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IELTS Listening Practice Test 29: Part 1
Booking a conference room. A man phones a hotel to book a room, food and parking for his company's one-day training course.
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You hear the recording once, as in the real test.
Questions 1–10
Complete the notes below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Ashdown Park Hotel: conference booking
Booking details
- Type of event: one-day training (example) course
- Company: Holbrook Engineering
- Contact name: Mark 1
- Date: Thursday 2 March
- Number of people: 3
The room
- Name: the 4 Room (ground floor, new wing)
- Glass doors open onto a 5
- Projector, screen and flip charts included
- Extra equipment: a 6 (£15 for the day)
Food and other arrangements
- On arrival: coffee and 7
- Afternoon break: tea and fresh fruit
- Lunch will be served in the 8
- Free parking in the car park beside the 9
- Price per person: £10
Show the answers and explanations
- GarsideThe surname is spelled letter by letter: G-A-R-S-I-D-E.
- 19 / 19th / nineteenth / 19 March / 19th MarchTrap: the twelfth is the date of the board meeting. The course is the week after, on the nineteenth.
- 36 / thirty-sixTrap: forty-five people were invited, but the Glasgow team can't come, so the total is thirty-six (including the trainers).
- WillowTrap: the Cedar Room only holds thirty, which is too small. They choose the Willow Room, which holds up to fifty.
- terraceThe Willow Room's glass doors open onto a terrace. The balcony belongs to the Cedar Room.
- printerThe projector, screen and flip charts are already in the room, and they bring their own laptops. The extra item, at fifteen pounds, is a printer.
- pastriesTrap: coffee is normally served with biscuits, but he asks for pastries instead. Fruit is served in the afternoon.
- loungeTrap: lunch is normally in the restaurant, but it is being redecorated, so lunch will be in the lounge.
- lakeThe car park at the front is only for guests staying at the hotel. Day visitors use the bigger car park beside the lake.
- 44 / forty-four / £44 / 44 poundsTrap: fifty-two pounds is the standard rate. With the special offer, the price is forty-four pounds per person.
Show the transcript
Narrator: Part 1. You will hear a man phoning a hotel to book a room for a company training day.
Narrator: First, you have some time to look at questions 1 to 5.
Narrator: You will see that there is an example that has been done for you.
Narrator: Now listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 5.
Events coordinator (Fiona): Good morning, Ashdown Park Hotel, events office. Fiona speaking. How can I help you?
Caller (Mark): Oh, hi. I'm calling from Holbrook Engineering. We're planning an event for some of our staff in the spring, and a colleague of mine said your hotel would be a good place to hold it.
Events coordinator (Fiona): Well, that's nice to hear. What kind of event is it?
Caller (Mark): It's a training course. Just one day. We're bringing our sales people together from all our different offices so they can learn about some new products.
Events coordinator (Fiona): Lovely. We host quite a lot of training days, so I'm sure we can help. Could I start by taking your name?
Caller (Mark): Sure. It's Mark Garside.
Events coordinator (Fiona): And could you spell your surname for me, please?
Caller (Mark): Yes, it's G-A-R-S-I-D-E.
Events coordinator (Fiona): Thank you, Mr Garside. And what date did you have in mind?
Caller (Mark): It's a Thursday. Thursday the twelfth of March. Oh, wait, no, sorry. That's the date of our board meeting. The course is the week after, so it's Thursday the nineteenth.
Events coordinator (Fiona): The nineteenth of March. Let me just check. Yes, that looks fine. And how many people are you expecting?
Caller (Mark): Well, we invited forty-five, but the whole team from our Glasgow office can't come now, so it'll be thirty-six altogether. That includes the two trainers.
Events coordinator (Fiona): Right. Then there are two rooms that might suit you. One is the Cedar Room. It's one of our most popular rooms, because it has a balcony with a lovely view over the lake. But it only holds thirty people at tables, so I think it would be too much of a squeeze.
Caller (Mark): Yes, that sounds a bit small for us.
Events coordinator (Fiona): So the other one is the Willow Room. That takes up to fifty, so you'd have plenty of space to move around. It's on the ground floor of our new wing.
Caller (Mark): That sounds better. Does it get much daylight? It's going to be a long day.
Events coordinator (Fiona): It does. It has big glass doors along one side, and they open straight onto a terrace. So in the breaks, people can step outside and get some fresh air.
Caller (Mark): Oh, that'd be great. Let's go for that one.
Narrator: Before you hear the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 6 to 10.
Narrator: Now listen and answer questions 6 to 10.
Events coordinator (Fiona): Now, equipment. The room already has a projector and a screen, and there are two flip charts as well. All of that's included in the price.
Caller (Mark): That's good. We'll bring our own laptops, so that's fine. Oh, there is one other thing. At the end of the day, we give everyone a certificate, and we usually print them out on the day. Would it be possible to have a printer in the room?
Events coordinator (Fiona): Yes, we can set one up for you. There is a charge for that, I'm afraid. It's fifteen pounds for the day.
Caller (Mark): That's fine. Now, what about food?
Events coordinator (Fiona): Well, most groups like to have coffee when they arrive. We normally serve it with biscuits.
Caller (Mark): Hmm. A lot of our people will be setting off very early to get to you, so I think they'd like something a bit more filling than biscuits. Could you do pastries instead?
Events coordinator (Fiona): Of course. They're always very popular. And then in the afternoon break, there's tea and a bowl of fresh fruit.
Caller (Mark): Perfect. And where would we have lunch? In the restaurant?
Events coordinator (Fiona): Normally, yes. But the restaurant's being redecorated during March, so we'll be serving lunch in the lounge. It's just across the corridor from the Willow Room, so it's actually more convenient.
Caller (Mark): Great. Now, most people will be driving. Is there parking at the hotel?
Events coordinator (Fiona): Yes, and there's no charge. But could you ask them not to use the car park at the front of the hotel? That one's for guests who are staying with us. There's a much bigger car park beside the lake, and it's only a two-minute walk from the new wing.
Caller (Mark): OK, I'll put that in the email I send round. And finally, how much will all this cost per person?
Events coordinator (Fiona): Our standard day rate is fifty-two pounds per person. That includes the room, the coffee breaks and lunch. But we've got a special offer at the moment for bookings in the first three months of the year, so for you it would be forty-four pounds.
Caller (Mark): Forty-four. That's very reasonable. And does that include the pastries?
Events coordinator (Fiona): It does. The only extra is the printer.
Caller (Mark): Excellent. Can I go ahead and book it, then?
Events coordinator (Fiona): Certainly. I'll email you a booking form this afternoon. If you can send it back by the end of the week, I'll hold the room for you until then.
Caller (Mark): That's great. Thanks for all your help, Fiona.
Narrator: That is the end of Part 1. You now have half a minute to check your answers to Part 1.