Learn Spanish in Peru — Spanish Immersion in Cusco, Peru

I spent a week in Cusco volunteering with Maximo Nivel on a medical project. I had never taken any Spanish before this trip and was very worried, but the Maximo Nivel staff were extremely helpful, the homestay was wonderful, and everything went smoothly. I had a lot of fun taking Spanish classes at Maximo Nivel and was able to immediately use what I was learning in my volunteer placement in the medical clinic. In addition to taking Spanish classes and volunteering, I was also able to take Salsa lessons at Maximo Nivel and explore different parts of Peru through their partner travel organization. The trip was wonderful, but one week was not enough! I hope that I am able to go back to Peru soon!

I went to Peru for a medical internship at the end of my university studies. I lived in a homestay with a few other girls and was able to take the local bus or walk to my clinic the whole time I was there.
I've taken four and a half years of Spanish classes and my two months in Cusco made me feel more comfortable with the language and improved my vocabulary and fluency more than all of those years combined!
Not only is Maximo Nivel really good about providing excellent Spanish teachers, but the people of Cusco are so friendly and helpful that it seems like you have a whole city of Spanish teachers. Maximo is also great about providing social opportunities so that you can get out there and get connected. I especially loved the Tuesday night Salsa classes.

It is a life goal of mine to become reasonably fluent in Spanish and I also had always wanted to visit Machu Picchu, so language school in Cusco was perfect! After age 60, the University in my city allows one to take classes for free, so I had completed Intermediate 1 and 2 before arrival. At Maximo Nivel, I was in the high intermediate group and graduated into advanced. The instruction was excellent. Our professor knew her grammer inside and out and gave great explanations. We also had lots of time to practice talking on a wide range of topics - all in Spanish, of course! I feel my ability level advanced considerably.
The Salsa dancing classes were also a lot of fun!
My homestay was wonderful. A warm, funny middle aged woman who was an excellent cook and treated us all as her children (even those of us older than her!) I had a chance to meet and interact with folks of various ages from all over the world which to me is a large part of the joy of travel.
I had already booked a week around Lake Titicaca (do a home stay on Taquile Island if you get a chance!) and my trek to Macchu Picchu through another outfitter, but the tour company associated with Maximo Nivel set me up with several day trips (inexpensive!) on the weekends in between which gave me an excellent chance to see many of the incredible sites around the area. In Cusco itself, I had plenty of time to explore museums to my heart's content and enjoyed the large variety of excellent restaurants as well.
Hope you get a chance to visit this amazing place some day!

Such an incredible, worthwhile, life changing experience. The staff at Maximo Nivel go above and beyond to make sure you are enjoying yourself, safe, and getting the most out of the culture in Cusco. The Spanish courses were key to my cultural experience in Peru. I had never taken a Spanish course in my life prior to visiting Cusco. In 9 short weeks I felt much more proficient. Being able to better communicate with the people in Peru was so valuable. I learned more about them, and they learned more about me. My host family were the kindest people and helped me with my homework and practiced with me daily. The Spanish I learned from the courses with Maximo has been very useful since I've come home to the US. I've been able to encorporate those language skills into my daily work. Couldn't recommend Maximo Nivel and the Spanish courses enough!

Maximo Nivel is an awesome agency. I loved my experience volunteering with them and taking Spanish so much that I even have gone back again! Maximo staff was always very supportive of giving you the best learning experience based on your own goals and interests. Beyond this, the Spanish was awesome, with great teachers. The teachers integrate in cultural experiences for the students which means there were several times where we got to leave the classroom to experience a festival or have an experience that made me feel more connected and understanding of the culture. Its also awesome that they offer free cooking lessons and salsa classes, so you get to take some new skills home with you! Thanks Maximo for an awesome experience.

Overall, the program and my experience with Máximo was both positive and excellent. Academically, I learned more Spanish than I had in my undergraduate experience as a Spanish major. My host parents were cleanly, friendly, and motivated my learning by communicating only in Spanish. I am still in contact with my host mom, Ani, and I am so glad I had the opportunity to meet her and her family. Máximo was also beneficial in the entertaining services that they provided: salsa classes, sports, etcetera. My only complaint is that the paragliding sport was slightly more expensive than rates at outside travel agencies. I would definitely work with Máximo again and feel comfortable doing so.

One of the best opportunities we had during our 3 weeks stay in Cusco was the Spanish class! Kathy, our teacher is definitely one of the best teachers I have encountered in my whole life as she managed to teach as in such an efficient way that we began at the basic level and ended up with a certificate of intermediate level only in 2 weeks!! It really makes your experience more complete being able to communicate in Spanish while in Cusco!! Moreover, Kathy taught us about the local culture and she took us to local spots in the city that we would not have discovered on our own! For me, getting to know the culture in this way was extremely important! Finally, we also participated in the salsa and cooking classes which were incredibly fun - totally recommended! The Native Spanish Program in Maximo and each member of the staff individually made my experience in Cusco unforgettable and also left me with a very important tool - a new language!

I work in several Spanish-speaking countries and needed to improve my very basic Spanish. I also happen to love Cusco, and was referred to Máximo Nivel by a Cusqueño friend. My experience was way beyond my expectations! The staff and teachers are friendly, effective and are able to tailor classes for individual levels and needs. I hope to return for more classes someday, and would recommend it to anyone! Absolutely first-class!