ABSTRACT
Arguably, one of the main purposes of learning English for tourism (EfT) might be to master a set of linguistic skills and communicative strategies that allow interactions in different contexts where EfT is required. This qualitative study describes the cross-cultural communicative strategies 30 university students, from two vocational courses of tourism at a Spanish university, used to adjust their knowledge, thoughts, behaviors, and beliefs in oral interactions during international nonwork experiences. Results showed EfT students do apply a wide range of strategies to address their interlocutors and convey their ideas. It also discovered a positive correlation between international nonwork experiences and the improvement of students' oral skills and cultural intelligence. The identification of situations that facilitate EfT usage might contribute with the design of future English courses with a focus on tourism. However, further research would be necessary to describe to what extent cross-cultural training could benefit participants' language and intercultural competence development, and more importantly if the training has significant and sustained effects in EfT learners.
