Utatlan Spanish School

Pasamos dos semanas aprendiendo español en Utatlán en Xela. Fue una gran experiencia para toda la familia: padres y dos adolescentes. La escuela cuida mucho el programa de aprendizaje, la estancia en familia y las actividades de la tarde. Los profesores fueron muy profesionales y motivados, lo que hizo que el aprendizaje fuera divertido para todos nosotros. Nos encantó el hermoso patio donde se llevaban a cabo las clases. El precio también es muy razonable.
Muchas gracias al personal, especialmente a Kristian: muy atento, conocedor de la historia de los lugares que visitamos, buen sentido del humor y muy ingenioso y servicial. Nos encantaría volver y seguir aprendiendo español en la escuela de español de Utatlán. ¡Muchas gracias equipo de Utatlán!

Me quedé con una familia y estudié 5 horas al día, 5 días a la semana en la escuela. Mi maestra Zulma fue fantástica y disfruté mi tiempo aprendiendo con ella.

La escuela tiene un ambiente agradable y toda la gente allí quiere ayudarte. Las actividades fueron muy divertidas y siempre tenías opciones para conocer nuevos amigos.

Si quieres aprender español, tienes que visitar Utalan!

Que puedo decir? Fui por primera vez a esta escuela hace 2 años sin ningún nivel de español. Después de un mes de lecciones privadas individuales con un profesor increíble, salí con una buena comprensión que me permitió seguir aprendiendo mientras viajaba. Hace poco regresé por unas semanas y la pasé mejor, lo cual es increíble porque la primera vez fue genial. Esta vez pude festejar un poco más. Tienen muchas actividades después de la escuela para mantenerte involucrado en la cultura y conocer gente nueva, además de disfrutar tu tiempo en esta hermosa ciudad. Disfruté de ambas familias anfitrionas, pero la segunda fue increíble y agradezco a ambas familias por la experiencia y la ayuda. Ni siquiera te molestes en preguntar si esta escuela vale la pena o no, lo vale. Vuelvo enseguida

I had such a lovely experience in my 3 months the school. I was really lucky to have the most amazing spanish teacher Rosy, who was so patient, kind and had a great teaching style. My spanish improved so much with her! I also loved my homestay with Elena, and felt so welcomed into the family. Thank you Utatlan!

I've studied at Utatlan for 4 weeks. Loved every bit of it! Starting with my teacher Marilu, the coordinator Cristian and ending with Aura's homestay. Stop scrolling. Just book this one!

I had an amazing family and teacher through Utatlan Spanish School. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this school because they do NOT give 100% of the homestay money to the families (like they claim on their website). I paid the school 525 Q each week for my homestay. According to my family's payout receipts, they only receive 475 Q each week. This is unacceptable, and for that reason I suggest going to a school that will allow you to pay your host family directly.

I’ve been studying 2 weeks in utatlan and it was amazing! I had the chance to live with the family of Kenia and Walter. If you’re looking for THE best homestay, ask for Kenia’s family. The food is amazing, great conversation, I really felt like home. Wifi is strong and the shower is hot. The family is talkative and very fun. I miss them already! As a teacher I had Alex and he was such a good maestro. He is very patient and friendly. I learn a lot with him and he’s having different method of teaching, with games or cards. We had great conversations as well for practicing. He was my teacher but also became my friend. Thanks to Utatlan! The only negative aspect is that the homestay didn’t received the amount of money it was written in the pamphlet.

Amazing! I loved my 1: 1 instructor and all of the after-class activities (hiking, salsa, weaving documentary). My teacher Helen was so thorough and fun. My host family placement was also incredible - my host mom Elizabeth would chat with us in Spanish during every meal. Some things to note:

-Classes take place in the BEST part of town - right across from the central park!
-You'll likely be quite cold in class, so bring a few layers. Instruction takes place throughout the building (hallways, classrooms, roof patio).
-You'll likely have Spanish-learning housemates - I really enjoyed mine, but it can make it easy to revert to English if you're not diligent about practicing Spanish.
-The school helps with TONS of details! They directed me to the bus service to return to Guatemala City airport, and even booked a hostel room on my behalf by the airport.
-Ages of student ranged from 18-65. Mid-20s was probably the most common age, but socializing seemed nice and intermixed.

Y'all are the best! Thank you for an amazing week!

Fantastic school. I stayed for 4 weeks learned loads and plan to head back again.
The staff really have the students best interest in mind and are always on hand to help and teach

Highly recommend! Went there for a few weeks, ended up spending a full month, including Christmas! Extremely friendly, helpful and kind administration; central location; abundant, quality extra curricular activities. Had a great connection with my teacher, she really guided my path as I couldn’t have wished for better. The host families these guys are in touch with have a lot of experience with foreign students, made me (and three other students) feel like we were living with our own families. Just the kindest people. When going to Xela, be prepared for the cold (outdoors and indoors). All in all I’m 5/5 happy with my choice to attend to this school. Recommend!

Utatlan is a great language school with incredible people! The staff were very helpful and answered all my questions before my arrival to Xela. My teacher was super fun and patient with my learning curve. The school also organizes activities to neighboring towns, salsa dancing, or hiking. I also did a homestay and had a fantastic experience getting to know the family and way of life in Guatemala. I recommend Utatlan and Xela to everyone I know!

Great school, lots of activities to get involved with. We learnt a lot and had a great time with out teacher Cynthia

We spent two weeks here and our spanish improved significantly! Rosa was a great teacher and she took the time to answer all our questions.
There are activities (like salsa classes) which help to use your spanish and get to know other people.
Yoda the school-dog is another reason why we highly recommend this school.

I had a wonderful and life-changing experience with this amazing school. Utatlan has opened my eyes to a new world forever. I only wish I stayed longer and will try my best to return if I can.

10/10 for Kristian the amazing coordinator who takes a lot of time to show you the town and teach you the culture and history of Xela. ️ He will make you feel like part of a family, this is not true for other schools in Guatemala. He makes Utatlan the best choice for those seeking social bonds, beyond language learning. 10/10 for my teachers Alicia, Rocío and Sergio. Patient, knowledgeable, dedicated cohort of serious educators! 10/10 for Elena the wonderful host, she works harder than anyone I’ve ever met, if you get her you are lucky!

My only complaint is not with anyone I had contact with, they were all soooo amazing, but with the invisible owners of the school who massively underpay the teachers and the homestay hosts, the website says 100% of the homestay cost goes to the host but this is not true, in fact the hosts have not received any more pay despite the increase in food costs post-pandemic.

The hosts are forced to scrape by on less than $7 USD a day (perhaps even less) per student, that’s for buying all produce and cooking 3 meals and cleaning and providing board, and utilities. So they are forced to underfeed the students, because they can barely make any income beyond covering overhead, so when it’s a small plate of white rice and veggies for dinner, this is not the host’s fault but the UK owners’ fault!

The hosts and teachers are afraid to ask for more pay, because of fear the owners might punish or fire them, they are in a desperate economic position, yet they bring a positive attitude to their work every day. A lot of the students I lived with donated $ to the host family because they saw the terrible financial situation.

So I wish everyone will come and be a part of this great school, I only dock a star to convince the British owners to pay ALL staff a fair wage, and to be honest and transparent about taking a cut from the homestay hosts. Or raise prices and attract students willing to pay a fair tuition that gives teachers and hosts a livable wage. (And Kristian who goes above and beyond as activities coordinator). I would rather more of my tuition go toward locals than to wealthy Europeans, because the Guatemalan staff are heroes and deserve more!

Stayed here 3 weeks in october/november 2022, having 25 hours of private classes/week, and living in a homestay provide by the school. Had a really good time, and learned loads of spanish. At 200 USD/week, including 3 meals a day at the homestay, this felt as really good value for money. The after school acticities organized by Kristian were fun, varied, and allowed for request from the students. Was greatly happy with my teacher (Jorge), and understood most other students were happy with theirs also. Would highly recommend.

Loved Utatlán! Had an amazing teacher - learned through many techniques that included a focus on conversation, while also playing games, practicing grammar, listening etc. Activities were varied over the month and included things like visiting museums, hot springs, cemetery, cooking lesson, and even a full weekend away at Lago Atitlan.
Xela was great for using Spanish regularly as there were few tourists. Every weekend there was some event in Parque Central which always included lots of local food.
I stayed in a small studio apt in a colonial complex very close to the school (same owner). The garden patio was fabulous and 5 different apts/rooms was nice to meet others while having my own space too. Very affordable (just over $200U for a month). Couldn’t have asked for a better experience - would love to return in the future.

I had a wonderful time spending 3 weeks at Utatlan.

The home stay was really Interesting and comparably comfortable as private hostel lodging, but with great food and company. They cooked me vegan food by request breakfast, lunch and dinner. Lots of lovely beans, plantains, soups and tortillas!

My teacher at the school was great and they chose a proper fit in Jorge to be my instructor. Both Jorge and the manager Kristian made sure the classes were going the way I wanted them to go and offered lots of flexibility. I wanted to prioritize conversation and Jorge had no trouble keeping it funny and engaging.

The plentiful afternoon/evening outings with Kris are a lot of fun. The general vibe and culture the school has going on is so relaxed, flexible and fun. Not to mention Xela is just plain beautiful.

This was the best Spanish school ever! Everyone is so kind especially the director Kristian who arranges awesome activities and is so fun. My teacher was Rosillo who I would recommend for all student levels. She is so funny and lovely and a great teacher - I learned a ton! A great price and awesome experience!

Overall a great experience! I studied at Utatlan for 3 weeks, and it's the perfect learning environment. Affordable prices, capable teachers and fun social activities that also help strenghten your Spanish. Utatlan also arranged a homestay for me, and you couldn't ask for a better host than Elena. If you want to learn Spanish, this is definitely the place to be!

Although I was here for only a week,
I had a great time and learned a lot!
The location is great and the teachers were amazing.
Lots of fun activities and drinks in the evenings, too.
For anyone interested in learning Spanish here in Xela, this is the place