Toucan Spanish School in Medellín – Review

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If you are thinking of going to South America to take some Spanish classes then you might have come across Toucan Spanish School. This Spanish school can be found in three locations in Colombia: Medellín, Bogotá and Cartagena. I have also studied Spanish there (Medellín location) for two weeks in the summer of 2019 and while I was preparing my trip I had also looked up different Spanish schools beforehand. In the end I decided on Toucan due to its positive reviews, the location and because they are offering lots of activities as well.

So now, a couple months later, I have decided to write my own little review on my experience to help you make the choice of which Spanish School to attend. Here is all you need to know about studying Spanish at Toucan Spanish School in Medellín, Colombia.

Disclaimer: I went to Colombia in July/August 2019 so before Corona times. Due to travel restrictions and the school closing, they are currently offering online classes that you can join from anywhere in the world! (e.g. 10 x 1 hour of group classes for only $85).

Location

The Spanish school is located just next to the Toucan Café in the neighbourhood of El Poblado. El Poblado is the most expensive area in Medellín as it is also the most popular neighbourhood for foreigners. In the area you will find lots of hostels, boutiques, restaurants and a great nightlife. The Spanish school is right in the centre of El Poblado and just a short couple of minutes walk away from most of the popular hostels in Medellín: such as Purple Monkey Hostel, Rango Boutique Hostel or Los Patios.

Classes at the Toucan Spanish School

The classes are relatively small which is great. In total I had two weeks of classes and in the first week we were six people and then four in the second week. I believe there are a lot more people that start with more basic Spanish and therefore the classes are bigger than the more advanced classes.

The group classes always take place from 9am to 1pm from Monday to Friday. In between there is a small break in which you have time to grab a coffee from the Toucan Café, which I usually did most days. You will stay with the same students for the whole week and of course also have the same teachers for that specific week. Both of my teachers I had were both amazing!

The groups are divided in different levels of course. Like A1.1.1 are the beginners, then A1.1.2, then A1.2.1 and then A1.2.2, and then the same with A2 and so one. So basically if you start at 0 it will take you four weeks to reach A1 and so on if that makes sense.

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Price

You can either take group lessons or private individual lessons. The group classes cost 595000 Pesos (145.2€) for one week or 570000 (139€) a week if you take at least two weeks of classes. For 8+ weeks you will be paying 525000 Pesos (128.1€) a week (Prices of 2019).

10 hours of individual classes will cost you 700000 Pesos (175.1€). But if you also take group lesson they also have some discounts if you want to add on private lessons. Make sure though to also check the updated prices on the Toucan website.

Activities

There are some free activities that you can participate in at Toucan Spanish school in Medellín such as free dancing classes, juice tastings or my favourite activity, the language exchange. The language exchange takes place three times a week in the Toucan Café, where you can talk to locals and practise your Spanish as well as they can practise their English with you. I have met some nice people at these language exchanges.

Funny story actually, on my last day in Colombia I was having a conversation with my Uber driver who was living in Medellín and told me that he wanted to improve his English. So I told him about the language exchanges and he was really excited about going there. Not actually sure if the went there though.

Anyhow, there are also some paid activities from the school itself such as playing Tejo (definitely go and play Tejo at least once). And then there are activities and tours that can be booked through the Toucan Café. These activities for example include day trips to Guatapé, a graffiti tour to Comuna 13 or a food tour.

Other than those of course, there are a lot of other things to do in Medellín so you will definitely be able to fill up your free time with lots of interesting activities.

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Online Classes

We can’t travel at the moment but you can still learn a new language from anywhere in the world. Check out the online classes that Toucan Spanish school is offering at the moment.

You can choose between Group lessons and private lessons. 10 group lessons of 1 hour each time for a duration of two weeks will cost you 350000 Pesos (around $85). 10 hours of private classes will cost you 600000 Pesos (around $125).

Online classes are a great idea if you have some spare time at the moment as you can already prepare yourself for a future trip to Colombia or any other Spanish speaking country.

Conclusion

Overall, I really enjoyed studying Spanish at Toucan Spanish School and I felt like I was learning so much every day. If I had more time I would have for sure also stayed for a few more weeks.

The activities they offer were fun but it was pretty much the same in both weeks that I was there so apart from the language exchange I mostly only joined them in the first week. Both teachers I had were amazing and also they did a great job in putting people in one group that are kind of on the same level.

Before attending Spanish classes at Toucan Spanish school I have only learned Spanish through Apps or TV shows so I really didn’t know much about the grammar especially. I had started with the course A1.2.1 and then did A1.2.2 in my second week and therefore completed the level A1. That is great now because if I want to continue somewhere else I will also know which level I will be on. Of course I will still need to continue practising.

If I ever make it back to Colombia (I HOPE I WILL !!), I would like to go back to Toucan Spanish School as well even if it is just for a week or two. And if you are considering taking courses there as well I can 100% recommend it and I am sure you are going to have a great time and learn a lot.

Is there anything else you would like to know about learning Spanish at Toucan Spanish School in Medellín?

Let me know in the comments x

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