STUDY SPANISH IN HEREDIA
Enjoy learning Spanish in one of the best climates of the world, surrounded by green mountains and volcanoes, in a town with few tourists and lots of opportunity for Spanish practice!
Study Spanish in the traditional mountain city of Heredia, Costa Rica, and live with one of our wonderful, friendly homestay families. This typical, small Central American city has its own charm with a colonial flair, with year-round sun and temperatures of around 78 degrees! It is located about 6 miles from San José (Costa Rica’s capital) and its many cultural attractions. Our historic campus is an oasis on the outskirts of downtown Heredia. From the moment you walk through the door, you will be welcomed in the friendly and familiar atmosphere our students love:
“My experience in Intercultura Heredia was better than I ever imagined, thanks to all of you, the nicest group of people I have ever met.” Dianne Faieta, January, 2024
STUDENT REVIEW
Iwalani Wilson, March 2023
"Every single person I encountered here has been so kind and friendly. Geovanna always greeted me with a smile upon entering school. Annia and Hilary gave a great walking tour. Annia and Marcelo were very helpful. The other teachers were friendly and helpful as well. I loved everything about my time here."
INTERACT WITH THE LOCAL CULTURE AND COMMUNITY
What makes our Heredia city campus unique
We have daily FREE activities, such as Latin dance, cooking, conversation hour with locals, yoga and Zumba. In addition, our social activities staff takes students on weekly evening social outings and afternoon cultural tours. This is a great way for students to make new friends, socialize, and really get to know the town and the people of Heredia. Destinations can include visiting a coffee shop in a nearby colonial town, going to an art show, a night on the town at a popular university bar, or doing a museum trip in the capital. (Students pay only entry fees and transport).
Students will also find there are many ways to integrate into the community through sport: at a pick-up basketball game in the park one block from school; at the football field a few blocks north of us; going to the local gym or swimming at the Olympic-size public pool just two blocks from Intercultura.
SCHOOL FACTS
Small classes - learn faster (average 3 students)
Central location within the city
Close to waterfalls, mountains, and volcanoes
Pleasant temperatures for learning and exploring
Meet and connect with Costa Ricans without even having to leave the school!
Intercultura Heredia not only hosts Spanish students from around the world but also offers English & Brazilian Portuguese classes to local “tico” students, which guarantees a language and cultural exchange with locals right where you study!
Does our Spanish school in Heredia sound like your ideal study and immersion location?
WATCH ONE OF OUR BEST HEREDIA STUDENT VIDEOS
Eric, from California, has studied Spanish with us more than once and gives you a pretty good idea of what it's like to learn Spanish in Heredia.
THE CITY OF HEREDIA
Heredia is an important cultural center for Costa Rica, and has managed to retain a typical Latin American "pueblo" feel despite increasing modernization. The colonial church and its central plaza, only 4 blocks from school, are still a favorite meeting place for Heredia's inhabitants, old and young. It is home to the National University and only 20 minutes from the airport and the capital city of San José. Known as the "City of Flowers" for the colourful, tropical vegetation in the surrounding mountains, Heredia provides the convenience and manageability of a smaller city (pop. 75,000) in an environment that has escaped to a large extent the normal urban problems affecting the capital. As tourism is minimal to non-existent in Heredia, students experience a truly authentic cultural and linguistic immersion during their stay here.
Easily accessible from the city are San José's museums and galleries, the nearby Poás and Barva volcanoes and, further afield, Costa Rica's numerous beaches and national parks. While learning the Spanish language during the week, you may thoroughly explore the country's natural wonders, world renowned for their beauty and biodiversity, on the weekends. Heredia's proximity to transportation hubs such as the airport and the central bus stations in San José make it an ideal base for your stay here.
We highly recommend a week or more in Heredia before moving to the beach campus!
There is a variety of services no more than a few minutes on foot from the school. For example the olympic-size swimming pool, gyms, yoga studios, bars, restaurants, basketball courts, the National University's theatre and grounds, the post office, daycares, banks, football fields, clinics and more.
THE PROVINCE OF HEREDIA
The province of Heredia is the coffee-growing capital of Costa Rica, and in the countryside you will still occasionally see loaded ox-carts bringing in the beans from the coffee plantations characteristic of the green mountainsides. In the nearby rural villages you will witness a way of life very different to that of the cities, and can see vestiges of the old colonial architecture once typical in the entire central valley. Nearby places such as Barva and San Rafael provide an wonderful experience of typical small-town Latin lifestyles, where you can participate in village festivals, buy fruits at the local farmers' markets or simply walk around and practice your Spanish with the locals.
Heredia's weather is breezy and pleasantly warm year-round with average temperatures of 80F/26C. The weather is ideal for both learning Spanish and exploring after school.
Unique volunteer project opportunities, including sea-turtle protection, community development and regenerative farming in the world-famous Osa Peninsula, offered ONLY to our Heredia students.
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