"Reach" arrives at a place with a direct object; "arrive" arrives with a preposition (at, in) but no direct object.
Verb. To arrive at a place or to extend to something. ALWAYS takes a direct object: reach + place directly. No preposition needed between the verb and the destination.
We reached the summit after six hours of climbing.
Llegamos a la cima despues de seis horas de escalada.
Call me when you reach the hotel.
Llamame cuando llegues al hotel.
The package finally reached its destination.
El paquete finalmente llego a su destino.
Verb. To reach a destination. NEVER takes a direct object: always needs a preposition. "Arrive at" for specific places (buildings, stations), "arrive in" for cities and countries.
She arrived at the airport two hours before her flight.
Ella llego al aeropuerto dos horas antes de su vuelo.
They arrived in Paris on a rainy Tuesday morning.
Ellos llegaron a Paris un martes lluvioso por la manana.
What time did you arrive?
¿A que hora llegaste?
Common mistake
Classic error: "I arrived to the station." Wrong — "arrive" does not take "to." Correct: "I arrived at the station." And "I reached to the station." Wrong — "reach" needs no preposition. Correct: "I reached the station." Golden rule: after "arrive" → use "at" or "in." After "reach" → use the place directly, no preposition.
Trick to remember it
REACH = you reach the place directly: reach + place. ARRIVE = you arrive but with a preposition: arrive at (specific place) / arrive in (city or country). The key rule: never use "arrive to." In Spanish, "llegar a" translates to "arrive at" for places or "reach" directly — the Spanish "a" does not become "to" in English here.
Quick rule
Reach + place (no preposition). Arrive + at/in + place (never "arrive to").
Did you know?
"Get to" is a very common informal synonym of both: "What time did you get to the office?" It works like "reach" (direct object, no special preposition) but is more colloquial. In everyday informal English, "get to" often replaces both "reach" and "arrive at."
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
They finally _____ the top of the mountain after eight hours of hiking.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
She _____ the conference center just five minutes before her presentation.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Reach + place (no preposition). Arrive + at/in + place (never "arrive to").
Classic error: "I arrived to the station." Wrong — "arrive" does not take "to." Correct: "I arrived at the station." And "I reached to the station." Wrong — "reach" needs no preposition. Correct: "I reached the station." Golden rule: after "arrive" → use "at" or "in." After "reach" → use the place directly, no preposition.
REACH = you reach the place directly: reach + place. ARRIVE = you arrive but with a preposition: arrive at (specific place) / arrive in (city or country). The key rule: never use "arrive to." In Spanish, "llegar a" translates to "arrive at" for places or "reach" directly — the Spanish "a" does not become "to" in English here.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy