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Part 2 cue card · Places · Retained in September–December 2026

Describe a boring place you have been to.

Describe a boring place you have been to.

You should say:

  • ·where it is
  • ·when you went there
  • ·who you went with
  • ·what you did there

and explain why you found it boring.

One minute to prepare, up to two minutes to talk. Then Part 3 asks the questions below.

Sample answers

Two answers to the same card

Same story, two levels. Both were written by Ashore, then checked against the public band descriptors in a separate pass. The bands are practice estimates, not official IELTS results.

A simpler answer

Checked at band 6.5 · 190 words

A boring place I’ve been to was the waiting area in a government service centre in my city. It’s near the main bus station, and there are lots of offices in the building. I went there last summer with my mother because she needed to renew a document. We arrived in the morning, and we thought it would only take about an hour.

I went with her because she didn’t know how to use the online booking system, and I could help her if she needed it. After we got a number, we sat in a row of chairs and waited. My mother went to the counter when her number appeared, and I stayed in the waiting area. I read some messages on my phone and watched people come and go. We also bought water from a machine nearby.

I found the place boring because we had to wait for a long time, but there wasn’t much to do. The room was quiet, and the announcements were repeated again and again. The chairs were uncomfortable, too. Nothing bad happened, but I was glad when we finally finished and went home.

  • Explain the reason · “because she needed to renew a document”

A stronger answer

Checked at band 7.5 · 275 words

Honestly, one of the dullest places I’ve been to is the waiting area in a government service centre near the main bus station in my city. It’s a big, practical building, which has several counters, but the waiting room itself has almost nothing to catch your eye. I went there last summer, on a weekday morning, because my mother needed to renew a document. We expected to be in and out within an hour, which turned out to be rather optimistic.

I went with her because she isn’t very confident with online booking, and she wanted me there in case the staff asked for extra information. Once we’d taken a number, we found two seats in a long row facing the counters. My mother kept the paperwork ready and went up when her number was called, while I stayed behind to look after her bag. I checked a few messages, watched people shuffle from one counter to another, and bought us water from a vending machine. That was pretty much the whole visit.

What made it boring wasn’t simply the wait; it was that there was so little to do while we waited. The room was quiet, except for the same recorded announcements, and the chairs were hard enough that I kept changing position. There were no magazines or interesting displays, and everyone seemed focused on their own paperwork. Even though the staff dealt with us politely, the slow pace made the morning drag. If there had been a café or even a window with a view, I probably wouldn’t have minded so much. I was genuinely relieved when we finished and could go home.

  • Add a practical detail · “which turned out to be rather optimistic”
  • Give a specific action · “look after her bag”
  • Explain why it was boring · “there was so little to do”
  • Develop with a condition · “If there had been a café”
Angles

3 ways to answer it

  1. 1A trendy old town: every street selling the same snacks and bracelets
  2. 2Your dad's company year-end party: three hours of speeches when you were a child
  3. 3The waiting room for a driving theory test: two hours without your phone
Expressions

5 expressions that fit this card

nothing to do
no activities available
drag on
seem to last too long
a tourist trap
a place that overcharges tourists
bored to death
extremely bored
not my cup of tea
not something I like
Part 3

The questions that follow

After the long turn, Part 3 asks bigger questions on the same theme. Each one comes with two points you can build an answer from.

  1. 1

    Why do some people get bored easily?

    • ·They are used to fast short videos
    • ·They lack curiosity about their surroundings
  2. 2

    Do you think boredom can be good for people?

    • ·Boredom can lead to new ideas
    • ·Long-term boredom can lower people's mood
  3. 3

    Why do many tourist attractions look the same?

    • ·They copy business models that already worked
    • ·Little effort goes into local culture
  4. 4

    What can be done to make museums more interesting for children?

    • ·Add touchscreens and hands-on areas
    • ·For example, treasure-hunt style tours
Stories

One story, many cards

This card fits this story. Prepare the story once and you can bend it to every card listed with it on the season page.

  • A trip that went wrong

    A commute or short trip: the early start, the phone that died, the message nobody answered, what you did instead.

Say it out loud and get a band score