Learn Spanish in San José
Learn Spanish in San José, Costa Rica's incredibly colourful capital! Experience a rich culture and the famous Costa Rican hospitality!
Prices & dates for San José
Why learn Spanish in San José?
Want to experience Costa Rica’s incredibly colourful capital city for yourself? Then take a Spanish course in San José and uncover a destination that blends colonial grandeur with a vibrant, modern energy. From your very first day, you’ll be struck by the exceptionally friendly locals, the laid-back atmosphere and an astonishingly rich culture that’s proudly on display everywhere you go.
Spend your free time wandering through San José’s lively maze of streets and hidden alleys, where every corner seems to reveal something new. You’ll stumble upon fascinating museums, striking art galleries, bustling markets and historic buildings that offer a real window into Costa Rican history and everyday life. Stop for a coffee, sample local cuisine, and enjoy the city’s music, festivals and creative spirit as you build confidence using Spanish in real-world situations.
If you fancy a break from the hustle and bustle, don’t worry — in Costa Rica, nature is never far away. In just a short journey you can swap city life for dense rainforests, soaring mountain peaks and breathtaking viewpoints, with all manner of wildlife right at your fingertips. Whether you’re keen on hiking, spotting birds and monkeys, or simply taking in fresh air and tropical scenery, it’s easy to balance cultural discovery with outdoor adventure.
Study Spanish at our San José school for a truly unforgettable trip, complete immersion in the Costa Rican way of life, and the chance to return home with language skills you’ll genuinely use.
About our school in San José
Our San José school is situated in San Pedro, a safe area just ten minutes away from the very heart of the city. Also San José’s university district, you will find many bars, restaurants, shops and live-music venues within easy reach. It is the ideal location for language students, where you will never run out of friendly, open people to meet, or opportunities to put your Spanish skills into practice in real-life situations!
The modern school building is purpose-built for teaching languages, and is comprised of 15 comfortable classrooms (indoor and outdoor), a computer room, and an outdoor snack bar.
Location of our school in San José
What is the best Spanish course in San José?
Available courses
Our school in San José offers an Intensive Spanish course consisting of 20 group Spanish lessons per week, which take place on a Monday to Friday basis, either in the mornings (from 9:00am until 1:00pm) or in the afternoons (from 2:00pm until 6:00pm).
Language groups are kept small, with an average of 4-6 students in each group (maximum. 8). This approach ensures that you get plenty of personal attention from teaching staff, improves confidence during class discussions and in turn allows your Spanish skills to progress rapidly!
For even more individual time with teachers, the school also offers a course of 20 Private Lessons per week, or you can even combine the benefits of both approaches with our Intensive + Private Lessons course. This option gives you 20 group lessons and 10 Private Lessons each week.
As in all of our schools, teaching is given by fully-qualified, native Spanish-speakers.
A great way to help the local community, and practice your Spanish as well, is through volunteer work. Our school arranges participation in various projects, including rain forest conservation and childcare. Don’t hesitate to contact us for more information.
Accommodation options in San José
Available accommodation
Stay with a Costa Rican host family to practise Spanish even more. You will enjoy two meals a day and experience Costa Rica’s renowned hospitality. Shared rooms are arranged with students of the same gender and a similar age. Host families provide comfortable beds, hot showers, and Wi‑Fi. You are free to come and go, but please respect the household rules.
If you would rather have more privacy whilst studying Spanish in San José, choose our student residence. We offer private and shared rooms, with breakfast and dinner included.
Available activities in San José
In your free time, you can join our school’s extra-curricular leisure programme to meet new people, practice your language skills outside of the classroom and experience Costa Rican culture first-hand! Activities vary from week to week, but may include:
Lessons in Merengue, Salsa and Costa Rican cookery, movie-nights, museum visits, city tours, shows at the National Theatre, zip-lining, market visits, hiking trips, white-water rafting, and many more!
How to get to our school in San José
Upon your arrival at San José Airport, representatives of our school will collect you and take you directly to your accommodation, free of charge.
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4.4 / 5
5.0 / 5
San José: Student reviews & feedback
Intensive 20 with Host Family
I found it a very pleasant experience and my Spanish has improved as a result.
My stay in San Pedro Costa Rica in a Cuban family was very cozy and nice. My teacher was very nice and taught me a lot of Spanish grammar. Thank you very much team [Spanish school in] Costa Rica.
- J. Van Maanen
Course
The instructor was very good and engaging. The course material was understandable and the classroom and homework assignments were helpful in my learning of Spanish.
Accommodation
For the most part very good. Good food, private bath and a private room. Very friendly host. My only problem was with a not so great bed, but I slept OK.
Extra
I enjoyed the class and have scheduled another in Peru next month.
- J. Cheap
Course
The course was fast paced and packed with learning. I wished there had been more homework or other ways to enrich my experience as I wanted to learn as much as possible. However, I am really pleased with the professionalism and help that the teachers provided to me. I enjoyed my trip and will definitely consider returning next year.
Accommodation
I stayed in a hotel that was described as a 20 minute walk from the school. That was accurate for the walk to school but the walk back could be difficult at times as it was all uphill and it rains a lot in Costa Rica. The price was fair and the room itself was beautiful, spacious and clean.
Extra
I had an amazing experience. EVERYONE was nice, welcoming and very encouraging about my Spanish skills. It was the best experience I could have asked for; I cried when it was my last day I loved it so much! I cannot stress enough that the people, the school and the general public make you feel at home and motivate you to learn about more about the culture and language. Thank you so much for helping me set this up, it was the best month of my life.
- J. Camacho
Course
The teacher was amazing, we went beyond basica grammar, we discussed many topics such as society, religion,and had differnet ways of learning, with different activites.
Accommodation
It was great, we lived in an apartment that was part of a small gated group of apartment buildings wiht a security guard round the clock.
- B. Aiyanyor
Having already taken Spanish classes in the US for about 6 years, it was a great time for me to brush up on some grammar and vocabulary. We also did a lot of conversational exercises.
- S. Kershaw
This is an excellent school with mostly a 1 to 2 ratio of teacher and students. The school has an exellent staff. The apartment was comfortable for the duration of the stay.
- J. Bui
I was very satisfied with the course overall, I really enjoyed it. I made really good progress with my written and spoken Spanish and got a good insight into Latin American life and culture. I was satisfied with my accommodation also. The host family I stayed with were really friendly and made me feel very welcome. Staying with them enabled me to make really good progress with my oral Spanish and also to understand the Latin American lifestyle. I would recommend one of these courses to a person who wants to develop fluency in a language fairly quickly.
- G. Curley
School statistics
Nationality (%)
Australia (5)
Canada (10)
China, japan, south korea (2)
France (3)
Germany (10)
Switzerland (8)
United kingdom (8)
Usa (50)
United Kingdom
Ireland
Italy
Netherlands
Spain
United States
International
Company Number: 08311373
