Program Reviews

The program was well put together including lectures in the kitchen, daily cooking lessons and a variety of field trips to learn about the food and culture.

Living in an apartment in Northern Spain made me feel like I was home. Walking all over the city and shopping at the food markets gave me the sense that I was a local. I only wish I could have stayed longer. I learned almost everything about Spanish cuisine but also about culture. Jose, the Director of the program, is a wonderful person and is always there to give you a hand. He and his colleagues will give you nice tips about life in Spain.

I learned the value of being more active as we had to walk everywhere and how to appreciate my surroundings. It was totally the best experience ever. I think anyone who can figure out a way to finance a study abroad trip should absolutely do it!

Once I stepped foot in Spain, all bets were off, I was too excited not to succeed.

I started to realize all the reasons why I decided to come on this adventure were starting to play out, and I became enthralled on the experiences that I was gaining. I ended up getting a teaching job working Mondays Tuesdays and Wednesdays, then teaching private lessons on Thursdays and Fridays. It was a nice way to mix up the schedule. I moved to Spain with everything organized, job, accommodation, airport transfer and some weeks of Spanish courses to be inmersed in the new culture and language; but the School more than adequately helped me prepare properly and I built a successful life in no time. All in all my trip was amazing and was loaded with great experiences. Upon returning home to California, both sad to leave and happy to reunite with my friends and family, I found myself to be far more resourceful than ever before. I also found myself reassured with confidence, fulfilled with experience, and ready for whatever challenges lay ahead of me

I came to Bilbao because I wanted to be in a place that was very different to my home country! And Bilbao was the perfect choice, surrounded by sea and kilometers of beautiful sandy beaches, not to mention its amazing history.

I chose Instituto Hemingway because I heard is the best School in Northern Spain.

The school is the perfect size and all the staff are very friendly and make you feel comfortable right from the start.

A very well-rounded place with a lot of upsides.
There's a friendly atmosphere, effective teachers and helpful people in general (they can recommend you tons of stuff that you're interested in, in Bilbao).
I haven't done my courses yet (as of this time), but I can already say that it is very effective. And they also propose cultural activities that you can sign up for DAILY.

I enjoyed the small classes and activities that allowed us to see all the parts of the city and learn more about the culture. My Spanish improved a great deal during the summer and I look forward to coming back next year. Surfing lessons were super and just 30 min far from School!

The application process was a breeze as everything on behalf of Instituto Hemingway was handled extremely efficiently and Alfredo Orive and Jose Lopez were exceptionally helpful and was delightful in general in helping me to get to the perfect summer internship in Northern Spain.

The Internship was exactly how I imagined it to be, if not better. The tasks were the same as mentioned beforehand and there were no nasty surprises; I can only recommend working as an English teacher as it is an ideal experience for someone in the early/mid 20's.

Students were very pleasant and also my Spanish improved.

All of the staff were like a small family and I am extremely grateful for how they welcomed me and gave me the best experience.

It was probably the best summer of my life to live in Spain and work as an English teacher for 2 months.

The internship had fulfilled all my expectations, the tasks were as explained in the contract. I was surprised by the willingness of the managers and co-workers explaining me stuff I wanted to know and even more. My students were fantastic and loved my accent! I learned so much from as they from me.

The conditions were good, the manager have tried to always check with us how we feel, and we were free to communicate with him if we feel uncomfortable about anything and if it was within his competences, he did what was the best. I found my colleagues little bit hard to make friends with, but we have end up having very good relationship and interesting talks. It is very important to feel support from your co-workers and I can confess I felt part of a team.

I feel like this type of work is kind of easy for me, I was aiming for the higher position and I feel ready to accept more responsibility and load of tasks. I have been capable and responsible worker and it was noticed and appreciated by my workers and managers. I can summarise the internship as successful and enriching.

I was in Spain for five months in addition of two months studying Spanish. I came there with very little of the language and that was what I wanted, part of the challenge. Fortunately with Instituto Hemingway I had great help into getting acquainted with the city, like organizing the program and making the whole process a lot easier. I cannot imagine doing that without someone here helping me, it would have been ridiculous. I recommend to everyone to having the opportunity to learn what I learned here in a very economical price compared to the United States or anywhere else in the world. ave me all the classic recipes from Spanish cuisine, from paellas to pastas to steaks to desserts, everything. All the ingredients were always ready for us, they gave us lots of helpful tips on how to tweak the recipes a little bit. We had so much fun together, not only cooking, but I also made a lot of long term friends and we interchanged tips between ourselves and we made delicious food.
Overall I had a great experience with hemingway and all the activities they provided us, at night or even during the weekends were so much fun and just a great way to see the city, so definitely do that.
It was a great experience; Northern Spain is a beautiful place

I was in Spain for five months in addition of two months studying Spanish. I came there with very little of the language and that was what I wanted, part of the challenge. Fortunately with Instituto Hemingway I had great help into getting acquainted with the city, like organizing the program and making the whole process a lot easier. I cannot imagine doing that without someone here helping me, it would have been ridiculous. I recommend to everyone to having the opportunity to learn what I learned here in a very economical price compared to the United States or anywhere else in the world. ave me all the classic recipes from Spanish cuisine, from paellas to pastas to steaks to desserts, everything. All the ingredients were always ready for us, they gave us lots of helpful tips on how to tweak the recipes a little bit. We had so much fun together, not only cooking, but I also made a lot of long term friends and we interchanged tips between ourselves and we made delicious food.
Overall I had a great experience with hemingway and all the activities they provided us, at night or even during the weekends were so much fun and just a great way to see the city, so definitely do that.
It was a great experience; Northern Spain is a beautiful place.

The teachers were excellent. I would say not only were they very good at teaching, the three teachers that I interacted with I would characterize as being pleasant and exuberant personalities. I would also like to add that my classmates at the school were excellent as well and that I made some really good friends at (and through) Instituto Hemingway. The location is convenient and I also like the fact that the school is located in an "active" and "entertaining" part of the city. I also participated in activities that were introduced to me through Instituto Hemingway. Those were awesome as well because I was able to interact with other students in Bilbao (ERASMUS for example) outside of my language school. Additionally, my accommodation in Bilbao was as good as anyone could ask for as I was able to stay with an extremely kind and helpful Spanish woman and after some weeks I moved out to an independent apartment of Instituto, next to School. Finally, I can honestly say that my Spanish skills tangibly improved during my time in Bilbao and that I was able to lay a strong foundation for tremendous future improvement after my stay in Bilbao. I was an A+ Spanish student in college in the United States and I would state unequivocally, that my Spanish improved more in my 3 months in Bilbao than it did in an entire year of studying Spanish in college.

My trip to Spain with 22 students was the greatest thing I’ve ever done in my life. It opened my eyes to so many things and I saw and learned so much. Our flight over got delayed and we didn’t end up getting to Spain until a day later but it was all worth it once we got there. Everything was so picture perfect that you couldn’t put your camera down.

The location is perfect, really central and I think easily reachable for everyone. The classes were pleasant and went by fast in general, host families were also fantastic and I liked the fact that the teachers of Instituto Hemingway switch after two hours because it keeps things interesting and does not get boring. I found the teachers to be really nice, are able to explain grammar and constructs clearly. What I would have liked more is that when students speak up in class that the teacher also gives feedback on conversation and grammar mistakes, even though it is not a conversation class

Our chaperone of Instituto Hemingway, Rodrigo, was the most amazing person, he always brought us treats, made us laugh, and helped us get where we needed to be on time. This trip made me want to travel even more all over the world.

The teachers are mostly young and fun. That really helped relate to the new culture we were facing since they were speaking Spanish but spoke “our language”. The school offered good service and seemed really like a Babel tower since there were people from Latin America, Europe, Asia, and North America all in my own class. There’s nothing compared to spending time in a country where the language spoken is the one you’re trying to learn. It’s the fastest and most accurate way of learning! I was surprised by the quality of the teaching methods as well as the incredibly nice and motivated teachers! The classes are perfect in size and there is not too many students.

In my nine months of classes at the institute, I can say it was spectacular. Why? Let me start by saying that the school is very well located and has self-level teachers.

1) The teaching methodology is impeccable
2) The teachers have a very good disposition (friendly).
3) Their language books are updated.
4) There is a privilege of exchanging with people from different cultures and with different habits.
5) Their knowledge of Spain (history, culture, customs, politics, etc.).

I can only describe the school, but those who would want to attend should have the curiosity and courage to try the language.

I really recommend this school! I will maybe be back in the next years. The location was good in city centre and it was relatively near the beach (30 min by metro), so it was quite useful after class.