The Travels of Marco Polo

The story

In 1271 the young Venetian Marco Polo set out with his father and uncle for the court of Kublai Khan. He stayed in Asia for about 24 years, serving the Great Khan and travelling across China and beyond.

Back in Europe, imprisoned during a war between Venice and Genoa, he dictated his memories to a fellow prisoner, Rustichello da Pisa. The result described paper money, coal (“black stones that burn”), the postal system and cities larger than any in Europe.

Themes: trade and the Silk Road, cultural encounter, empire, wonder.

Why it's a good book for language learners

The book is organised by places, one short chapter per city or region, so you can dip in anywhere. The language is descriptive and repetitive in a helpful way: the same structures for describing people, goods and customs come back again and again.

What you'll practise

• Describing places, people and customs
• Trade and money vocabulary
• Numbers, distances and travel times
• There is / there are / they have

Did you know?

Historians still debate parts of the account, but it shaped how Europeans imagined Asia for centuries — Columbus owned an annotated copy.

The PageWalker adventure

In the adventure you travel the Silk Road yourself, and your decisions decide whether you reach the Khan's court. The first page is free to play in your browser, and the adventure is available in 13 languages with click-to-translate.

The Travels of Marco Polo in other languages

• EnglishThe Travels of Marco Polo
• العربيةرحلات ماركو بولو
• DeutschDie Reisen des Marco Polo
• EspañolLos Viajes de Marco Polo
• FrançaisLes Voyages de Marco Polo
• हिन्दीमार्को पोलो की यात्राएँ
• ItalianoIl Milione
• 日本語東方見聞録
• 한국어동방견문록
• PortuguêsAs Viagens de Marco Polo
• РусскийПутешествия Марко Поло
• TürkçeMarco Polo'nun Seyahatleri
• 简体中文马可·波罗游记