Program Reviews

For me unique was to learn Chinese not only in classroom but to go out on markets, supermarkets & cafes to learn daily vocabulary. Teachers all are very nice and supportive people which was just fun to hang out with. They adapt to your personal requirements and have been very gentle. School is well organized, rooms are very clean and well equipped. School offers a nice lunch option and a lot of additional activities in the afternoon. Overall I am very satisfied with my CLI experience and already think about booking it again.

My six-weeks at CLI surpassed my expectations. The level of instruction is truly top tier; my teachers were incredibly patient, kind, deeply knowledgeable about Chinese language, and most importantly very skilled at teaching it. The one-on-one classes was a jolt of energy to my language study, and propelled me and entire HSK level in a month and a half. The accommodations are spacious, clean, and newly updated. I highly, highly recommend CLI as an amazing learning and life experience for anyone who is trying to learn Mandarin; they have many different teachers and textbook curriculums to choose from so any level can be accommodated, from just starting out to conversational.

After fumbling around with various programs and apps, I went with an actual program with live teachers one on one. It's easily worth it. I learned more in 8 weeks than I have in a year of various other online and app-based learning programs. The teachers are superb, the physical plant/classroom facilities are great, and even the lunch every day was remarkably good. The local neighborhood is awesome; full of restaurants, coffee shops, etc.

I spent three months at CLI in Guilin and had a terrific time. I really liked the teachers, the city, and was perfectly happy with the housing. Guilin now feels like a part of me. I loved the peaceful and tranquil environment and would choose Guilin any day over the bustle and noise of Beijing or Shanghai. My Chinese also tremendously improved. I started out with mid-level HSK 1 and am now at the beginning of HSK 3.

I only have one point of criticism. I felt that the the weekend trips offered by the institute were too catered to Western foreigners who are reluctant to take culinary risks or go off the beaten track. This is less a criticism of CLI, but more a reflection of my personal adventurous inclinations.

I had the privilege and opportunity to study Chinese at CLI in Guilin, China. I just completed a 10 week stay last week. From day 1 CLI took care of all my needs. They not only met them but anticipated them as well. From the exceptional teachers (Annie, Ruza and Jin), the hardworking talented interns (Heney, Mendy, Nora, Esther, Kayla, Amanda, among others) and the wonderful cooks and support staff.

I began each day with eager anticipation looking forward to the adventure of learning not only the Chinese language but the Chinese culture as well. The one on one structure can not be beat in elevating one’s learning capability. The teachers are highly experienced and willingly adjust their teaching styles to best meet the student’s needs. It blows my mind at how good they are at their vocation.

I could go on and on raving about how much I love CLI and all that it embodies. I am so committed to sharing my journey with CLI because I am confident that they have the leadership and ability to help me achieve my goals. Thank you CLI!

After studying Chinese for a number of years at a slow pace (1 hour lesson per week, and not doing much homework!), I was keen to try to boost my Chinese progress through an immersion program. Arriving at CLI, I really appreciated the warm welcome, the positive culture, support from the interns and the great tuition from my three teachers. I also was keen to experience all the extra-curricular activities, and enjoyed all of them. I really enjoyed meeting all the staff and all the students, the students come from a wide range of countries, backgrounds, reasons for study and ages. I found it all very inspiring to continue my studies.

I feel that I made rapid progress over my 4 weeks at CLI, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I recommend the course to students considering improving their Mandarin Chinese, and I myself am keen to return at some point in the future.

I'd studied Chinese online for a few years, very slowly, but the four weeks I spent at the CLI in Guilin were an amazing boost to my progress, and a wonderful experience!

Support:
The admin support was top-notch; I had some minor issues in getting my visa and when I arrived, and both the admin staff and the student intern who met me on day one (and, later, helped me navigate the many apps!) were warm, supportive, and incredibly helpful. The airport pick-up and drop-off were highly appreciated and seamless.

Classes:
My three teachers were all encouraging, enthusiatic, and dedicated to my progress. They figured out where my weak points were and worked on a plan to address them with me, while shoring up my strengths. My Chinese improved dramatically over the four weeks I studied with them. After a couple weeks, I was having slow conversations with taxi drivers, long chats with people in shops, and waking up thinking in Chinese! My reading speed also advanced a lot. I did spend a fair amount of time outside of class as well reviewing the vocab and grammer, so I'd say if you're prepared to work hard you can really accelerate your progress in a very short time.

Activities:
I did a lot of activities offered through the school, and really enjoyed the option to try them out. I think especially as someone who was only there for a couple weeks, it's hard work to find and plan your own activities, and I enjoyed the school's. I got to see some beautiful scenery (trips out to Yangshuo were great!), eat a lot of amazing meals, and learn a little bit about a variety of things: music, dance, calligraphy, and more. (Also the school lunches are delicious.) The CLI is in a non-touristy part of Guilin but near loads of shops, markets, restaurants, etc., so it's very easy to get around even while you're still figuring things out. I really liked the neighbourhood vibe.

Overall:
I'm very glad I went, and would go again in a heartbeat. Highly recommend.

CLI and Guilin were a wonderful environment to spend 6 months in China. The school distinguishes itself by its flexibility, the quality and warmth of its teachers, and Guilin is relaxed, green, and offers lots of adventure options (some organized by the school). Even before getting there, they were super helpful with getting my visa and preparing for arrival.

Education:
Super flexible. I'm a picky learner and CLI let me try different teachers and work with them in adapting my lessons' structure. I ended up conversing a million topics with one teacher, correcting pages upon pages of my stories/translations to Chinese with another, and dialed down the use of textbooks when it didn't suit me. I gained a lot in fluency and making sense of the language, as has been obvious in my post-study travels.

School environment:
I chose an apartment stay whereas most students live in rooms in the school building, and my flat was fantastic. The delicious communal lunches were a daily highlight (5 dishes and one soup per day, with veggie options). I made use of the school's digital piano, and liked the variety of activities organized by the school every week.

City environment:
Guilin is said to be touristic, but it's mostly local tourists and in the downtown, not near the school, so you definitely get an immersive experience. The shared scooters are super convenient and fun and you can hike a different mountain every weekend for months.

One (self-imposed) downside is that 20h/w of class got to be too much after a few months, when I wanted to shift focus on my local life and activities. The apartment stay option implies prepaying, so I didn't have flexibility to adjust my class load or take some weeks off.

I had the opportunity to visit CLI in March of 2026. The program was worth every penny. My three professors catered my learning to what suited me best and helped me fix grammatical mistakes I had been struggling with for years. The daily 4 hours of class helped me rapidly improve and within 2 weeks I finished HSK2 and got nearly half way through HSK3.

The environment there is also amazing. All of the students I met there were incredibly friendly and shared my goal of learning Chinese. The activities with CLI really helped foster these connections with fellow students.

Guilin is also a great place for learning Chinese. There is rarely English translations and most people only speak Chinese or the local dialect so it forces you to use what you are learning.

I spent three weeks at CLI in March 2026. This was my first time in China, although I traveled around for two weeks before starting the course. I chose CLI because all the instruction is 1-on-1, and because Guilin is supposed to be very beautiful. CLI delivered on both counts.

My three teachers were very open to customizing the program to address exactly my weakest points. I am self-taught and have some big developmental gaps. And Guilin really is pretty. The weather wasn't the greatest because of the time I went, but I still got in a lot of hiking and a boat ride. The local scenery is really unique.

I am going to continue online lessons with one of my CLI teachers, and if I have another opportunity to study in China, would choose Guilin again.