Inviting a friend to the local food festival

The task

There is a public event coming up in your town.

Write a letter to your friend who you think would be interested in taking part in it. In your letter:

→describe the event
→say why you think he/she would be interested
→suggest an arrangement to meet there with him/he

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

Model answer

Band 8 sample letter

Band 8195 words. Names and details are invented; write your own.

Dear Sam,

I hope you have been doing well since we last caught up. I am reaching out because there is a fantastic event happening in town next weekend that I know you will love.

Our town is hosting the annual ‘Global Flavours Street Festival’ in the city centre. It is a massive outdoor gathering featuring stalls from over thirty different countries, serving everything from authentic spicy tacos to artisan gelato. There will also be live jazz bands performing on a temporary stage, which should create a really lively atmosphere.

I immediately thought of you because you are such a massive foodie. Given how much you enjoyed that cooking workshop we attended last year, I am certain you would appreciate the variety of international cuisines on offer. Plus, you mentioned wanting to find some new culinary inspiration for your own kitchen experiments.

Why don’t we meet there on Saturday afternoon? If you catch the 2:00 PM train, I can pick you up from the station, and we can head straight to the festival stalls together. Let me know if that works for you so I can plan the rest of the day.

Best wishes,

Jamie

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.

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Examiner's view

Why this scores well

A Band 8 response fully addresses all three bullet points with a natural, consistent tone and cohesive paragraph structure. A common mistake for Band 6 candidates is failing to provide a specific arrangement, often giving only a vague suggestion like 'let's meet sometime' rather than a concrete plan.

→Write to a friend or relative by first name and close with Best wishes, Love or See you soon.
→Contractions, phrasal verbs and a warm opening line are expected; a stiff formal tone loses marks here.
→Still cover every bullet in its own paragraph; friendly does not mean unstructured.

6 phrases

Useful phrases from the letter

caught up
met with someone to discuss recent news
artisan
made in a traditional or non-mechanised way
foodie
a person with a keen interest in food
culinary
related to cooking or the kitchen
experiments
trying out new methods or ingredients
lively
full of energy and cheerful activity

Frequently asked questions

Is this letter formal or informal?+

Informal. Write to a friend or relative by first name and close with Best wishes, Love or See you soon.

How many words 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.

What does the examiner look for?+

Keep practising

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