Hi Melissa:
I am a US citizen travelling to Peru for tourism, but am interested in improving my Spanish for a few weeks while I am there. I have researched the topic, and most schools want a down payment in advance to secure a spot- I certainly don’t want to be scammed and send my money to a fraudulent company. I saw you had a great experience with Mundo Antiguo, and would just like to know a bit about them before I sign up!
I was wondering if you did any of the tours, and if you stayed with a host family (if so, how was it?).
If possible, would you know the ins and outs of Spanish schools and their validity?
Thanks so much, Alan*
*Name Changed
For over three weeks, we had private lessons together.
Qs from a Reader on his way to study Spanish in Cusco, Peru
Hi Alan!
Thanks for emailing. My experience with Mundo Antiguo was great. The facilities are close to the square, clean, and very welcoming. Four or five classrooms are available so several private lessons can happen at once. When I told my teacher Empe that I was a travel blogger, she even took me out for a walking lesson in Cusco. We visited the artisanal barrio of San Blas!
When we first arrived at the school to inquire about lessons, the owners and I did not talk about money. Instead they gave me a free half hour lesson in which they checked my comprehension and assessed my ability level–I was an intermediate.
I had a few friends who also went there who said it was wonderful as well.
On the way to class, I can buy souvenirs from the square in Cusco
Then the owners arranged the schedule and set me up with a teacher that would work with me for the duration of my course which was 3+ weeks, 5 times a week for two hour private sessions. My teacher was perfectly matched to my learning style, very serious and task oriented. Other teachers are more social and seem to go off the book and into what the student wants to talk about. After my first lesson, the owners asked me several times if I thought my teacher was a good match. I said without hesitation: Yes!
However, one of my friend’s did not speak up. He knew that his teacher wasn’t a good fit but didn’t say anything. Even when I advised him to switch he just “dealt” with it and in my opinion wasted everyone’s time. You have to speak up to get what you want, especially when the owners insist that it is important for them to know about any problems in the classroom. They want this to work too which is what I really respected.
Down this shopping arcade, you can find Mundo Antiguo!
I’d say go for Mundo Antiguo. If you want to reserve in advance, sure. But it’s not necessary. In South America, you can just show up and get lessons that day which is how I started. Neil and I checked about 4 other schools and were REALLY not happy with them. Mundo Antiguo was best for the people, lesson plans, and price (which I don’t remember but it wasn’t much). They are very flexible with scheduling and the workbook (included in the price) is great!
In terms of touring, we didn’t do any hiking– or even Machu Picchu! During our time in Cusco, Neil and I were both ill. Neil’s knee was still not healed from a
Here it is!
previous injury. I unfortunately never acclimated to the altitude and was sick the whole time. It’s rare but as my cousin who’s a doctor and extreme outdoorist says: it happens. So I really lived like a local and volunteered with Aldea Yanapay.
For accommodations, I’d recommend staying with them! Yuri and his mom are awesome! If possible please use the link at the bottom of the page, I get credit for any referrals. It was a homestay and we had a mealplan. The food was great but remember if you geet the mealplan you have to pay for every meal when you stay there. We ate almost all our meals at the homstay and lost weight. The family also has a hostel which is really nice and all the volunteers stay there. It’s more of a social scene so it’s fun! But we stayed with Yuri’s mother and were still able to have access to the library and common areas at the family’s youth hostel. It was great for book exchanges too.
For dining out, we’d recommend two restaurants in town that really topped the charts during our trip. One specializes in French cuisine and is called El Soleil. The other is modern Peruvian and has amazing alpaca steak! It’s called Marcelo Batata.
This is my experience of course and others will have their two-cents as well! Anyone?
