Arrive and reach both mean to get to a place; the difference is in how the sentence is built. Arrive needs a preposition: in before a city or country, at before a building, station or airport. Reach takes the place directly, with no preposition: reach Paris. Neither of them is followed by to.
arrive or reach — can you pick the right one?
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arrive in + city/country; arrive at + building/station/airport; arrive home; reach + place (no preposition); reach a goal/decision/agreement
- Our plane arrived in Rome two hours late because of the fog.
- We reached the top of the hill just before sunset.
- After six hours of talks, the two sides finally reached an agreement.
What changed
First versionWe arrived to London late at night.
RevisionWe arrived in London late at night.
To is suggested by the familiar go to London, movement towards somewhere. But arrive is about the place where you end up, so a city takes in, and a building or station takes at. Arrive to isn't used in English.
Arrive can stand without a place: When did you arrive? Reach isn't used like that; it always needs the place you got to: When did you reach the airport? Reach also means to achieve something and to stretch out your arm to touch it: reach a goal, I can't reach the top shelf.
Your turn
The train was delayed, so we didn't ___ the hotel until midnight.
Show the answer
reach — The gap is followed directly by the hotel, with no preposition, and only reach works like that. Arrive would need at: arrive at the hotel.
Describe a journey that took longer than you planned. Say where you were going and what time you finally got there.
Because of roadworks, we didn't reach my grandparents' village until ten in the evening, four hours later than planned.
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