Program Reviews

I went to Asturias, Spain for my junior year of school in 2023/2024. There are very few negative things that I can think to say about my trip. I loved my host parents (Marioli and Jose) and my host sisters (Ana and Kurumi). Everyone from my family to the students in my institution were supportive, helpful, kind, and extremely patient and understanding when it came to learning Spanish. Some of my favorite memories of Spain are buying pounds upon pounds of strawberries with Kurumi, who I now consider my very best friend, and eating them at the beach. Another favorite is coming home from school every day and eating lunch and talking for hours on end with my host mother and host sister. Every single experience that I had there I cherished, even when school was hard or when I struggled with the language. My support system was large, and no matter what I was having a hard time with, my host parents, teachers, and the Nacel staff were always more than happy to help me right away. I cannot say enough good things about this program and Spain, and I recommend it to anyone considering going abroad.

The school was helpful in teaching keigo and honorifics. The staff were friendly and knowledgeable. I met many students who were interested in touring local towns and having adventures. The weekend trips were very fun and well organized with a lot of activities planned. The host family was very nice and helped a lot with learning Japanese culture and also just practicing the language in general. Speaking only in Japanese in the house really made me feel fully immersed in Japan while I was there.

Nacel was wonderful! The trip was rather last minute. They worked with us to find out what we were looking for, where we wanted to be, and what level we were looking to acquire. They were kind, patient, accommodating, and very professional. They handled every aspect of the study abroad/homestay program from finding a tutor who was the right fit to transportation. They even arranged for the Director of the Region to pick up at the airport in the morning and provide an escort to the home. I highly recommend them!

Excellent camp. My 15 year old son had a wonderful week and can’t wait to go back. Made friends and improved his French. Sports were very well organized and challenging enough. Excellent value too. I loved reading the updates every night on the blog and looking at photos of my student with his new friends during fun activities after their practices. Facilities were excellent and my son even loved the food! Coaches were not only competent but fun too. Highly recommend it to anyone with a sense of adventure!

Our 17-year old daughter enjoyed the most amazing summer homestay experience in France—thanks to the extraordinary efforts of Nacel! From the beginning of the application process until her placement, the Nacel staff was dedicated to identifying the right homestay family for Lily. The results truly could not have been better. The homestay family was caring and generous and really made Lily feel at home and part of the family. Nacel staff checked-in with Lily weekly, ensuring that things were going well and that Lily was happy. Nacel exceeded all our expectations!

My daughter attended a swim camp in Vichy this summer. We were very apprehensive at the beginning as we did not know NACEL and it was the first time our daughter (14) was going abroad to a camp (in a different language). We need not have worried. From the moment we dropped her off I felt reassured. The organisation at the check in was excellent, the atmosphere very friendly and welcoming. We were able to take her up to her room and meet her room mate. The rooms were amazing - large and airy with very nice en-suite. Our daughter enjoyed the camp immensely - both her swimming and her French progressed considerably - she has just had some great new times in her start of season competition - and from a social skills perspective, the camp was also excellent in terms of getting the children to interact with each other. She is keen to do the camp again - maybe even 2 weeks! In short, I recommend this programme. Special mention to the swim coach (Wi-Wi) and also to the camp director who made the effort to come and talk to us at check in and made us feel very reassured.

Going on an exchange is the best thing you can possibly do for yourself. The experience is truly transformative and has entirely altered my world view. For me personally, I feel I could have studied French for years and still only understood the same three words when I arrived - but immersion is very much the best and fastest way to learn. Anticipate that sometimes the language barrier can feel like an impenetrable wall - learning a language can be a looong process but it could not be more worth it. I got placed in Bordeaux, which I am so grateful for because it was the most perfect city for me and I can't wait to go back. I was also so extremely happy in my host family, they're honestly some of my favourite people I've ever met. The orientation in Paris with all of the Nacel program students was also one of the coolest parts of the program. It was also nice to stay in touch with the kids throughout the program because we all knew what the others were going through. I cannot recommend going on an exchange enough.

Honestly, the exchange was the best thing I have ever done. I learnt how to travel alone, immerse myself entirely in a different culture, made amazing lifelong friends and connections and attended school there which was an incredible learning experience. The family I stayed with were extremely generous and hospitable. And of course, my French got exponentially better! I stayed for 8 weeks in the north west of France, a little village called "Ahuille" and I had a truly unforgettable time. I think it's the best thing that a student could do and I highly recommend it.

When I stayed with my host family in a small town called Le Puy, it was my first time out of the country. Because I had the opportunity to stay with a host family for three weeks, I learned a lot about the French culture especially their habits, or maybe it was just my family in particular. A few habits that I picked up on while I was with my host family were eating fruit before every meal, walking to more places, and whenever I travel to a new city, I always try to learn about their history by either researching it or going to the local museum. I still keep in touch with my host family and always think about them. NACEL did a wonderful and accurate job pairing me with a host family that had enough similarities and differences with me to make me feel comfortable yet constantly challenged.

I applied to this program with barely any prior knowledge of the French language. Although I was extremely worried about whether I could assimilate into my host family's daily life, the staff made sure to help both my hosts and myself feel comfortable. I was also impressed by the simplicity of the application process, which came in handy especially because we applied only a few months before my departure.
This experience helped me find a passion for language learning, and over the year since I returned from my 5-week stay in France I have continued to improve my language skills, in the hope that I'll be able to communicate even more fluently with the many friends I made during my stay. After coming back to my home country I have even won an award for a fully paid scholarship to study in France again for a month! This is all thanks to the staff at Nacel for kick-starting my French journey.