Learn Spanish (Spain): ¿Cuánto tardas en ir a la papelería? - How long does it take you to get to the stationery shop?

In English, we use the impersonal 'it takes' plus an object pronoun ('you'). But in Spanish, the verb tardar (to take time) is conjugated to match the person who is taking the time. Since we are asking how long 'you' take, we use the informal 'you' form, tardas. If we were asking how long 'I' take, it would be tardo.

Why is the preposition en used before ir?

The verb tardar is almost always followed by the preposition en when you want to say that it takes time to do something. The formula is tardar en plus an infinitive verb (like ir). You cannot just put the two verbs together without en here.

The translation says 'get to', but the Spanish uses ir (to go). Could I use llegar (to arrive or get to) instead?

Yes, you could say llegar a la papelería, and it would mean exactly the same thing. In Spanish, asking how long you take to go to a place (ir) is a very natural way to ask about travel time, whereas in English we usually prefer 'to get to'.

Is a papelería a paper factory?

No, a papelería is a stationery shop. The ending -ería is very commonly used in Spanish to indicate a shop or store (like panadería for bakery, or carnicería for butcher). So papelería literally means the 'paper shop', where you buy notebooks, pens, and school supplies.