MFL and language immersion school trips

Immersive residential trips explained

Instead of acquiring a new language by formal instruction, students learn from our hand-picked team of native speakers, in an authentic and immersive environment.  Wherever possible, our staff will not speak English to students and all the activities, excursions, mealtimes and evening entertainment are conducted in the target language.

For many students this is their first taste of using another language in a real-world context, providing a sense of purpose and enjoyment to their learning. And as students become more accustomed to speaking in a second language we see them grow in confidence.

Each one of our language immersion programmes is different, but each one is designed to maximise the opportunities for students to practise their language with a trained native-language leader.

See how our language programmes link to the curriculum here.

Our unique approach is shown to boost language skills

The power of our immersion trips is clear. An outstanding 95% of MFL teachers on our signature language trips reported a boost in both their learners' confidence and understanding. 86% noticed significant improvements in their students' vocabulary as well as progress in pronunciation.

Read the full report on how teachers rate the transformative impact of our language trips.

French immersion residentials run by our own overseas team

School groups on our escorted language programmes in Paris and at our residential centres in Northern France, are instructed by our own French-native animateurs who have considerable experience working with schools groups. Our flagship French immersion and adventure programme based at Château de la Baudonnière uses French as the sole means of communication throughout the week which means that students have more exposure to speaking in, and listening to, French than is possible in a whole term of formal lessons back at school. 

Our residential language programmes at our centres in Normandy and the Opal Coast use local cultural visits to give children a chance to use their French in a real setting under the supervision of a trained animateur. Our Paris Parle school tour is escorted by our local animateurs who conduct all mealtimes, excursions and evening entertainment in French to allow your students to experience the cosmopolitan city of Paris while still practising their French. 

Spanish and German immersion programmes

Our exclusive language immersion activity programmes in Spain and Germany are run by native-speaking monitores and Betreuers trained to the same high standard as our language instructors. 

Our choice of Spanish immersion programmes offer a mix of adventure activities and Spanish cultural visits, all conducted in Spanish by a local instuctor to create an immersive language experience in Murcia, Girona and Andalucia.

German learners on our residential language programme at Hellenthal stay in a traditional German setting, providing a glimpse of everyday German life combined with on-site adventure activities conducted in German by native-speaking Betreuers.