Wishing People | English Speaking Lessons

Wishing people a good journey

Common ways of wishing people a good journey are:

Long trips, vacations etc.

Have a good trip.
Have a good journey. (GB)
Safe journey home. (GB)
Enjoy your holidays.(GB)
Enjoy your vacation.(US)
Have a good time in (destination city).

Short Outings

Enjoy! (American English)
Have a good time at (destination place such as a restaurant)
Have a good time in (destination city)

When your friends or family return home it is common to use one of the following phrases:

How was your vacation? (holiday in British English)
Did you enjoy your time in (destination)?
Did you have a good journey/trip/flight?
How was the journey/trip/flight?

If somebody is leaving for an evening out or some kind of pleasant event, you may wish them saying Have a good time! or Enjoy yourself! In American English, just Enjoy! is sometimes possible.

Good luck! is used to wish people before examinations or difficult events.

Holidays

Before somebody starts a holiday, we may say:

Have a good holiday.
Have a good time.
Have a good vacation. (US)

Sending good wishes

Common expressions are given below.

Give my best wishes to X
Give my regards to X
Give my greetings to X
Give my love to X
Remember me to X

Americans often say Say hello to X for me.

Birthdays

Happy birthday!
Best wishes/Good luck on your thirtieth (age – use an ordinal number) birthday!
Many happy returns!

Wedding / Anniversary

Congratulations!
Best wishes / good luck on your tenth (number – use an ordinal number) anniversary!
Here’s to many more happy years together (used when making a toast)

Special Holidays

Merry Christmas!
Happy New Year/Easter/Ramadan/Diwali etc.
All the best for a happy New Year/Easter/Diwali/Ramadan etc.

When making special greetings to children on their birthday and at Christmas, it is also common to ask them what they received:

Merry Christmas! What did you get from Santa Claus?
Happy Birthday! What did your Daddy get for you?

Special Occasions

Congratulations on your promotion!
All the best for your …
I’m so proud of you!