IELTS Listening Practice Questions (All 4 Parts)

IELTS Listening. Section 1. Hi, good afternoon. Hi, welcome to the Carlton Hotel. How can I help you? We've just driven up from London and we're going to stay here in York for a few days. We'd like to book a couple of rooms. Okay, sir. So for how many nights is that? We'll be leaving on Monday morning, so let me see, that's three nights? And you said two rooms. Who are the rooms for? I'm here with my wife and two kids. They are 9 and 11. Sorry, 9 and 12. The eldest has just had his birthday. So we'd like one twin room for the kids and another double for my wife and
I. Okay, well, we've got two rooms available, both en suite. Great. How much are they per night? Let me see. The twin room is £40 per night and the double room is £50 per night. Okay, that sounds reasonable. So what is the total for three nights for both rooms? Let me check. That would be a total of £270. And that includes everything? Yes, that price includes tax. Okay. Can I pay by credit card? Yes, sure. You'll need to pay for the first night now and you can pay for the other nights when you leave. Or you can pay for all three nights now. I think I'll just pay for everything now, as we'll definitely be here till Monday. Okay, that's fine. I'll just need to take some details from you to confirm the booking. Can you give me your full name? Yes, it's Michael Fernsby. That's F-E-R-N-S-B-Y. And what's your date of birth, please? The 15th of October, 1968. The 5th of October, 1968? No, the 15th. Oh, okay, sorry. And can you give me your address? Sure, it's 273 Stanton Court. That's S-T-A-N-T-O-N. London WC2D5JB. WC2D5JB? Yes, that's right. And your telephone number? My mobile number is... hold on, just let me check. I can never remember it. Ah, here it is. It's 08773 879 456. Okay, those rooms are booked for you then. Okay, I know we're a bit out of town here. Can you give me some information about getting into the centre of town? We'll probably head in tomorrow. Well, you could drive in, but the parking is not great in town. It's difficult to get a space and is quite expensive if you're staying there all day. Yes, we're thinking of going to look around some of the shops and to look at the wall around the city. So we'll probably be there most of the day. In that case, you're probably best taking a taxi or the bus. How much is a taxi? Into town it will be about £12. Actually, no, I'd say it's around £15. Fares have increased recently. We can book it here for you and it will pick you up outside. It only takes about 10 minutes. Right, I see. What about the bus? How much is that and where does it go from? It's only £2 per person. It's not far from here. You go out of here, turn right onto Oak Tree Avenue and it's about a five minute walk down the road. You can't miss it. The bus ride is about 15 minutes. Oh, OK. Maybe we could do that. Or you could walk, actually, if you like walking. Part of the way you can walk through the nice park, which is fairly popular with visitors to York. It's about 30 minutes, but it's quite pleasant. Right, well, there's a few options there. We'll have a think about it. I'll go and get my wife and kids. They're just waiting in the car. OK, no problem. Thanks for booking with us.

IELTS Listening. Section 1. You will hear a tourist talking to a London tour company, in order to organize a tour of the popular sights of London. First, you have time to look at questions 1-5. Now listen carefully and answer questions 1-5. I'm coming with my sister and our parents. And do you know what kind of things you want to see when you are here? Is there anything in particular? Not really. We just want to see the main sights, you know? Historical places, I guess. The places that London is famous for. Well, as you only have a short amount of time, the best way to do that is probably by a bus tour. The tour costs £29 for adults and £14 for children for the day. What time does it start? Well, basically the ticket is valid for the whole day. The first bus is at 7am, but buses depart every 20 minutes throughout the day, up until 4pm. Oh, sorry, I mean 6pm. It's summer now, so the buses run later. So you can start and finish whenever you want within those times. So do you have to stay on the same bus the whole time? No, no. It's a hop-on hop-off service, so you can get off at whichever stop you like. You can then stay there as long as you like and then get back on another bus when it arrives. Oh, okay. I see what you mean. Before listening to the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 6-10. Now listen carefully and answer questions 6-10. What sites do you see on the tour then? That depends on which route you choose. There are three routes, and we call them the red, yellow and blue routes. There are many attractions, but the main attractions on the red route are St. Paul's Cathedral, the London Eye and Buckingham Palace. I'm not too worried about the cathedral, but I know my parents would enjoy the London Eye, so we'd better see that. What about the other routes? The most famous places on the yellow route are Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. Both of those would be interesting to see. And the blue route? Harrods and Hyde Park Corner are on that route. I'd like to see Harrods, but I don't think we'll have time for shopping and I don't know Hyde Park, so we'll not go on that route. So we'd probably choose the red or yellow. What do we have to do about booking? If you want to book, you can do that with one of our customer service operators on the phone. Or otherwise you can go to our website and book. Some people just arrive on the day and buy a ticket on the bus. But if it's full, you may not be able to get a seat. Probably best if we book in advance then, so I'll do it on the internet in a few weeks when we know exactly what dates will be there. Okay, well it can get very busy in the summer over the three months of June to August, so it's probably best to book at least a week before you come. But you still have about six weeks before you leave, so you have plenty of time to think about it. Okay, thanks. You've been a great help.

IELTS buddy listening. Section 2. You will hear a woman talking to a group of students about volunteering opportunities with her company, Time Abroad. First you have some time to look at questions 11-14. Now listen and answer questions 11-14. Ok everyone, thanks for coming today and for your interest in volunteering abroad. For those that don't know much about our company, Time Abroad, let me start by telling you a bit more. Time Abroad is one of the largest volunteer abroad organisations in the UK. The company was founded in 2000. In 2007 the company grew by joining with another company, PT Travel, making us even larger. In 2014 we sent 10,000 people abroad on a variety of service projects and internships overseas, more than any other company. All participants receive the best support from our full-time professional staff to ensure that the experience is safe, worthwhile and fun. We have lots of very experienced staff working for us. We have around 150 full-time staff members, many of whom are former volunteers themselves, inspired by their own experience. Some of these people are even part of the original groups of volunteers back in the early 90s. About 75 of those staff are not located in the UK at all and spend their whole time in another country supporting the volunteers. They are experts on the local communities you are working in, having spent their whole lives there. They have vast experience in fields such as community development or education. The times that volunteers join the programme vary a lot. Some join in July because they have just finished studying at college or university and want to do some volunteering before they move on to work or further study. The winter months are also popular because people want to escape the cold weather in the UK. But there are no set start dates and programmes run continuously throughout the year, so the majority of volunteers start when it is best for them. Time Abroad is an entirely independent organisation which does not receive any funding from religious bodies, political parties, development organisations or other sources. And of course, we don't request money from our partner organisations in the developing world. All our work is 100% funded through your contributions as a volunteer. We do get help from the government, but that is from reduced business taxes, not financial contributions. It is this financial independence that gives us the freedom to set up projects wherever we think it may be useful and where we think that our volunteers can make a valuable contribution. Before listening to the rest of the talk, you have some time to look at questions 15 to 20. Now listen to questions 15 to 20. Now I'm going to tell you about some of the more popular opportunities in a bit more detail. One of the most popular volunteering choices is teaching. You'll find a warm welcome awaits you from our students around the world. The main thing you will do is assisting with English conversation because although the local teachers are very capable of teaching the structural aspects of the English language, such as the grammar, they do not use the correct intonation or pronunciation because they lack the confidence of a native speaker. By providing conversational English teaching, you can greatly enhance the learning experience of thousands of children and adults with whom we work in the developing world. You can also volunteer in agriculture and farming. Access to safe and healthy food is a major concern of any society. Volunteers work on a farm with the aim of promoting sustainable local food sources and responsible farming. Using pesticides and other destructive agricultural techniques can have a long-term negative impact on the environment and threaten the future well-being of whole regions. Time Abroad's agricultural and farming projects focus on organic farming practices and educating local communities on their benefits. You could also volunteer in the field of veterinary medicine. If you do this, you will be working alongside a vet in a local veterinary practice. You will help the vet when people bring in sick animals or join the vet on visits to people's houses or other places. You will gain fantastic insight that would not be possible in your own country. You are likely to see many exciting types of animals like snakes, big cats or even elephants. And you will develop a better understanding of the problems people are faced with in both urban and rural areas of the Third World. So, I hope that's helped you to learn a bit more about Time Abroad. Does anybody have any questions?

IELTS listening. Section 2. You are going to hear a talk about pandas. First, you have some time to look at questions 11 to 14. Now listen carefully and answer questions 11 to 14. Okay, I'm here today to talk to you all about the panda. It is a species of bear that is under great threat from the damage that humans are doing to the places where they live. The panda is a peaceful animal that has a black and white coat and is loved around the world. It is a distinctive symbol of China and the panda has also been the logo of the WWF. That's the Worldwide Fund for Nature since it was set up in 1961. It is a member of the bear family. They live mainly in bamboo forests high in the mountains of western China. A panda's daily menu consists almost entirely of the leaves, stems and shoots of various bamboo plants. Bamboo contains very little nutritional value, so pandas must eat 12 to 38 kilograms every day to meet their energy needs. Newborn pandas are about the size of a stick of butter, so that is really small. But they can grow up to 330 pounds as adults. They are dependent on their mothers for the first few months of their lives. Panda cubs start to climb trees when they are only six months old and as adults the pandas make excellent climbers despite their big weight. A panda's average life in the wild is 14 to 20 years, but a panda can live up to 30 years when they are looked after in places such as zoos. So why do we worry about pandas so much? Why are they important? Well pandas play a very important part in the bamboo forests where they live by spreading seeds which helps plants and trees to grow. In the Yangtze Basin where pandas live, the forests are full of a vast variety of amazing wildlife such as dwarf blue sheep, multicoloured pheasants and other species that are in danger of extinction, including the golden monkey. Also, pandas bring huge economic benefits to local communities through ecotourism. Pandas have two main threats. The first is hunting, which is a constant concern. Poaching or killing the animals for their fur has declined due to strict laws and greater public awareness of the pandas' protected status. But hunters seeking other animals in panda habitats continue to kill pandas accidentally. They are also threatened by habitat loss. In other words, by the loss of the home where they live. China's Yangtze Basin region is where the pandas' main home is. But this area is an important economic region for this booming country. So roads and railroads are being built and these are increasingly destroying the forest. This means that panda populations get separated and so they can't find a partner to mate with and have babies. Destroying the forest also reduces pandas' access to the bamboo they need to eat to survive. Now, you have some time to look at questions 15 to 20. Now listen carefully and answer questions 15 to 20. So what is being done to protect the panda? The Chinese government has established more than 50 panda reserves. Reserves are places in the wild where animals are protected. However, only around 61% of the country's panda population is protected by these reserves. The WWF is also playing a big part in protecting the panda. The idea for the WWF logo came from Chi Chi, a giant panda that had arrived at London Zoo in 1961, the same year WWF was created. The people who set up the WWF were aware of the need for a strong symbol that everybody around the world would recognise. They agreed that the big furry animal with her cuddly, black-patched eyes would make an excellent logo. This has helped to encourage many people to help support the panda. Controversially, a well-known television presenter called Chris Packham, who has hosted programmes about animals for many years on British TV, said pandas might not be worth saving. He explained that pandas are extraordinarily expensive to keep going. We spend millions and millions of pounds on this one species, but much less on others. He argues that it would be better to take all this money we spend on pandas and look after other natural places such as rainforests around the world. He says we have to accept that some animals are stronger than others. The panda is a bear that eats a type of food that isn't very nutritious, it gets diseases easily and it's very difficult to breed. He thinks that extinction is very much a part of life on Earth, and we're going to have to get used to it in the next few years because climate change is going to result in all sorts of animals disappearing. However, I don't agree with him. The panda is quite a weak animal, but this is not why it is going to die or become extinct. When he says that if you leave them be, they will die out, that's simply not true. The reason it is in danger is because of the damage that humans are doing to the forests that they live in. If we don't destroy this, then they will survive in the same way that they have for thousands of years. And also, the place they live in is not going to be destroyed. It's going to be destroyed by the way that they live in. It's going to be destroyed by the way that they live in. It's going to be destroyed by the way that they live in. where the pandas live should be protected anyway. The panda shares its home with the red panda, golden monkeys and various birds that are found nowhere else in the world. The pandas' numbers are increasing in the wild so I don't see them dying out. OK, I hope you've enjoyed my short talk on pandas. Are there any questions? You now have 30 seconds to check your answers. That is the end of section 2.

IELTS listening. Section 3. You will hear a university tutor, talking to two students about problems they are having with a business studies project. First, you have some time to look at questions 21 to 27. Now listen carefully and answer questions 21 to 27. Hi. Okay, so you're John and Sarah, I'm Neil, and you're having some problems with a project you're doing on the marketing module of the business studies course, is that right? Yes, it's the one where we have to read the case studies of six businesses and assess their marketing and identify the main problems each one had. So what exactly is the problem? Well, we've been doing quite a lot of reading for it. Some of the readings we've looked at are quite difficult, but we still understand them and they're interesting, so that's okay. It's taking a lot longer than we thought though, so we're wondering if we can have an extension. We have a lot of other assignments too. Well, extensions can be granted. However, it sounds like you're having issues with the planning of your time. Neither of you are sick or have had an accident, which are the only reasons that extensions are usually granted. The university's scheduling of deadline dates is organised so you can complete things on time. Okay, we understand. We thought that would probably be the case. Well, let's see how you're doing with it. So you were given readings on six different companies. You needed to examine the main weaknesses of each company with regard to their marketing strategy. What did you find out about each company? Let's start with Stack Stationery. They were very experienced in marketing, as they have been in the stationery market for such a long time. Their profits have generally tended to increase continuously for many years. However, they had issues with their staff because they felt that too much money was being spent on marketing but their wages did not increase for such a long time. Princeton windows were quite successful initially as their marketing led to an increase in sales of 50%. However, this decreased again after a few months so it just led to profits for a short time. They need to think about how they can sustain any increase in profits for longer periods. MK Cars focused on the wrong thing because they didn't really understand who their target market was. Most of their buyers of cars are young people but they advertised in newspapers that older people usually read. It would have been better to go for magazines popular with the younger generation. You must learn everything you can about who you are selling to. Lakeside Golf was probably the most successful of the six companies. They managed to generate a long-term increase in membership over a three-year period. The only real issue they had was that they weren't ready for the increase in numbers of people coming to play golf. So some people started to complain about the service there. Bryson's meats seemed to be a bit of a disaster really all round. They actually saw a drop in their numbers of buyers. Though it seems fairly sure that this was related to other problems outside of the company rather than their marketing. There was a scare about meat during the period we are studying and that meant that people So it may not actually be the company's fault. Mojo's music shop, which sells CDs and DVDs, did pretty well. Their sales have been continuously increasing and this is very good as they are in a very difficult market. A lot of people aren't buying music from shops anymore as they download it instead. So to keep going in that situation shows that they had a very successful marketing campaign. They will have to work hard on this though due to the number of websites online providing the same service. Before listening to the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 28 to 30. Now listen carefully, and answer questions 28-30. Well, from listening to what you've told me, it seems like you have a fairly good understanding. For the assignment, you also have to say what you think will happen in the future. Let's choose Mojo's Music Shop. What about you Sarah? The company was established many years ago, and I'm fairly confident that this company can continue to be successful. As I said, they have shown that they have survived in a very competitive market. They had a very strong advertising campaign, and they seem very good at knowing where the market is going and how to change. What about you John? Well, I'm not so sure actually. There are just so few music shops that manage to survive these days. I do agree that they have been very innovative, but too many people want to buy things online, as it is so much easier, and usually cheaper. Most young people don't even have DVD players these days, and just listen to things on their phones. So I think eventually they will cease operating like most others. That's two very different opinions. It's been said that they have a very good management team, but I'm not sure I agree with that, as they're a bit inexperienced. I would disagree with you Sarah, and say actually that their advertising campaign, although good, needs to be improved, and more original in order to keep sales high. As John says, it's such a competitive market, they need to do everything they can. That is the end of IELTS Buddy Listening Test, section 3. You now have half a minute, to check your answers.

IELTS Listening Test, Section 4. You are going to hear a lecture about the behavior of dolphins. First, you have time to look at questions 31 to 40. Now listen, and answer questions 31 to 40. Okay. Today's lecture is about the behavior of dolphins. Dolphins are mammals closely related to whales and porpoises. There are almost 40 species of dolphin, and they vary in size from 1.2 meters and 90 pounds, up to 9 and a half meters and 10 tons. They are found worldwide, mostly in shallower seas of the continental shelves, and they are carnivores, eating mostly fish and squid. Dolphins are highly social animals, often living in pods of up to a dozen individuals, though pod sizes and structures vary greatly between species and locations. In places with a high abundance of food, pods can merge temporarily, forming a super pod, which groupings may exceed a thousand dolphins. Membership in pods is not rigid, with interchange being common. Dolphins can, however, establish strong social bonds. They will stay with injured or ill individuals, even helping them to breathe and bringing them to the surface if needed. This altruism does not appear to be limited to their own species. A male dolphin called Moko in New Zealand was observed guiding a female pygmy sperm whale together with her calf out of shallow water where they had been stranded several times. Dolphins have also been seen protecting swimmers from sharks by swimming circles around the swimmers or charging the sharks to make them leave. Dolphins also display culture. something long believed to be unique to humans and possibly other primate species. In May 2005, a discovery in Australia found Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins teaching their young to use tools. They cover their snouts with sponges to protect them while foraging for food. This knowledge is mostly transferred by mothers to daughters, unlike primates, where knowledge is generally passed on to both sexes. Using sponges as mouth protection is a learned behavior. Another learned behavior was discovered among river dolphins in Brazil, where some male dolphins use weeds and sticks as part of a sexual display. Dolphins may also engage in acts of aggression towards each other. The older a male dolphin is, the more likely his body is to be covered with bite scars. Male dolphins engage in acts of aggression apparently for the same reasons as humans, that is, disputes between companions and competition for females. Acts of aggression can become so intense that targeted dolphins sometimes go into exile after losing a fight. Male bottlenose dolphins have also been known to engage in infanticide, which is the killing of their young. Dolphins have also been known to kill porpoises for reasons which are not fully understood, as porpoises generally do not share the same diet as dolphins and are therefore not competitors for food supplies. The main food of dolphins is fish and squid, and various methods of feeding exist among and within species, some apparently exclusive to a single population. One common feeding method is herding, where a pod squeezes a school of fish into a small volume known as a bait ball. Individual members then take turns plowing through the ball, feeding on the stunned fish. Corraling is a method where dolphins chase fish into shallow water to catch them more easily. Orcas and bottlenose dolphins have also been known to drive their prey onto a beach to feed on it, a behavior known as a beach or strand feeding. Some species also whack fish with their flukes, stunning them and sometimes knocking them out of the water. When it comes to playful behavior, dolphins show various types, often including objects, self-made bubble rings, other dolphins or other animals. When playing with objects or small animals, common behavior includes carrying the object or animal along using various parts of the body, passing it along to other members of the group or taking it from another member or throwing it out of the water. Dolphins have also been observed harassing animals in other ways, for example by dragging birds underwater without showing any intent to eat them. Playful behavior that involves other animal species with active participation of the other animal can also be observed. Playful human interaction with dolphins being the most obvious example. However, playful interactions have been observed in the wild with a number of other species as well as humpback whales and dogs.