Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program

To enhance the experience of overseas interns and volunteers abroad in Costa Rica, the International Volunteer Travel offers a special one and two week program for beginners, called the Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program. All international volunteers and interns without basic knowledge of Spanish are strongly encouraged to sign up for this subsidized Survival Spanish Program to enhance their experience in Costa Rica.

The Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program is designed with the purpose of providing students a richer experience and understanding of the cultural and traditions of Costa Rica, and also, to develop their language skills for everyday travel situations. The Spanish language taught covers useful language for conversation at restaurant, bank, tourist office, supermarket, post office, airport, etc.

Entry Requirements

The Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program is only available to Costa Rica overseas interns, international volunteers and Costa Rica Adventure Holidays program participants with little or no prior knowledge of Spanish to enhance their experience. People with some knowledge of Spanish should sign up for the Costa Rica Spanish Study Abroad program instead.

Classes under the Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program can also be specially formulated to suit those interested in business, medicine, theology and other disciplines, upon request.

Graduate Spanish Teachers

To guarantee the best results, all teachers are native speakers of the Spanish language, University graduates, highly qualified, and with experience in teaching Spanish as a second language. They have a great attitude and are willing to help and encourage you to learn Spanish.

Small Spanish Language Classes

To guarantee you have individual attention and group homogeneity in the Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program, our classes are kept small, with an average of 2-3 and a maximum of 6 students.

Free Spanish Study Materials

To facilitate your learning of basic Spanish abroad, the Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program offers lots of materials including books; printed grammar hints; magazines; review cards all for free. There are lots of videos, documentaries and films incorporated into the teaching process at no additional cost to the student. Free snacks are also provided at the school.

Local Host Families

In addition to taking Spanish classes, overseas interns and International volunteers in Costa Rica have ample time to practice the language and learn the culture by living with a Costa Rica host family.

Sample Schedule

A sample schedule of the two week version of the Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program is as follows:

Day 1: Arrival and airport pickup. Transfer to host family home, and rest.
Day 2: Registration, orientation; introduction to Spanish school staff. Tour San Jose in the Afternoon at your own pace.
Day 3: Costa Rica Survival Spanish classes begin. Volunteer work in the Afternoon for those with placement in San Jose. The rest have free Afternoons.
Day 4: Costa Rica Survival Spanish continue with afternoon volunteer work.
Day 5-6: Costa Rica Survival Spanish classes continue. Afternoon volunteer work.
Day 7: Last day of Costa Rica Survival Spanish classes. Farewell to teachers and staff and Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program evaluation. Afternoon is free to tour San Jose at leisure.
Day 8: Those stationed in San Jose continue volunteering; Those stationed outside the city transfer to their destinations and start Costa Rica volunteer program; the Costa Rica internship program; the Costa Rica Adventure program.
Note: Weekends are free to explore the city of San Jose and the rest of Costa Rica. No classes are offered during the weekends.

Note: For Wildlife and Other Projects Located Outside San Jose: The Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program week takes place in San Jose. The program does not occupy a separate week but is combined with volunteering. Those whose placement is in San Jose proceed to volunteer in the afternoons; those with placement in distant cities and wildlife project, that cant commute to the classes, will spend the first week of their placement in San Jose, proceeding to placement beginning in the second week.

The Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program incorporates activities designed for overseas interns and volunteers abroad to experience the culture and lifestyles of Costa Rica, through visits to indigenous villages, churches, markets, cultural conferences, films and discussions it is possible to gain a more well rounded idea of the political, social and economic reality of Costa Rica.

Application Process

To contact us, click here. To submit an application, click here. To read more about how to apply to the International Volunteer Travel program, click here.

International Volunteer Questions and Information

To access more information on any aspect of our Central American programs in Costa Rica please click on any link on the left or top links bars. For answers to your questions not provided on the link pages, please go to the page on Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s).

Other Costa Rica Survival Spanish Program Highlights

Location: San Jose, Capital City of Costa Rica.

Starting Dates: 2nd and 4th Monday on the month

Airport Arrival: Day before starting date, preferably by 10:30AM

Age Limit: 18 and over if participating singly; 16 and above if part of a group.

Survival Spanish Class Schedule: Mondays to Friday, 3 hours a day.

Accommodation, Meals and Laundry: Accommodation with carefully selected Costa Rica host families (hostel or apartment can also be arranged). Two local Costa Rica meals a day. Laundry is provided for free.

Transport: Costa Rica internship are mostly within 5 to 20 minutes of walking distance from your local home. Bus return trip will normally not exceed USD 0.40.