Questions & Answers about Wir machen Urlaub in Italien.
Why do we use machen (to make) here instead of a verb for 'going'?
In English you 'go on' holiday, but in German the standard phrase is Urlaub machen (literally 'to make vacation'). You cannot translate the English expression word-for-word here.
Since this lesson is about wohin (to where), would I ask a friend 'Wohin macht ihr Urlaub?' to find out their destination?
No, you would ask 'Wo macht ihr Urlaub?' (Where are you vacationing?). The verb machen describes an action happening at a specific place, not a physical movement from A to B. To use wohin, you would need a motion verb like fahren (to travel): 'Wohin fahrt ihr in den Urlaub?' (Where are you traveling for your holiday?).
Why does the sentence use in Italien instead of nach Italien? I thought we used nach for countries.
You use nach when you are traveling TO a country, which answers the directional question wohin. But because this sentence uses machen, it describes being AT a location, answering the question wo (where). For being 'in' a standard country, German just uses the preposition in.
Why isn't there an article like 'einen' before Urlaub?
When talking about taking a vacation in general, German treats Urlaub as a general activity. You just say Urlaub machen without an article, similar to how in English you say 'playing tennis' instead of 'playing a tennis'.
Learn Wir machen Urlaub in Italien and more in German
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free