This exam tips covers Errores frecuentes — Common Errors within Travel, transport and holidays for GCSE Spanish. Revise Travel, transport and holidays in Theme 3 — Communication & World for GCSE Spanish with 13 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. Use this page as part of a wider topic revision path rather than treating it as an isolated fact. It is section 3 of 4 in this topic. Treat this as a marking guide for what examiners are looking for, not just a fact list.
💡 Errores frecuentes — Common Errors
❌ Error 1: "Fui en extranjero el verano pasado."
✅ Correcto: "Fui al extranjero el verano pasado."
Por qué: The word extranjero (abroad / the foreign / overseas) requires the definite article in Spanish: el extranjero. And the preposition here is a (movement towards a place), not en. The contraction rule then applies: a + el must contract to al. So the only correct form is fui al extranjero — never "en extranjero", never "a el extranjero".
❌ Error 2: "Las vacación fue muy buena."
✅ Correcto: "Las vacaciones fueron muy buenas."
Por qué: Vacaciones is always plural in Spanish — there is no standard singular form la vacación in normal usage. This means the verb must also be plural (fueron, not fue), and any adjective describing the noun must be feminine plural (buenas, not buena). Treat las vacaciones as an invariable plural noun: always plural, always feminine, always third-person plural with the verb.