Dialogue to get you through those daily frustrations, like booking a room in a hotel:

Receptionist says:

Nín hǎo, Xī’ān dà jiǔdiàn. Yǒu shénme kěyǐ bāng nín?

您好，西安大酒店。有什么可以帮您？

Hello, Xi’an Hotel. How may I help you?

 

Bernie says:

Nǐ hǎo, wǒ xiǎng yùdìng fángjiān.

你好，我想预订房间。

Hi, I’d like to book a room.

 

Receptionist says:

Hǎo de. Nín shénme shíhou lái? Yùdìng jǐ tiān? Xiǎng yùdìng shénme fángjiān?

好的。 您什么时候来？预订几天？想预订什么房间？

Okay. When are you arriving? How many days will you stay? What kind of

room would you like to book?

 

Bernie says:

Cóng xià gè xīngqīyī dào xiàgè xīngqītiān, wǒ xiǎng yù dìng yí gè dà chuáng fáng hé yí gè dānrénjiān, yǒu fángjiān ma? Duō shǎo qián?

从下个星期一到下个星期天，我想预订一个大床房和一个单人间。有房间吗 ？ 多少钱？

From next Monday until Sunday, I’d like a double room and a single room. Do you have any available rooms? And how much will that cost?

 

Receptionist says:

Qǐng shāo děng, wǒ bāng nín kànkan … Nín yào de fángjiān dōu yǒu. Dàchuángfáng 500 yì wǎn, dānrénjiān 420 yì wǎn.

请稍等，我帮您看看 … 您要的房间都有。大床房500 一晚，单人间420 一晚。

Please wait a moment and I will check for you. We have the rooms you want; the double room costs 500 yuan for the night and the single room costs 420 yuan.

 

Bernie says:

Hǎo de, qǐng bāng wǒ dìng xià lái.

好的，请帮我订下来。

Okay, I like to book them then.

 

Receptionist says:

Nín guì xìng?

您贵姓？

What’s your last name?

 

Bernie says:

Wǒ xìng Carr.

我姓Carr。

My last name is Carr.

 

Receptionist says:

Nín de diànhuà hàomǎ shì duōshǎo?

您的电话号码是多少？

And what’s your telephone number?

 

Bernie says:

Yāo sān èr jìu bā qī líng líng yāo yāo yāo.

一三二九八七零零一一一。

132-9870-0111.

 

Receptionist says:

Hǎo de, méiwèntí。 Zàijiàn.

好的，没问题。再见。

Okay, no problem. Goodbye.

 

Bernie says:

Xièxiè, zàijiàn.

谢谢，再见。

Thanks, bye.

Dialogue provided by TailorMade Chinese Center at Shangdu SOHO. Contact them on (8610) 5900-5420 or visit tailormadechinese.com.

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