Arcos Learning Abroad

Program Reviews

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Zachary
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Trip to Oaxaca, Mexico

I had an excellent experience in Oaxaca, Mexico working with this team! Ena, her daughter Dani, and Antonio were particularly great to work with and have on our team. They helped us administer medical care to a local town at one of the schools. Their knowledge of the area, kindness, and translation assistance were particularly helpful. Our medical missions trip truly would not have been possible without them. I hope to be able to work with them again in the future, and I would highly recommend their team to others.

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Dominique
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

2025 Students Without Borders (SWOB) Trip to Oaxaca, Mexico

I had an incredible experience with Students Without Borders on their trip to Oaxaca, Mexico! The program was well-organized, educational, and immersive. I experienced the local culture firsthand, from vibrant markets to rich traditions and beautiful landscapes. The team was supportive, making me feel like I was truly contributing while learning so much. It was the perfect balance of learning, serving, adventure, and meaningful travel. Highly recommend this Arcos for anyone looking for an unforgettable experience!

What was the most surprising thing you saw or did?
A Lucha Libre wrestling match at Arena Oaxaca!
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Shirley
4/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Mexico

I had a wonderful time and I would go again if I could. Working with the people of Oaxaca was great. They were all very grateful for us to be there. It was a great experience and I recommend it to anyone else wanting to do a humanitarian trip. Working with my classmates to aid in the help of others was a very rewarding experience and taught me the joys of being able to offer help to people who are less fortunate. I would recommend this trip to anyone who is looking for a way to give back to others.

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Grayson
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Grayson Heilman

I absolutely loved my time in Spain! My host family was amazing and I had so much fun there! I wish I could have spent more time there taking more classes! I loved my teacher, he was so fun and really patient with me! My host mom was so nice to me and made literally the best food I have ever had. She was so helpful with everything I asked for. Her food was so good, and carefully thought out. I learned so much and I really had a big fear of my Dyslexia making it not a good idea to study abroad. However, The teachers were so helpful and kind to me! This is why I had such a good experience.

What was the most nerve-racking moment and how did you overcome it?
When I first meet my host mom, and she did not speak ANY English. I knew that I could either have a good attitude, and learn a bunch, or I could have a bad attitude and not learn as much. I tried to learn as much as I could as a Dyslexic and had the time of my life doing it! 10 out of 10, the program is great!
Pros
  • teachers are willing to teach
  • they have a really good attitude about everything and are really helpful!
  • Host family's are so nice
Cons
  • A new experience is always scary.
  • Fear of language barrier
  • My Dyslexia, and the teachers not understanding.
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Fely
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Oaxaca

Oaxaca was magical from the people to the food everything was full of color and gret energy. It was a super educational and exciting experience. Arcos provided us with two of their best guides Eva and Paulina, they made everything extra special we felt safe at all times and Paulina went above and beyond to make sure we were doing well at all times. Our students who stayed with host families had nothing but great things to report of the host parents for sure it was a great trip. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is interested in experience the richness Oaxaca has to offer.

What was the most unfamiliar thing you ate?
Grasshopper
Pros
  • Safety
  • Friendliness
  • Educational
Cons
  • Heat
  • Walking distances
  • Rain
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Monica
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Arcos summer 2024

I loved this program the directors weren’t afraid to show their personality while also being professional. It really made me and the group more comfortable during our stay. The excursions were very fun, we were always with at least one directors during the excursions and they made sure we were safe and having fun. The homestays gave amazing care. They all cared very much about the well-being of the students. I would say the only thing I didn’t like was the timing of the activities, it felt that there was barely any time to rest.

What was the most surprising thing you saw or did?
Ate crickets!
Pros
  • Beautiful walkable city
  • Friendly staff
  • Fun activities
Cons
  • Packed schedule
  • Not many people in classes
  • Mosquitoes
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Jade
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Living and Learning in Buenos Aires: A Journey I’ll Never Forget

The program I attended in Buenos Aires, Argentina was a dream come true! I had always wanted to travel to South America and being able to receive credits needed for my degree while visiting a bucket list destination could not have been more perfect! Having homestays made the program even more memorable. My host mother was absolutely wonderful and I still talk to her to this day! Over the course of the program I improved my Spanish, grew in my understanding and appreciation of Argentine culture, and made friends for life. I truly could not recommend a program through Arcos enough.

What was your funniest moment?
One day during the program we had a Tango class and after class for some reason decided to get Chinese food. We found a tiny little place that had maybe 8 tables total. We walked in and were given a table, it took 40 mins for the waiter to come take our order, the restaurant was frigid and then it took and hour and 20 mins for me and one of my friends to get our soup and another 45 mins for our other friend to get his chicken. He then bite into said chicken and immediately spat it out saying “that’s just bone” his girlfriend tried a piece and chomped straight into a bone, it was literally a plate of fried bones. It was genuinely so funny. While this could have been a bad experience it was so insane that it has become something our friend group still laughs about. This was just one of many memorable moments shared on the program!
Pros
  • Amazing culture and activities
  • Fabulous homestays
  • Constant support and feeling of safety upheld by program leaders
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Molly
4/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Costa Rica Spring 2024

The program was great and offers a good base for exploring the country. However, you must challenge yourself to interact with locals and form connections there. This will be a great trip if you explore on your own in addition to what the program offers. Overall, it was fun and rewarding trip. I had an incredible host family, especially host sister who welcomed me with open arms. I was so lucky that she showed me many parts of Costa Rica that I would have never seen without a close connection to her. Costa Rica felt incredibly safe and was a great place to learn Spanish.

What was the most nerve-racking moment and how did you overcome it?
Planning my own trip using public transport on busses for the first time was scary, but so worth it! Try taking the bus and go new places, just don’t go alone if you’re nervous. I went all over, with my furthest bus ride taking 7 hours!
Pros
  • Location
  • Biodiversity (volcanoes, rainforest, beach, waterfall)
  • Host family
Cons
  • Hard to befriend locals unless through your host family
  • Not challenging courseload
  • We were not allowed to visit the Caribbean coast
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Macey
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Absolutely amazing program

I absolutely loved my study abroad program with Arcos! I went to Granada, Spain on an 18-day program and took classes at the University of Granada. The classes take up about 5 hours of your day, so it’s a lot, but my teachers gave very minimal homework so it evened out. One thing I loved about Granada is that there are so many other students and universities there. It feels almost like a college town - I saw other students going to class every morning, staff at the coffee shops and other stores knew we were trying to learn Spanish and they’d patiently humor us and help us out. The Arcos staff was super communicative, helpful and flexible. I had a lot of problems with my flight and came a day and a half late and they helped get everything smoothly back on track. My host mom was great and very talkative, which helped me get more comfortable speaking in Spanish! Overall a fabulous experience. Also, be prepared to never sleep in. I had to be up and at a meeting location or school by 8:30 every single morning, even weekends.

What is your advice to future travelers on this program?
One thing I would recommend before going on this program is to have a decent level of Spanish to begin with. Classes are long and a lot of information, and we weren’t allowed to speak in English at all. I think you would get a lot more out of it if you can understand what your professor is saying and you already have an idea of how the language works (verb conjugation, sentence structure, vocab, etc). It is also important for the home stay because the point of the host family is that they don’t speak English. You want to be able to communicate at least about basic things, but being at a level where you can have some sort of actual conversation is where the real benefit is! I would talk with my host mom for an hour after dinner sometimes, and it helped me get over my anxiety of speaking so much. My level of spanish was upper intermediate (B.1 or level 5 out of nine), and I felt like it was the perfect space where I could communicate but still had a lot to learn. Some of the other students were complete beginners or only had 2 semesters of Spanish, and it seemed like they really struggled to communicate with their host families - which didn’t create problems (thanks, google translate) but they didn’t get the same benefit that they could’ve if they had had a stronger base of the language to begin with. Just food for thought!
Pros
  • Spanish Immersion
  • Felt like a college town
  • Beautiful!!
Cons
  • Host mom wasn’t the best cook.
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Anna
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Argentina Summer 2024

I loved my study abroad experience in Buenos Aires, Argentina during summer 2024. It was a fun and very enriching experience. I loved learning the local slang, visiting the many local markets, seeing the beautiful architecture of the city, and of course, going out for delicious gelato every night. Everyone was so kind and helpful, and the area of the city we were in was safe to explore, even late at night. One of my favorite experiences was the tunnels of San Telmo! It was both historically and architecturally fascinating, and we even got to say hello to the creator of the museum. Overall, it was an amazing experience that I would recommend to every student who has the opportunity!

What is your advice to future travelers on this program?
Pack appropriately!! It is winter there and can get very cold and windy at times, so make sure you have a warm, windproof jacket.