Lake Atitlan Spanish School

I stayed at Lake Atitlan Spanish School for one and a half weeks. And what can I say? It was a perfect experience. I was put in Casa Mendez, where Luis and his parents cared very well for me. I'm still dreaming of the food Luis made us everyday. The Spanish lessons themselves were really really good, too. I enjoyed the mix of grammar, speaking and the relaxed setting. In just 8 days I improved my Spanish by a lot. I cannot recommend this school enough, thanks for everything.

This is definitely one of our top experiences of Central & South America! Not only was it insanely useful to improve our level of Spanish for the coming months ahead in our travels but it was also a brilliant experience. The school itself is beautiful, overlooking the lake. Perfect environment for learning. The classes were well structured. Francisco and Maria Dolores were great teachers! San Pedro is a lovely town and you’ll have an amazing few weeks here. Plenty of things to do in the morning/evenings/weekends from boat trips, the gym to football matches.

We stayed in Casa Felix with Maria and Jose and obviously I’m biased but they are the best! The food was always delicious, varied and healthy. They have a lovely house, with beautiful views of the lake and only a short walk to the school. The room itself was lovely and comfortable. Maria and Jose go above and beyond even at the table to encourage your learning of Spanish. We learnt so much from them too! We were definitely very lucky with our housemates too but we’ve made some great friends from there.

Amazing school. Amazing accommodation. A must do in Guatemala 🇬🇹

We had the best week with this school and wish we could have stayed for longer. Really well organised classes with beautiful views and free coffee and an amazing snack at break time, different each day! Elvia our teacher was funny kind and patient and taught us a lot. We were lucky to stay with the Gonzalez Chevaz family and they couldn’t have been more welcoming. The room was clean, large and we had our own bathroom with an amazing view. Every meal we had was delicious, couldn’t believe how much time and effort went into the meals. Thanks so much to everybody involved!

I couldn’t recommend coming here enough! Lake Atitlan school is such an amazing place to learn spanish and be immersed in Guatemalan culture. We were here for 4 weeks, studying 4 hours a day in 1:1 classes.

Firstly, our host family was incredible. Dolores and Augustine, along with their sons Manuel (20) and Tonito (5) all welcomed us in with open arms as soon as we arrived. Being with the host family was such a good way to practice what we had learnt in classes,learn about Guatemalan and Mayan history, and eat a lot of authentic food. The family had organized different activities with us too including a karaoke night, volley ball nights and game nights- this made us really feel like a part of the family. Augustine also took us to some beautiful look out spots via tuktuk, and also went over our Mayan astrology which was really cool!

I also only have great things to say about my teacher Antonio. If you can, I would really recommend asking for him because he’s really one of the best! His teaching style includes a good mixture of conversation and grammer. His english is really good which meant we could cover complex topics using a mixture of spanish and english to ensure full comprehsion and understanding of the intricacies of the spanish. Before the classes I was asked to complete this exam at A1 (because I learnt spanish years ago in high school) and I couldn’t complete it. I left the school with B1 certificate thanks to him! :)

The only downsides to the school is that all payments need to be made in cash which means during the 4 weeks we paid a lot in bank and atm fees (atm’s in the area only allow you to withdraw 2000 quetzals at a time with $10usd fee per transaction). Also, when you sign up for the school we give info regarding how long we are there for, dietary requirements, level of spanish prior which is great, however this information is not passed on to the host families and teachers in advance. This means they can be left scrambling trying to accomodate for the students at the last minute. As a pescatarian and someone who is lactose intolerant, the family did really well feeding me but I think it would have been so much easier for them in our first week if they were told by the school prior.

Lake Atitlan Spanish school is the most incredible place to learn Spanish at. The setting itself is beautiful. If you get the chance, ask for Dolores Cortez as your teacher. Within three weeks of classes Dolores helped me progress so much that I was fully conversational for the rest of my trip. Her classes are a lot of fun, she encouraged me to talk and gave me so much confidence, which helped me learn really quickly. She fully adapted her teaching style to what worked for me and she is incredibly kind. Maria at the reception is an absolute ray of sunshine and will brighten your days. The school also organises after school activities which are a great way to practice your Spanish and meet people. It is not just any Spanish school but Selvin has created a full immersive Spanish experience which I highly recommend anyone to join.

I had an amazing experience at Lake Atitlán Spanish school!
The classrooms are outside with a great view of the lake, the teachers and staff are all so nice and helpful!
We spent 2 weeks there and learnt so much with our teacher Dolores!
They organize the home stay for you, we stayed at casa Viky, with breakfast lunch and dinner and private rooms with bathroom!
I recommend!

I went with two friends to Lake Atitlan Spanish School in San Pedro for one week earlier this year - we had a great experience! Selvin, the director of the school, helped us get everything set up, including our homestay arrangements. If you request a particular teacher or homestay, I believe Selvin will try to match you with them if they are available.

We did four hours of class/day for 5 days with a teacher named Maxi who was EXCELLENT! She was warm, helpful, very good at explaining concepts, and unafraid to push us to speak more in order to improve. I really noticed an improvement even after 5 days and would have loved to stay longer. I was starting from an intermediate point of Spanish, but many students start from the very beginning. Maxi even offered to continue providing lessons to us online in order to keep up our Spanish. The lessons are outside and the weather and views of the lake were beautiful.

For our homestay, we stayed with a great couple named Viky and Rafael and two of their daughters that still live at home. The whole family was very warm, welcoming, and helpful! To help us learn, they corrected us as we spoke and pushed us to use more Spanish (they knew some English) as we ate meals together. They were very receptive to our questions and were happy to share more about their own family, culture, experiences, etc. They provided helpful recommendations for spots to see in the town, how to get around, activities, etc. I don't think all towns on the lake are similar in this way, but as three female travelers, San Pedro felt very safe to walk around and we did not feel targeted or harassed.

Overall, it was a wonderful experience and I would happily go back both to San Pedro La Laguna and to Lake Atitlan Spanish School and to Viky and Rafael's homestay.

I spent 7 weeks studying at Lake Atitlan Spanish School and absolutely LOVED it. Selvin is wonderful and answered all my questions before I arrived. He arranged for a private car to pick me up from the airport, which is 4 hours away from San Pedro LA Laguna. The teachers that I met and worked with were all wonderful. I also loved my host family, Magdalena and Geremias. The food at Magdalena’s house was wonderful for me. I’m vegan, and she provided lots of variety. The family is also very conscious about speaking Spanish to the students at every meal and every chance they have. This was extremely helpful and complemented the daily classes perfectly.

If you’re considering going to San Pedro to study Spanish, DO IT!! It’s an incredible experience.

I really enjoyed my time at the Spanish school. Had lots of fun and interesting conversations with my teacher Hector (special thanks to him), learned a lot and became more confident in speaking Spanish. The school organised fun activities to practice Spanish after class as well. Thanks for the great week!

I had an amazing experience for two weeks in this school, studying with my teacher Elvia.
I was sleeping in houses of two super kind families. Casa Mendez and Casa Felix.
The two houses were super comfortable but the food in Casa Felix was unbelievably good😍 (see the pics) and the location of the house was super as well, very close to San Pedro center

I took Spanish lessons for one month and loved it! My teacher Lorenzo and I got along very well. I took 4 hours every days which I thought was the perfect amount. I stayed with Freddy and Magda for the whole month. They were the nicest people and I enjoyed my time with them. If you are wanting to learn more Spanish, I really recommend this school.

I did two weeks of Spanish school there, I 100% recommend doing this with the home stay aswell. It’s 1 on 1 lessons, my teacher was perfect she taught me so much in only two weeks. The home stay really made the difference, I stayed with casa Vicky et we really felt welcomed there. A good price for the whole week, 3 meals a day… I couldn’t of asked for more…

I spent a little over three weeks with this school, learning heaps of spanish and had a wonderful time. I have to mention the host family I stayed with, Jeremiaz and Magdalena Cortez. They went above and beyond to bring me and the rest of the students into the family, cooked various delicious foods, and made sure they interacted with us at every meal. They really made me feel a part of the family.

Had an incredible experience studying at Lake Aititlan Spanish School. Did 40 hours over 2 weeks with my partner (2-on-1 lessons). Our teacher Maxi was amazing! Informative, thorough, patient, friendly, warm and funny. Had we more time, we would have stayed to have more classes with her. Beautiful location in small huts right on the lake. 10/10 would recommend to anyone looking to learn or improve on their Spanish.

I spent one week in San Pedro and did three hours of private Spanish classes per day. The course well structured and a good mixture of grammar, vocabulary and conversation practice. Additionally the school had free activities every evening like cooking class, weaving class, salsa class. I stayed in a host family and I can highly recommend that! I stayed with Family Cortez, Magdalena and Jeremias. They were absolutely lovely and we felt like a part of the family. We got three meals per day and Magdalena cooked something different every day, everything was delicious! And on request vegetarian. Jeremias took us on excursions in the mornings, which was a great way to explore San Pedro and the surrounding area. He even took us Zip Lining!
They tried to really talk to us, although our Spanish was not the best we had great conversations.

Had an amazing week here. Learned so much. Mayda was an amazing teacher. Loved chatting with her. Stayed with Dolores and her family. What an incredible woman. So sweet and fantastic teacher, too. Thanks for everything!

Experience with Lake Atitlan Spanish School was excellent~!
One-on-One class was exactly what we needed. Teachers are very friendly, made us feel comfortable to speak, ask questions, and listen patiently to improve our Spanish.

The Mendez homestay family (which school arranged for us) was kind and loving family made us feel like home. We played card game every night after dinner to practice our Spanish. With homestay family, we cooked together, went church, local market, soccer game, basketball game....laugh together, they treat us like their own family.

I highly recommend Lake Atitlan Spanish School, if anyone likes to
learn Spanish and feel welcome.

I took classes here for one week for a total of 20 hours and it was an amazing experience. The view of the lake from school was beautiful, the snacks and activities were fun, and my host family were so kind. I stayed with the Cortez family and Magdalena and Jeremias could not have been more accommodating. Their home was in a great location near the school and had a rooftop terrace with a gorgeous view of the lake. Jeremias took us on some excursions, like the Indian Nose hike and the San Pedro Volcano hike, which were a lot of fun.

Amazing private classes with a view of the beautiful lake. The classes are well structured and focused on building capacity in conversation. The activities after class were great to learn more about San Pedro and Mayan culture. The home stay was an amazing experience with the best food and opportunity to practice Spanish with local people.. it felt like a home away from home and couldn’t recommend it enough!! Gracias

I spent two weeks at the Lake Atitlan Spanish School in November 2021 and loved every minute of it! I had little to no Spanish knowledge before arriving (although I am nearly fluent in Italian), so I opted for 5 hours per day (8am-1pm). The setting of the classes in the huts on the lake was absolutely stunning and the afternoon snack of tostadas or tamales were always delicious (I am also vegetarian, which was never a problem when it came to tasty snacks)!

Selvin, the school director, is an incredibly kind and patient individual who was extremely helpful in assisting with my travels from Antigua to San Pedro La Laguna and any other questions that I had. I also adored my teacher Floricelda! She not only helped me to gain a better grasp on the language but also taught me a lot about different aspects of Mayan culture, which I am very interested in! I felt like I learned a lot for the short period of time that I studied the language and at the end of my course, my comprehension was very high. (I traveled for another 3 weeks in Guatemala after I left and was really able to understand a lot.)

I spent the first week staying with a host family and the second week staying in a nearby hotel. Although I did enjoy my time with the host family, my experience was not as immersive as I had expected it to be. The family with which I stayed hosted multiple other students as well so it often felt like I was not speaking as much Spanish as I would have liked. However, I did enjoy getting to know the family members, eating some traditional meals, meeting other students and playing games together some evenings.

I also took full advantage of the excursions offered by the school, such as the trip to the Chichicastenango market and the sunrise hike to La Nariz de Indio. I also really enjoyed the experience of learning how to make chocolate from a local family and learning how to make tamales in another local family's home. Everything was well organized and very fun!

I honestly cannot recommend this school enough! I would go back in a heartbeat and am so grateful for my time spent in this little slice of paradise that is Lake Atitlan.