Cultural and extra-curricular activities
LATIN DANCE – COOKING – YOGA – ZUMBA – ARTS – INTERCAMBIOS – LOCAL CULTURE & MORE!
Enjoy learning Spanish not only during class but also during our FREE activities, offered daily from Monday to Friday.
In addition, you can liven up your language skills through Intercambios (conversational interchanges) with local students of English. Practice your Spanish with Ticos and make new friends in the community!
Note: During the low season, activities may be subject to alterations or adjustments.
Sneak peeks dance and cooking class
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS & TIPS ON ACTIVITIES
What´s special about each campus location. What should I know?
| SAMPLE DESTINATIONS | WHEN | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|---|
| Colonial Barva | 1st Tuesday of the month | Walking tour of Barva’s colonial church and historic buildings, declared National Patrimony and boasting houses made with traditional adobe and “baraheque” mud and straw techniques. Also view the Artwork and Sculptures in the Central Plaza. |
| Tour of San Joaquín de Flores | 2nd Tuesday of the month | Visit San Joaquín and it’s famous church, built in 1880, with every rock that is part of the church brought from Cartago by cart, 87 km away! The Spanish painter Jose Claro painted the images inside the church, which also boasts a cavern with a Lourdes Virgin and armchairs made of stone to sit down and view the garden flowers. |
| San Rafael & Monte de la Cruz | 3rd Tuesday of the month | Travel to Monte de la Cruz nature reserve, passing by the beautiful San Rafael Church, for a nature walk in the mountainous cloud forest surrounding Heredia. |
Our location right next to the ocean gives you the convenience of:
- That everything is reachable within walking distance.
- Listening to the sound of the ocean and waves during classtime.
- Taking a swim or walk before or after your classes.
- Combining surfing with your Spanish program without any complications.
- Enjoying the laid-back lifestyle, fresh coconut water, monkeys in the trees, and special-typical Sámara scenery like horses running down the beach or cows crossing the road together with you.
- ...or even catching a glimpse of humpback whales during their migration season while you are watching the sunset, or sign up for "turtle arribada" trips during their season.
What do students do on the weekends or when they are not at school?
Almost all our students like to explore Costa Rica, whether going to a volcano, park, beach or rainforest, there is always somewhere new and exciting within easy reach for both weekend and day trips. If you just arrived to Heredia or Sámara and you are looking for things to do on the weekend, here are our ideas and tips for you:
- Hanging out at the central park in Heredia and playing dominoes with the locals is fun!
- Go to university bars and meet “tico” students, or
- go to San José for theatre, art openings and concerts.
- Get involved in sports like yoga, football (soccer) or basketball, swim in the Olympic-sized pool one block from us, or go to the gym.
- If you love languages you can join our Portuguese classes or volunteer with ESL.
We are open Saturdays till 4pm! Stop by to meet our staff and English students, or take a dip in the public pool 2 blocks from school, or take a taxi to the Museo de Cultura Popular in Santa Lucia (only open on Sundays), where you can see an old colonial style farmhouse, eat traditional recipes, visit the museum and its artefacts, and spend a relaxing afternoon. Afterwards, walk up to the village of Barva and check out the artwork in the central plaza and the colonial church, one of Costa Rica’s oldest, before heading home for dinner by bus or taxi.
- Sámara is the perfect beach to learn how to surf, or surf one of the area's many beaches.
- Go horseback-riding down the beach, mountain-biking or hiking to nearby beaches or forests, zip-lining, doing yoga, kayaking to the island.
- Take advantage of the many yoga classes in town, play soccer or beach volleyball.
- You can also volunteer in our communities. There is always something to do!
- Wander through the bars with friends in the evenings and enjoy some great live music. Sámara has really become a place of pilgrimage for musicians.
If you are arriving over the weekend, feel free to stop by school to meet other students. Around town, you will also find many tourist information offices open over the weekend. Or just enjoy the beautiful beach.
What do former students think about our activities?
"I was very impressed with the professional manner in which the school was run. Both the teachers and directors were very accommodating in tailoring a program to fit my specific skills and needs....The classes were demanding and interesting, and after class, having fun with the cultural activities was the high point of my day!...My experiences with both the school and the family were exceptional." Tracy Hicks, CA. BA Sociology / Psychology
"The program was fantastic, there was a good balance between classes and other activities such as cultural learning and the excursions over the weekend/week. I would recommend the Intercultura experience for anyone wanting to learn Spanish". Jemma Button, Australia
I am very impressed with how organized and inclusive this program is, and how welcoming and friendly the staff is. The homestay with Lilli's family has definitely been the best part, but I've also really enjoyed being able to spend time in the school, meet other travelers, dance, etc. Enrique is a gem, by the way. I thought I couldn't dance, turns out I was wrong about that... Gracias por todo!" Shelby Ziesing, USA
"The program was great! The dance classes a lot of fun and have made me want to keep learning at home. Weekend activities were fantastic" Sarah Beechey,
"Really good, a real experience. Gave me an insight into costa rican culture that I would not have got if I just stayed in the tourist places. One thing I really loved was the trip to the museum in San Jose. Marcel was so knowledgable and it was so interesting to learn a bit more about the culture." Nynke Raven
"The dance classes were very fun, the cooking class was so great...I liked that we got to keep copies of the recipe. The extra activities on the weekends were also really fun and so were the program trips like the one to the buffet restaurant in the mountains." Han Pham