# Looking for affordable spanish course in playa del Carmen



## 2canadians (Jan 31, 2013)

I am hoping to move to Playa del Carmen in July. I really need to learn spanish. However I see that most of the Spanish schools are expensive(similar to Canadian prices). I don't need accommodation,food or excursions. Is there a school that is affordable with qualified staff? Is there a school that caters to expats not tourists? I don' t need personal instruction. I prefer group lessons.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Go to duolingo.com and use it every day. Then, practice what you learn with native speakers at every opportunity.


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## naksuthin (Jan 30, 2013)

*Guatamala*

I looked around the Tulum area and found a school but the prices were similar to American prices. $10 US per hour for GROUP CLASSES.
Some friends steered me to some schools in Guatemala where Spanish language classes seem to be a tourist industry.
In Guatemala they offer private one on one classes for about $5-6 US and hour and you can even choose to live, eat and sleep in a host family house for about $120 a week!!!
(probably not 5 star accommodations but it's a great way to practise your Spanish)
My friends took the classes down there and highly recommended it over Mexico


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

naksuthin said:


> I looked around the Tulum area and found a school but the prices were similar to American prices. $10 US per hour for GROUP CLASSES.
> Some friends steered me to some schools in Guatemala where Spanish language classes seem to be a tourist industry.
> In Guatemala they offer private one on one classes for about $5-6 US and hour and you can even choose to live, eat and sleep in a host family house for about $120 a week!!!
> (probably not 5 star accommodations but it's a great way to practise your Spanish)
> My friends took the classes down there and highly recommended it over Mexico


I believe that, in general, prices for almost everything are less in Guatemala than they are in Mexico, along with salaries for teachers. No doubt that's why Spanish classes are cheaper there too!


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## Tucson (Oct 30, 2010)

2canadians said:


> I am hoping to move to Playa del Carmen in July. I really need to learn spanish. However I see that most of the Spanish schools are expensive(similar to Canadian prices). I don't need accommodation,food or excursions. Is there a school that is affordable with qualified staff? Is there a school that caters to expats not tourists? I don' t need personal instruction. I prefer group lessons.


Hola, In Puerto Aventuras we have a Canadian who runs a week series of classes through his home there but I do not think it is very low-cost (that was our imression, anyway). 

Might I suggest you also pose this question on the Playa del Carmen info forum? It is the Playa del Carmen forum and, over the past 7 years, I have asked many questions and received excellent and very helpful answers. As long as you are focused on Playa del Carmen, might as well see what there is in town.

You should be able to manage for quite awhile without knowing Spanish (so much of the area is bi-lingual, we have found) but, when it comes to delicate negotiations (like buying a TV or setting up utilities), it can get tricky.

We discovered google translator and that has improved life for us considerably. We can actually type in a whole paragraph and get the other language equivalent on the spot. We find this very helpful for translating HOA minutes in particular. When you are going to ask your maintenance person to deliver a bottle of water, you can type it out, practice it, and you are good to go! Just in case you haven't used it yet ... 

When you get around to opening a bank account, we were thrilled with the Bancomer office near CoCo Bongo (Preferred Customer Unit) where Sandra Alvarez helped (and continues to help) us with all our Trust needs and our bank account. She speaks English. Bank account is free. Her service is exceptional and always there when you have questions!

Best wishes for your future travel plans.


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## mickisue1 (Mar 10, 2012)

I would not trust google translator for much above casual conversation, and be careful with that, as well.

There is no such thing as a software translator that is anything better than extremely mediocre, and they made mistakes, from small to glaring, as it's difficult to keep up with the modifications in the way people speak and use language from one part of a country to another, much less one country to another.

A better idea, whether you are still in Canada or already in MX, is to combine an online course of some sort with scheduled conversation with a native speaker.

Perhaps a trade off: an hour at the coffee shop a week, speaking Spanish, and an hour there another day in the week, speaking English? Even if your first few conversations are stilted and have little real content, you will learn to listen for (and use--even more important) the rhythms of the native speaker of the language.

Errors in pronunciation or verb conjugation are not as glaring when one has learned the rhythm. Except to a language teacher, of course. 

There are Spanish speakers in every good sized city in North America, for certain, as well as in most cities in the world, for that matter.


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