Learn English Phrasal Verbs:Travelling
Use these verbs at airports, hotels, and on the way between them: checking in, taking off, getting on a train, and looking around a new place.
Not sure when the object goes in the middle? Read separable and inseparable phrasal verbs.
check in
register
Don’t forget to check in at the desk before your flight.
Don’t forget to register at the desk before your flight.
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check out
leave the hotel
We need to check out of the hotel by 11 a.m.
We need to leave the hotel by 11 a.m.
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take off
leave the ground
The plane will take off at 8 p.m. sharp.
The plane will leave the ground at 8 p.m. sharp.
No object in the flight sense, so nothing can go in the middle.
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touch down
land
We touched down in Lisbon twenty minutes late.
We landed in Lisbon twenty minutes late.
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get on
enter a bus, train or plane
She got on the train just before the doors closed.
She boarded the train just before the doors closed.
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get off
leave public transport
Please ring the bell when you want to get off the tram.
Please ring the bell when you want to leave the tram.
Leave a vehicle: get off the bus or get off it. You can omit the vehicle when it is understood: get off at the next stop.
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get away
go somewhere for a break
They finally got away for a week after the busy season.
They finally went somewhere for a week’s break after the busy season.
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stop over
stay briefly
We’ll stop over in Dubai for one night on the way to Sydney.
We’ll stay briefly in Dubai for one night on the way to Sydney.
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look around
explore
We had an hour to look around the old town before dinner.
We had an hour to explore the old town before dinner.
You can look around with no object, or look around a place: look around the town. Do not put the place before around.
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look up
search for
I’ll look up the museum opening times before we go.
I’ll search for the museum opening times before we go.
Look the word up or look it up. Look up to someone is a different, inseparable verb.
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settle up
pay the bill
Let’s settle up at the hotel desk before the taxi arrives.
Let’s pay the bill at the hotel desk before the taxi arrives.
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All 11 travelling phrasal verbs at a glance
Separable means the object can sit in the middle, and a pronoun has to. Inseparable means it never can. No object means the verb does not take one. Full explanation here.
| Phrasal verb | Meaning | Grammar |
|---|---|---|
| check in | register | No object |
| check out | leave the hotel | No object |
| take off | leave the ground | No object |
| touch down | land | No object |
| get on | enter a bus, train or plane | Inseparable |
| get off | leave public transport | Pattern varies |
| get away | go somewhere for a break | No object |
| stop over | stay briefly | No object |
| look around | explore | Pattern varies |
| look up | search for | Separable |
| settle up | pay the bill | No object |
About this set
The set is for travellers who need short, spoken English, not brochure language.
Check in and check out are a pair; get on and get off are another. Learn them together so the opposite is ready when you need it.
Usage notes
- check in. At a hotel or airport you check in. At a hotel you later check out. Both are usually intransitive in this set.
- take off. Intransitive for a plane: the flight took off. For clothes, take off is separable, and that use is in Shopping and Take.
- get on. Get on a plane, bus, or train. Get in a car or taxi. Learners often swap these two.
- look up. Here it means find information (a hotel, a number). Separable: look it up. In class it is often a dictionary word.
Mistakes to avoid
Incorrect: The plane took it off an hour late.
Correct: The plane took off an hour late.
Take off in the flight sense has no object, so nothing can go in the middle.
Incorrect: Get off from the bus at the next stop.
Correct: Get off the bus at the next stop.
Get off already carries its preposition and does not need a second one.
Incorrect: Shall we settle up with now?
Correct: Shall we settle up with the hotel now?
Settle up can stand alone, as in the lesson example. If you add with, name the person or organisation you are paying. Settle the bill is another natural way to express payment.
Incorrect: We looked the old town around for an hour.
Correct: We looked around the old town for an hour.
Look around is inseparable, so the place follows the particle.
Common questions
When do I get on a vehicle instead of get in?
Get on a bus, train, plane, or bike. Get in a car, taxi, or small boat. If you can walk down an aisle, get on is usually the verb.
Is check out only for hotels?
In this set, check out means leave a hotel after paying. In other English it can mean investigate or look at something. The hotel meaning is the one practised here.