. | We’d rather stay at home. |
To make suggestions about what you could do, use podríamos (we could) and podemos (we can). They are both from the verb poder (to be able). For more information on poder, see here.
We could…
| Podríamos ir mañana. | We could go tomorrow. |
| Podríamos ir en el AVE. | We could take the high-speed train. |
| Si lo prefieres, podríamos ir andando. | We could walk there, if you prefer. |
| Si quieres, podemos coger un taxi. | We can take a taxi if you like. |
You can also make a suggestion in the same way as English, simply by asking ¿Por qué no…? (Why don’t…?).
Why don’t…?
| ¿Por qué no preguntamos por coches de alquiler? | Why don’t we ask about hiring a car? |
| ¿Por qué no cogemos el metro? | Why don’t we take the metro? |
| ¿Por qué no coges un taxi? | Why don’t you get a taxi? |
How about…?
| ¿Qué te parece si nos vamos a Toledo? | How about going to Toledo? |
| ¿Qué te parece si alquilamos una furgoneta? | How about hiring a van? |
| ¿Qué te parece si
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