Lesson 24: Arrival, departure, and destination

Talking about travel involves clearly marking the start, the end, and the path in between.

Initiating with "đi"

Đi means "to go," but it also functions as the marker for leaving or starting a journey.

Tôi đi sân bay.
"I go to the airport."

Anh ấy vừa đi rồi.
"He just left already."

Concluding with "đến"

Use đến (or tới) to emphasize arrival or reaching a specific point.

Chúng tôi đã đến nơi.
"We have arrived at the place."

Khi nào bạn đến?
"When will you arrive?"

Pathways with "từ... đến"

The standard structure for a route is từ (from) ... đến (to).

Đi từ nhà đến trường.
"Go from home to school."

Chuyến bay từ Sài Gòn đến Bangkok.
"Flight from Saigon to Bangkok."

Time as a Destination

Đến is also used to show that a specific time has "arrived."

Đến giờ rồi.
"Arrived (at the) hour already. (It's time.)"

Examples

Bạn đi tới đâu rồi?
"Where have you reached (so far)?"

Đi tới cuối đường.
"Go until/to the end of the road."

Note on nuance

Đến and tới are often interchangeable, but đến feels slightly more like hitting a target, while tới can feel like moving toward it.