Quickstart Chinese is an audio course for complete beginners. The 140-minute download introduces you to essential holiday language, so you'll learn how to find a place to stay, get around town, order in restaurants, hit the shops, have a drink, and enjoy the nightlife.

Quickstart Chinese is a simple and effective way to get going and build your confidence. This engaging and well-structured approach breaks down the key language into manageable chunks, and gives plenty of opportunity to listen and practise, as well as produce the language yourself. You will follow three Chinese friends throughout their stay in Hangzhou in 14 episodes.

A brief introduction leads you straight into time to listen, which gives you all the language you need to follow the action and get the gist of the first conversation. You will then hear the conversation for the first time.

Then it's time to reflect. This section gives a step-by-step explanation of the language you have just heard to help you understand how Chinese works. There's also plenty of opportunity to practise your pronunciation by repeating the words and phrases used in the conversation.

Then it's time to kickstart your Chinese. This is your chance to practise the language you have just learnt by constructing sentences on your own. And finally you'll have time to recap. Listen again to the conversation, and see just how much you've picked up already. After that you can move on to the second conversation.

The course comes with a 40-page booklet, which gives the dialogues, their translations, and the key phrases and vocabulary from each episode. There is also a useful pronunciation guide.

To find out more about BBC Active go tobbcactive.com/languages

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.