I recently returned from a week at Habla with two friends. We loved it. Our teacher Gabby was kind and patient. The other students at the school (mostly Americans) were fun and adventerous. The cook at the school made simple, but amazing lunches everyday including tamales and chilaquiles. The school day started with an optional coffee and conversation, followed by a couple of hours of instruction, then a commununal lunch and a little more instruction. The school day ended at 1:00pm so we had time to explore the city and surrounding area including much of Merida, Uxmal, Cenote Hacienda Mucuyche, and many terrific restaurants. Knowing a bit of Spanish goes a long way in being able to navigate the experience, and the Habla teachers are great about answering questions, and encouraging you get out there and pracitice. I traveled with two other females and always felt safe in the city. Habla is a great school to consider for a safe and culturally interesting immersion experience in Mexico.

My husband and I attended a one-week Spanish intensive immersion program at Habla upon the recommendation of a neighbor who took private lessons there last year. It was a wonderful experience for both of us and we had a great time while learning a lot in the process. Our coordinator Ana Maria was so helpful from the beginning – she has great communication skills in English and Spanish. She found us a fabulous host family – I can’t recommend the homestay experience enough, as you really feel like a part of the community and you get to practice your Spanish after school hours too. We stayed there for 8 nights – they even picked us up at the airport and cooked meals for us. They made us feel like family members and not just guests. On our first day of school, we had a brief placement session and joined a class with 5 other adults of approximately our same Spanish level (advanced beginner). Our teacher, Estela, was amazing – so competent, caring, and fun. I needed to work on my grammar, and she really helped with that. The class time just flew by. And as retired educators ourselves (I taught English in Japan for over 5 years as well as middle school English, and my husband worked in education for 35 years), we are very familiar with how effective learning environments operate. These people have a heart for the job and they know what they’re doing. You will be in good hands here. We only studied at Habla for one week, and then we moved to a downtown hotel for another week for independent Spanish practice and time to explore the fantastic city of Merida (we fell in love with the place – so nice and clean and safe with friendly people and so much to see and do), which was a great plan for us. It is possible, however, to stay with Habla for as many weeks as you like – several other students we met were there for as many as 6 weeks. It is a friendly and welcoming community, and the facilities are nice too, including air-conditioned classrooms. It is a top-notch operation. The food is good too – they provide breakfast and brunch so you get to try some authentic local treats. They offer classes for kids and teens as well, and although we were in the adult programming with no kids, they seemed to be doing great work with the kids – they had their own little community going on and seemed very happy and engaged. Every Wednesday they have a special activity in the afternoon after class – during our week it was chocolate making time. We are musicians and we were able to play a little concert for the other students during this time as well, which was a wonderful experience for us. Give Habla a try. You will find it to be rewarding, educational, authentic, and fun.

Excellent language immersion school in Merida. The teachers and the staff are very good. They also pay attention to each family needs individually. The language school offers breakfast and lunch to the students making logistics easier for parents. Merida is very safe and has a lot to offer.

My family and I did a month long immersion program at Habla and had a FANTASTIC experience. Not only did our language skills improved immensely, but by the end of our stay, the teachers and staff and other students were friends. I've been to several language schools over the years and I can say that Habla has really managed to create something unique: a sense of family; Spanish chats over food; weekly cultural events; birthday celebrations; games and literature in Spanish; Dia de los Muertos traditions. Every experience at the school was special and thoughtful and fun. P.S. For those of you with younger children, they also did a fantastic job of teaching and accomodating my kids who are at very different ages and stages (14, 8 and 4). After the trip was over, I asked each of them what their favorite part was and all three said, "Habla." You can't ask for a better endorsement than that.