You recently booked a hotel room for a business trip, but upon arrival, you discovered that the room did not meet the advertised standards. Write a letter of complaint to the hotel manager. In your letter: - Describe the issue with the room. - Explain how it affected your stay. - Request appropriate action from the hotel.
Sample Response
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to express my disappointment with the room I was assigned during my recent business trip at your hotel. I had a reservation from the 1st to the 5th of October under the name George Butler. However, upon arrival, I found that the room did not meet the advertised standards.
The main issue was cleanliness. The bathroom had an unpleasant odor, and the bed sheets and pillowcases had visible stains. This affected my stay and raised concerns about hygiene and comfort. As a business traveler, a clean and well-maintained room is crucial for effective work and proper rest. Unfortunately, the room fell far below my expectations, causing inconvenience and frustration.
I kindly request appropriate action to address these issues. Thorough cleaning and fresh bedding would be greatly appreciated. Ensuring that rooms meet advertised standards will enhance the overall guest experience.
I trust you will take my concerns seriously and promptly rectify the situation. I look forward to a satisfactory resolution.
Yours sincerely,
George Butler.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Fix reservation phrase Original: under the name George Butler Suggested revision: in the name of George Butler Why it matters: In the name of is the natural expression for identifying a reservation holder.
- 2. Clarify the reference Original: This affected my stay Suggested revision: These conditions affected my stay Why it matters: Naming the conditions makes the reference to the odor and stained bedding clearer.
- 3. Use natural phrasing Original: for effective work Suggested revision: for working effectively Why it matters: The gerund phrase sounds more natural when describing the practical purpose of the room.
- 4. Specify the impact Original: causing inconvenience Suggested revision: causing me considerable inconvenience Why it matters: Naming who experienced the inconvenience makes the impact more direct and precise.
- 5. Match the salutation Original: sincerely Suggested revision: faithfully Why it matters: Yours faithfully is the conventional formal closing when the recipient is not named.
- 6. Sentence rewrite Original: I am writing to express my disappointment with the room I was assigned during my recent business trip at your hotel. Suggested revision: I am writing to express my disappointment with the room I was assigned at your hotel during my recent business trip. Why it matters: This order removes the awkward implication that the business trip itself took place at the hotel.
- 7. Sentence rewrite Original: Thorough cleaning and fresh bedding would be greatly appreciated. Suggested revision: I would appreciate confirmation that the room has been thoroughly cleaned and supplied with fresh bedding. Why it matters: This rewrite turns the passive statement into a clear request the manager can answer after the stay.
- 8. Request a direct remedy Suggested revision: Add a clear request for how the hotel should resolve the inconvenience you already experienced, such as a refund or written response. Why it matters: Cleaning the room protects future guests but does not by itself resolve the effect on your completed stay.
Suggested Rewrites
- under the name George Butler in the name of George Butler
- This affected my stay These conditions affected my stay
- for effective work for working effectively
- causing inconvenience causing me considerable inconvenience
- sincerely faithfully
- I am writing to express my disappointment with the room I was assigned during my recent business trip at your hotel. I am writing to express my disappointment with the room I was assigned at your hotel during my recent business trip.
Why this response received Band 8.0
The complaint is clear, formally presented, and supported by specific details about cleanliness and its effect on comfort and work. The main limitation is that the requested cleaning and fresh bedding do not provide a convincing remedy for a stay that has already ended; the highest-priority improvement is to request a concrete retrospective resolution, such as compensation or a partial refund.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The letter clearly covers the room defects and their impact, but the requested action is not fully appropriate for a completed stay.
Ask for a specific remedy such as a partial refund, compensation, or written confirmation of corrective action.
Coherence and Cohesion
The complaint progresses logically from booking context to defects, consequences, requested action, and a courteous conclusion.
Link the requested resolution more directly to the inconvenience already described to sharpen the progression.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is precise, formal, and flexible, with effective choices such as “advertised standards,” “rectify,” and “satisfactory resolution.”
Replace the slightly awkward phrase “business trip at your hotel” with “stay at your hotel during my business trip.”
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of complex sentences is used accurately, with strong control of agreement, clauses, and punctuation.
Preserve this accuracy while making the requested-action sentences more syntactically direct and specific.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You recently booked a hotel room for a business trip, but upon arrival, you discovered that the room did not meet the advertised standards. Write a letter of complaint to the hotel manager. In your letter:
- Describe the issue with the room.
- Explain how it affected your stay.
- Request appropriate action from the hotel.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.