Program Reviews

I had an excellent experience at Tico Lingo! It was my home away from home for six weeks. I just arrived back home today and had my first conversation with my family in Venezuela. Before Tico Lingo, I understood some vocabulary but didn’t speak any Spanish. I am so happy to be able to speak now (although it is slow), it means so much to me to be able to communicate with my family.

I have high praise for the patience and skill of all the teachers in the school. I progressed much faster than I believe I would have on any other learning platform.

My host family and the director of the school were also amazing. I got sick while I was there and was very well taken care of. Even though I was “alone” in a foreign country, I never felt alone and always had more than enough support.

For anyone looking for a crash course in Spanish, a beautiful country, and a very safe experience, I recommend Tico Lingo.

As a person who has had a career in adult education, I have high expectations for learning environments. Erick, our small-group instructor at Tico Lingo, was superb in explaining grammar and vocabulary clearly, offering just the right amount of illustration, and then encouraging us in our learning. My homestay was equally excellent, with Nela and her family (her mother Maria Elena, her husband Henry, her daughter Maria Jose, and her son Mathias) being both welcoming and enthusiastic, and also very patient with my budding Spanish. Tico Lingo covered all the bases very well!

I started looking at Spanish immersion schools years ago to become a Spanish medical interpreter and found there are a lot of schools out there. After trying to narrow them down by their reviews I found that this school was at the top of the list. I am here in Costa Rica going to this school now.

I am in my fourth week here and my Spanish has improved dramatically. The reason for such improvement comes from the way they teach and how multi-faceted it is. From grammar lessons to vocabulary to 'modismos', it's all there and helps a person to get a solid grasp of the language. The teachers are mostly bilingual and are knowledgeable in all aspects of Spanish.

What helps even more is the school will set you up with a family to live with during your stay that fits your needs and gives you a chance to practice your Spanish every day. The host families are patient and will help you a lot. These families are wonderful. I'm staying with Gabby and her family and they have become very near and dear to me. There are over 50 families you could stay with and Yenifer will get you settled into a family that best fits your needs.

This school has been amazing from the start with super helpful people like Robert who begins the process to Yenifer who works at the school and will ensure you have the best experience possible. They also off many day trips or dancing and cooking classes to further immerse you in the Tico culture! I cannot recommend this place enough.

On the first day I was excited to meet my homestay family. When I arrived at the house I met Jorge and Maritza. At the time the Euro Cup final was being played between England and Spain. I watched this game and then the Copa America final game between Argentina and Colombia. We did a lot of activities throughout the two weeks that forced me to use my Spanish in real-life situations, and the 4 hours of classes every day improved my understanding of the language a lot. My favorite part of the stay was the trip to the Arenal volcano and lake. We kayaked, rafted and relaxed in the hot springs which I enjoyed a lot. The food in my homestay was great, and I enjoyed getting to know my homestay family. This trip has given me the courage to practice Spanish with more people, and I would absolutely recommend it.

Me gustaría decir que este programa me enseñó mucho. No solo sobre el español, pero sobre la vida en Costa Rica y experiencias con otras personas. Este programa es muy divertido, pero no quiero decir demasiado. Quiero dejar muchas sorpresas entonces necesitas hacerlo. Es todo.

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I would like to say that this program taught me a lot. Not only about Spanish, but about life in Costa Rica and experiences with other people. This program is a lot of fun, but I don't want to say too much. I want to leave many surprises so you need to do it. That's all.

On the first day I was pretty tired. The homestay is very nice and their dogs are adorable. The food was great, but sometimes the vegetarian option was uninspiring. The mall was fun as well as the ziplining and white water rafting. To be honest I regret the high ropes course because it was so terrifying. If you are scared of heights it’s really not for you. The white water rafting was really fun. I fell out of the boat once but was immediately saved so that was just a scare. I really enjoyed the rapids because it felt a little like a roller coaster. I don’t know how to describe it - it’s the most thrilling experience. The zip lining was really fun and felt completely safe. The teachers are nice and in general it was quite a pleasant experience.

Coming to this camp/school I was really nervous traveling to a new country alone, not knowing anything about the people or the program. I became less nervous as soon as I got to my homestay and met the parents I’d be staying with, and both of my roomates. Although I was scared to talk to people I’d never met before, and would be staying with for the next 2 weeks, we got along really well as soon as we started talking, and that has lasted for the entire 2 weeks. We arrived at school together everyday and took classes with really fun teachers who didn’t make us do boring work to learn Spanish. The counselors were super chill (Clay and Morgan) and the bus rides were always so much fun and every activity was interesting. I’m so glad I did this program. I’ve improved my Spanish and made lifelong friends.

Coming to this camp/school I was really nervous traveling to a new country alone, not knowing anything about the people or the program. I became less nervous as soon as I got to my homestay and met the parents I’d be staying with, and both of my roomates. Although I was scared to talk to people I’d never met before, and would be staying with for the next 2 weeks, we got along really well as soon as we started talking, and that has lasted for the entire 2 weeks. We arrived at school together everyday and took classes with really fun teachers who didn’t make us do boring work to learn Spanish. The counselors were super chill (Clay and Morgan) and the bus rides were always so much fun and every activity was interesting. I’m so glad I did this program. I’ve improved my Spanish and made lifelong friends.

I’ve had overall a great time here at Tico Lingo Spanish Camp! There were moments of course…..but what trip doesn’t.

My homestay was excellent. I had Damaris and Carlos, who own an adorable poodle and a hilarious parrot. Their food was routinely delicious. While it was a bit difficult to survive living with three teenage boys who are all younger than me, their roomy living quarters gave me enough space to distance myself from them.

The classes were really helpful! I’d like to think I learned a lot of practical Spanish (todavia, entonces, el futuro) and a lot of non-practical but fun Spanish (saltamontes, vampiras, pijamada). We played lots of interesting and entertaining games.

The activities were great! The scavenger hunt was a brutal three hours in the heat and the zipline course was pretty short, but everything else was perfect! My favorite part was the Oxigeno Mall and its rooftop garden.

Come here if you want a language-learning experience you’ll never forget!

Tico Lingo was an amazing experience. I made some new friends that I will forever be thankful for. This program has introduced me to so many things I never thought I would do, like white water rafting, which was so much more fun than I thought. We experienced so many places and things here in Costa Rica that we all enjoyed. We went to an animal sanctuary, roller skating, La Fortuna volcano and much more. I also really appreciate my teacher, Profesora Marlin, and my homestay mom, Rita, for the most amazing two weeks. This experience was amazing, but tiring, and I will miss it so much!