Semi-Formal Letter Praising Hotel Staff
A complete IELTS General Training Writing Task 1 question with a model answer of 197 words, plus a breakdown of the sentence structures, cohesive devices and vocabulary that answer uses. Write your own version first, then compare.
Written by Manish Sharma · CELTA and DELTA qualified · 8 years teaching IELTS
Score my answer to this questionThe question
You have 20 minutes. Write at least 150 words.
You recently stayed at a hotel where the staff provided you with excellent service. Write a letter to the manager of the hotel. In your letter: - Give details of your stay - Explain why you were impressed with the staff - Suggest how the hotel could recognise the staff members involved Write at least 150 words. You do NOT need to write any addresses. Begin your letter as follows: Dear Mr Alvarez,
How to approach it
- 01Use 'Dear Mr Alvarez' as given and sign off with 'Yours sincerely' because the name is known
- 02Be specific about the dates, room, and booking — it makes the letter feel authentic
- 03Name individual staff members and describe one concrete incident for each
- 04Keep the register warm but professional — avoid slang
- 05Make the suggestion realistic: bonuses, recognition schemes, a written commendation
- 06Cover all three bullet points in clear, separate paragraphs
Model answer
197 words in 6 paragraphs. Read it after you have written your own, not before: the point of a model answer is to show you what you missed, and you cannot miss anything you have not attempted.
Dear Mr Alvarez,
I am writing to share my appreciation for the outstanding service I received during my recent stay at the Coral Bay Hotel from 3 to 7 May, where I occupied Room 412 under booking reference CB-78342.
I had travelled to the island for an important family wedding, and from the moment I arrived, your team made the visit genuinely memorable. The receptionist, Marisol, noticed that my flight had been severely delayed and arranged a light meal in my room without me having to ask. The following morning, your concierge, Daniel, helped me find an emergency tailor when the strap on my dress broke just two hours before the ceremony — a small but stressful crisis that he resolved with extraordinary calm and kindness.
What impressed me most was that this level of care seemed entirely natural to the staff rather than a performance. Every interaction, even with the breakfast and cleaning teams, was warm and attentive.
I would be grateful if you could pass on my thanks to Marisol and Daniel personally, and perhaps recognise them through your employee-of-the-month programme or a similar scheme. They are a credit to the hotel.
Yours sincerely, Helena Mendes
What this answer actually does
Measured from the text above, and compared against the other 31 answers of the same type in this library. These are counts, not band scores: they describe what the writing does, which is the part you can copy.
27 fewer than the median answer for this task type
4 words at the shortest, 39 at the longest
2 fewer than the median answer for this task type
carry a subordinate or relative clause
Sentence rhythm
Sentences average 21.9 words and vary by 11.7 words either side of that, running from 4 words to 39. Variation is the point. Grammatical Range and Accuracy rewards a mix of simple and complex sentences, and an answer where every sentence is the same length reads as flat no matter how correct it is. 4 of the 9 sentences here carry a subordinate or relative clause.
Vocabulary and repetition
Ignoring grammar words, 86 per cent of the content words in this answer are distinct, and 80 per cent appear exactly once. Lexical Resource is where repetition costs the most marks, and the usual cause is not a small vocabulary but reaching for the same noun every time the topic is named.
The longest run of words copied straight from the question is 3 words. Examiners discount wording lifted from the question, so a short run here is the right outcome: the answer restates the topic in its own words rather than borrowing the question's.
What you are marked on
All four criteria carry equal weight, and your Writing band is their average rounded to the nearest half band.
Task Achievement
Address all three bullet points with relevant detail
Coherence & Cohesion
Organise paragraphs by bullet point with clear flow
Lexical Resource
Use appropriate semi-formal vocabulary and praise language
Grammatical Range & Accuracy
Use accurate past tenses and modal structures for suggestions
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