Spanish Immersion Program

Na'atik Language and Culture Institute

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Course description

Spanish immersion off the tourist path in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Our interactive classes are delivered by dedicated, local teachers in our colorful, friendly, small city of of Felipe Carrillo Puerto. The environment is ideal to embrace the real Mexico through authentic language study, accommodation with friendly and engaged homestay families, and unique activities and excursions. Your participation in our program highly subsidizes our English Program and Library for the students of our local community.

For our all-inclusive group classes, immersion course including homestay family accommodations, three meals a day, activities and excursions, the cost is $774 USD per week.
The all-inclusive course at Na'atik includes:
*Pick up from the local bus station and introduction to homestay family
*Homestay accommodation, with three meals per day with homestay family
*Walking tour of Felipe Carrillo Puerto to sample fruit and local aguas frescas
*Welcome dinner to meet other students and the Na'atik family
*18 hours of small group classes with a local, native-speaking teacher
*A trip to a nearby Cenote Maya
*Tortilla class (included in the 2nd week booking)
*Support from our on-site immersion coordinator and staff
*Use of bike & bike lock
*Na'atik t-shirt
*Certificate of completion
*Coffee, tea, drinking water and wifi at the school

In our solar-powered school, we teach real-world, communicative language skills in a student-centered environment that encourages our students to continue learning and growing outside the classroom and builds their confidence.

Supporting the local community, you'll stay with a welcoming Mexican-Maya family throughout your stay and experience the culinary delights of the Yucatan Peninsula and the Zona Maya of southern Mexico.

Course topics

Listening, Speaking, Pronunciation, Reading, Writing, Vocabulary, Grammar and Activities

Class schedule

Course duration
1-20 weeks
Start dates
Every Monday
Classes per week
18 lessons per week (each lesson lasts 60 min)
Class days
Monday - Friday

Class times

You can choose from the following class times:

Morning session
09:00 AM - 01:00 PM
Afternoon session
03:00 PM - 07:00 PM
Evening session
04:00 PM - 08:00 PM

Class schedule may change depending on availability and season.

Class level

All levels, beginner to advanced
You will take a placement test before your arrival in Felipe Carrillo Puerto to determine your class level.

Class size

Average 2 students
Maximum 5 students

Student age

Age range 8 years old and older

Certificate

A certificate of completion will be issued at the end of the course.
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photos

Photos

  • Students of Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 1/17
  • Students with homestay family 2/17
  • 1-on-1 classes at Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 3/17
  • Activities offered at Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 4/17
  • Activities offered at Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 5/17
  • Students of Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 6/17
  • City of Felipe Carrillo Puerto 7/17
  • Library at Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 8/17
  • Students of Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 9/17
  • Students of Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 10/17
  • Students of Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 11/17
  • City of Felipe Carrillo Puerto 12/17
  • Homestay housing offered by Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 13/17
  • Homestay housing offered by Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 14/17
  • Homestay housing offered by Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 15/17
  • Homestay housing offered by Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 16/17
  • Na'atik Language and Culture Institute 17/17
reviews

Reviews

100% recommend

based on 6 reviews
5 stars
6
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Quality of teaching
School facilities
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Housing

"I'm coming back!!"

Eliza Ng

I loved my experience at Na'atik so much that I wished I could stay longer. The language class sizes were perfect (no bigger than 3 students per class), and there was a lot of conversation built in - which is most practical and engaging for language learning. Staying in Felipe Carrillo Puerto made this experience even better - it's a small town with very little tourism so you really feel like you're a local. Even still, there wasn't a shortage of activities and things to see. Na'atik provided great field trip options, and these were a great opportunity to practice Spanish and learn more about the surrounding natural reserve.

My homestay experience made this trip even better - my host family was so hospitable and I loved spending time with them. Not only was I able to improve my Spanish during my week long stay but I actually felt relaxed and centered by adopting a Felipe Carrillo Puerto lifestyle. By the end of my trip I felt super grateful and my heart was full.

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My ratings for this school

Quality of teaching
School facilities
Social activities
School location
Housing
Date of study
23 Jun 2019 - 29 Jun 2019
Would you recommend this school?
Yes

"Perfect for gaining competence and confidence in Spanish~"

Davis Sandefur

I was in Na'atik for a month, and it was definitely one of the best months for improving my Spanish. I met four hours daily with a teacher, either in private classes or extremely small group classes, and we focused a lot on just conversation. It helped me improve quite a lot in confidence of my Spanish. My teacher was great, and was a trained educator who is going to get his masters in education this coming year; his activities were perfect for helping me use Spanish, and we also did a lot of trips around the town to utilize it with the local population as well as outside the classroom.

The town itself was great, and I never once felt unsafe while I was there. Many nights, I even slept with my door unlocked, as it just felt like there was no need to lock it. The school was top-class, and had great facilities and a nice library where you could study quietly. There was WiFI there (my homestay also had WiFi), so I never felt disconnected from anything I needed, and had ample of opportunity to study. We went on several excursions with bilingual teachers to visit the ruins. It was great to get to hear explanations in both Spanish and English by teachers who were themselves raised in the area, and knew a lot of the less-touristy activities to do. Overall, it was a great experience. I even got chased by a monkey at one of the ruins (terrifying, but quite funny looking back at it)!

Overall, I can't recommend going to Na'atik enough, especially if you know some Spanish and just need to get more comfortable at using it. But, go for at least two or more weeks; that's when it really starts to kick in and help, once you've worn off the exhaustion of the first few weeks!

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My ratings for this school

Quality of teaching
School facilities
Social activities
School location
Housing
Duration of study
3 weeks
Date of study
2 Jun 2019 - 28 Jun 2019
Would you recommend this school?
Yes
Jason Clarke, Study Abroad Coordinator at Na'atik Language and Culture Institute responded to this review.
17 July 2019

Hey Davis, cheers of the kind review, much appreciated. Delighted that you enjoyed spending the month of June with us. It was great seeing you go from strength to strength each week with your Spanish, you clearly have the knack for learning languages. Hope all is well in Kentucky, hopefully see you again at Na'atik in the future!

"Intimate, friendly, fun and chalenging. Great for families"

Jamie King

Our family of four (kids 8, 10) enjoyed a two week program. Our lovely home stay program set the tone and was a fully immersive experience with a caring family and 3 delicious meals a day. We were all at different language levels: I am a beginner with a semester of college Spanish, my husband lived and abroad and took classes at the university of Granada,
Our kids attend a bilingual school with 50 percent of the classes in Spanish.

The children’s teacher, jimmy, was excellent- he taught Spanish through games and encouraged conversation. My kids adored him. The only thing I would change would be to build in some excursions on the town with the kids and to consider some formal daycare time as the children’s program is 3 hours and is an hour shorter than the adults.

My class was also fun. I had two other students in it at an intermediate level. although challenging I learned a lot and advanced my skills. there was definitely structure and grammar and a lot of great conversations each day and even more fun were the 2 to 3 excursions we did during class time.

My husband got a lot out of his class but said it was a bit intense as he was the only student. He brushed off his rusty Spanish. The teacher was great, but the class would have benefited by exploring the town a bit.

The available bikes were a great bonus. Jasón the coordinator was excellent and helped everything go smoothly. My kids and I would definitely return. My husband also likely would if he were able to tailor the class a bit more to his more advanced skills and specific interests.

The town was quiet, safe and authentic and not a tourist zone. We found it helpful to rent a car to make it easier to do afternoon and weekend trips as there is not a lot going on between 2-6 in the afternoon


There are fun excursions planned by the school they were all very well done and we would recommend them

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My ratings for this school

Quality of teaching
School facilities
Social activities
School location
Housing
Duration of study
1 week
Date of study
16 Jun 2019 - 29 Jun 2019
Would you recommend this school?
Yes
Jason Clarke, Study Abroad Coordinator at Na'atik Language and Culture Institute responded to this review.
17 July 2019

Hi Jamie, muchisimas gracias for your review! It was our pleasure having you and your family with us for the 2 weeks in June. Glad to hear that the kids enjoyed the classes with Jimmy so much. We will definitely take your feedback into consideration and look to include more excursions around town in the future. We will look forward to hopefully welcoming you all back in the future!

"Best Week Ever!"

Marie Jacqueline Hannaford

The people of Carrillo Puerto are so amazingly warm . They are proud of their heritage and culture, and eager to share. I was welcomed with open arms by my host family, and I consider them to be a part of my family. The classes were challenging and interesting, with a good mix of conversation, reading , writing and instruction.

The school is a beautiful building, and the staff are all very responsive and helpful.

I slept in a hammock, swam in a cenote, visited museums and churches and ate amazing food!!

I am already looking forward to returning next year with my husband, and visiting Tulum and Balacar as well as visiting my family and learning lots more Spanish!!!!

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My ratings for this school

Quality of teaching
School facilities
Social activities
School location
Housing
Date of study
17 Jun 2019 - 21 Jun 2019
Would you recommend this school?
Yes
Jason Clarke, Study Abroad Coordinator at Na'atik Language and Culture Institute responded to this review.
04 July 2019

Thanks very much for your kind review Jacqueline!! Delighted that you enjoyed your time with us, we look forward to welcoming you back next year with your husband, as will Doña Candy and her family!

"Excellent Learning and Lodging Experience"

Mark Bradley

One-on-one for one week with one heck of a teacher. Tough to beat. Na’atik is the third immersion program I have attended over the past ten years and like the others it was a wonderful learning experience. (I am fortunate to have three home runs with three at-bats.) In addition to having an excellent teacher at the school during the week, I enjoyed a wonderful home-stay with an experienced, welcoming couple that provided a private, air-conditioned room with a comfortable bed and shower and delicious home-cooked meals with plenty of interesting meal-time conversation in Spanish (since they don’t speak English). I should also add that Felipe Carrillo Puerto is a very friendly and safe city that is easy to get around on a bike. I enjoyed my daily bike ride to and from school. The entire package offers a great learning experience at a very reasonable price. Would I return? Absolutely yes.

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My ratings for this school

Quality of teaching
School facilities
Social activities
School location
Housing
Date of study
5 May 2019 - 10 May 2019
Would you recommend this school?
Yes
Jason Clarke, Study Abroad Coordinator at Na'atik Language and Culture Institute responded to this review.
12 June 2019

Thanks you very much Mark, Dianela and Miguel really enjoyed the week with you, as did everyone here at Na'atik, we look forward to seeing you again in the future!

"Quality of instruction and attention to detail surpassed expectations"

Greg Fay

I studied at Na'atik for one week, and was joined by my boyfriend. We stayed in an air-conditioned home stay and were in a group class, which consisted of just the two of us. Our teacher was incredible - a former history professor who conscientiously taught to the exact areas we had asked to study, while weaving in his extensive historical knowledge into the classes. The instruction was our favorite part of the program. We enjoyed our homestay, where we had the privacy of a stand alone casita, the comfort of air conditioning, and plenty of time at meals and throughout the day to spend time with the host family. The school is in an off-the-beaten path city in the region, and there was plenty of opportunity to practice Spanish. We felt very comfortable there, especially with the constant support and communication from the Na'atik staff and extra touches like organizing a welcome dinner, a trip to a local lagoon and lending us bikes and locks at no extra cost.

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My ratings for this school

Quality of teaching
School facilities
Social activities
School location
Housing
Date of study
27 May 2019 - 31 May 2019
Would you recommend this school?
Yes
Jason Clarke, Study Abroad Coordinator at Na'atik Language and Culture Institute responded to this review.
11 June 2019

Thanks so much Greg, it was a pleasure having you you and Joe here for the week, teacher Pedro had a fantastic time working with you both, please drop back in and say hello to us at Na'atik if you are in the area in the future!

visa

Visa support

We cannot apply for visas on behalf of students. The school is also not authorized to issue documents to support your visa application. If you need a visa, you have to apply for a visitor or tourist visa on your own.

Flights and airport transfer

Please note that we do not book flights for our students. If you are researching airfare costs, we recommend using Kayak.com, a search engine that lets you compare flight options from your home country to Felipe Carrillo Puerto based on your budget, schedule and preferences.

Travel insurance

Study abroad worry-free with Language International's health and personal effects insurance coverage. When you book a course with us, you can opt to purchase an international insurance plan that covers not only your health care cost but also loss of your personal belongings. You must book your insurance in advance when you register.

Learn more about our insurance plan »

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Questions and answers

Have questions? Get answers from Na'atik Language and Culture Institute staff, Language International student advisors, and past students.

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