Last month you had a holiday overseas where you stayed with some friends. They have just sent you some photos of your holiday. Write a letter to your friends. In your letter: - thank them for the photos and for the holiday - explain why you didn’t - write earlier - invite them to come and stay with you
Sample Response
Dear Ajay and Sunita,
Thanks so much for your kind letter and the lovely photos of my holiday in Mumbai. Sorry for the delay in acknowledging your mail, but your package arrived just as I was about to leave town on a business trip. I’ve just returned to Toronto today.
Looking at the photos brings back so many happy memories of the times we spent together and the wonderful hospitality you extended to me. I felt completely pampered by both of you! You surrounded me with warm friends, good food, amazing sights, great shopping, unforgettable cultural events and laughter-filled evenings. I would have been lost without you. I can’t thank you enough.
These good memories gave me an idea. I know you’ve always wanted to visit Canada. Why don’t you plan a holiday and stay with me this summer? The weather is great at that time of year, all tourist sites are open and I could take two weeks off from work. Aside from seeing Toronto, we could drive to Niagara Falls, Thousand Islands, Montreal, Ottawa and Quebec City. I would be thrilled if you could make it.
Thank you both again for the beautiful holiday and the photos which are already up on my wall. Now, I’m looking forward to hearing from you.
Warm wishes,
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use natural phrasing Original: acknowledging your mail Suggested revision: replying to your letter Why it matters: This wording sounds more natural in a friendly personal letter.
- 2. Improve collocation Original: hospitality you extended to me Suggested revision: hospitality you showed me Why it matters: This is the more natural collocation for describing how the hosts treated you.
- 3. Add definite article Original: all tourist sites are open Suggested revision: all the tourist sites are open Why it matters: The definite article is needed because this refers to the specific sites available there.
- 4. Add place article Original: Thousand Islands Suggested revision: the Thousand Islands Why it matters: This geographical name conventionally takes the definite article.
- 5. Mark nonessential clause Original: photos which are already up on my wall Suggested revision: photos, which are already up on my wall Why it matters: A comma clearly marks this as extra information about the photos.
- 6. Remove abrupt linker Original: Now, I’m looking forward Suggested revision: I’m looking forward Why it matters: Removing the unnecessary transition makes the closing flow more naturally.
- 7. Complete the sign-off Original: Warm wishes, Suggested revision: Warm wishes, [Your name] Why it matters: A personal letter should include the writer's name after the closing expression.
- 8. Sentence rewrite Original: You surrounded me with warm friends, good food, amazing sights, great shopping, unforgettable cultural events and laughter-filled evenings. Suggested revision: You introduced me to warm, friendly people and filled my holiday with good food, amazing sights, great shopping, unforgettable cultural events and laughter-filled evenings. Why it matters: The rewrite fixes the unnatural expression while preserving the full list of positive experiences.
Suggested Rewrites
- acknowledging your mail replying to your letter
- hospitality you extended to me hospitality you showed me
- all tourist sites are open all the tourist sites are open
- Thousand Islands the Thousand Islands
- photos which are already up on my wall photos, which are already up on my wall
- Now, I’m looking forward I’m looking forward
Why this response received Band 9.0
The letter is engaging, natural, and exceptionally thorough, with the reason for the delayed reply and the invitation both developed through convincing personal detail. Its only meaningful limitation is a small punctuation lapse in an otherwise highly controlled response. The highest-priority refinement is to separate or correctly link independent clauses when listing the attractions of a proposed visit.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The letter fully achieves its purpose, covers every bullet point in detail, and sustains a warmly appropriate tone.
Preserve this complete coverage while keeping each supporting detail equally focused on the recipient and purpose.
Coherence and Cohesion
Ideas progress effortlessly through clearly purposeful paragraphs, and cohesive links remain natural and unobtrusive.
Maintain this seamless progression by continuing to give each paragraph one distinct communicative function.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is wide, precise, and natural, with flexible language that vividly conveys gratitude and enthusiasm.
Continue refining register by choosing the most conversational option whenever a phrase such as acknowledging your mail sounds slightly formal.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of complex structures is used with excellent control, with only a rare punctuation lapse.
Avoid comma splices by using a conjunction or stronger punctuation between independent clauses in longer sentences.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
Last month you had a holiday overseas where you stayed with some friends. They have just sent you some photos of your holiday. Write a letter to your friends. In your letter:
- thank them for the photos and for the holiday
- explain why you didn’t
- write earlier
- invite them to come and stay with you
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.