General Training Writing Task 1 · formal · complaint

Formal letter to hotel manager regarding positive staff feedback

You had a problem while staying at a hotel, and the receptionist was very helpful.

Write a letter to the manager of the hotel. In your letter:

describe the problem that you had
explain how the receptionist helped you
suggest ways to prevent the problem from happening again

Write at least 150 words. You do not need to write any addresses. Begin your letter: Dear Sir/Madam,

Band 8 sample letter

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing to bring a specific incident to your attention regarding my recent stay in room 402 from 12th to 14th October. Upon arriving at the hotel, I discovered that my room had not been cleaned following the previous guest's departure, with used towels and unmade bedding left in disarray.

I immediately reported this issue to the reception desk. I would like to commend the receptionist, Sarah, for her exemplary professionalism. Despite the hotel being fully booked, she remained calm, apologised sincerely, and personally oversaw the urgent preparation of an alternative suite. She also provided a complimentary meal voucher as a gesture of goodwill, which significantly mitigated my initial frustration.

To prevent such oversights in the future, I suggest implementing a more rigorous double-check system between the housekeeping and front-desk teams. Ensuring that room status is digitally updated in real-time before guests are checked in would be a prudent measure to avoid similar inconveniences.

I hope my feedback proves useful in maintaining your high standards of service.

Yours faithfully,

James Robertson

174 words. Names and details are invented; write your own.

Why this scores well

A Band 8 response fully addresses all three bullet points with a balanced structure and a professional, consistent tone. A common Band 6 error is failing to provide a logical suggestion for prevention, instead focusing only on the complaint or the staff member.

Write to an organisation or someone you do not know: open with Dear Sir or Madam, close with Yours faithfully.
If you know the person's surname, use Dear Mr or Ms and close with Yours sincerely.
No contractions, no slang; polite indirect requests such as I would be grateful if you could.

Useful phrases from the letter

in disarray: in a state of complete confusion or disorder
exemplary: serving as a desirable model or excellent example
mitigated: made less severe, serious, or painful
oversights: failures to notice or do something important
rigorous: extremely thorough, exhaustive, or accurate
prudent: acting with or showing care for the future

Write your own and get a band

Answer this prompt in a timed General Training writing test and get a band for task achievement, coherence, vocabulary and grammar, with the sentences to fix.

Practise IELTS General writing

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Frequently asked questions

Is this letter formal or informal?

Formal. Write to an organisation or someone you do not know: open with Dear Sir or Madam, close with Yours faithfully.

How long should an IELTS General Training letter be?

At least 150 words, and 160 to 200 is the comfortable range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.