Testimonials - Reviews
Student opinions about us and TANDEM San Sebastián
Sari, Jan. 2020:
Very friendly atmosphere and a lot of fun and a lot of learning!
Eloy, Nov. 2019:
Todos los profesores son muy amables y muy buenos. Además, me gustó mucho el surf y la ciudad.
IrisFeenstra12, shared on TripAdvisor May. 2019:
Als je graag in korte tijd je niveau van Spaans wilt verbeteren en daarnaast ook de cultuur wilt leren kennen zou ik Tandem zeker aanraden. Ik heb hier voor een langere tijd een cursus gevolgd. De leraren zijn professioneel en geven persoonlijke aandacht. De lessen zijn in kleine groepen en er wordt veel gesproken. De stad San Sebastián heeft echt indruk op me gemaakt. Authentiek en modern tegelijkertijd. Het heeft strand, bergen en een geweldige gastronomie! De school organiseert wekelijkse activiteiten om de stad en de cultuur te leren kennen, je kunt ook kiezen om de cursus te combineren met bijvoorbeeld surfen, koken(gastronomie), paardrijden en yoga! Ik ben in korte tijd van een beginners level naar een gevorderd gegaan, tijdens de activiteiten kon ik mijn Spaans goed oefenen. Een top ervaring!
Conor McGrath, shared on Facebook Apr. 2019:
Hey there! I recently did a week´s intensive Spanish course for my upcoming DEE exam. Honestly I cannot recommend this academy highly enough. Why??
Quality of teaching: they split the morning into two classes: introductory theory as the early morning class and reinforcement for the mid-morning session. This worked really well as the mid-morning session involved role-playing exercises and debates to complement the theme from the 1st session.
Communication: the teachers were very clear about the their themes/objectives for the day´s classes. I noticed that they were in constant communication with each other in between classes bouncing around ideas. This strengthened the class itself as the incumbent teacher knew what to expect from us.
Class Placement: they generally put us in classes due in accordance with our level. This was helpful and it sped up the class objectives.
Positive Atmosphere: The teachers and staff were very open, pleasant and helpful with queries/advice in relation to the city/language. This fostered a positive environment within the academy and helped break down barriers between classmates. Classmates organised drink between themselves after day 1 and the academy also organised knowledgable local pintxos tour of San Sebastian itself. My classmates spoke highly of them.
Finally, I also noticed how the level of Spanish spoken between students during coffee breaks and class intervals with both high and lower level students. To me, this purveyed the positive ambience that floated around Tandem, people willing to learn and unafraid to take advantage of the experience. In the end, that´s what we all want as students!!
Mdigiorg, shared on TripAdvisor Nov. 2018:
Die Lehrrerinnen waren alle super lieb und haben viel Geduld. Ich habe in den Wochen vieles gelernt und kann es auch umsetzen. Zusaetzlich zu dem Sprachangebot, gibt es auch verschiedene Ausfluege und Aktivitaeten. Ich habe einen Surfkurs ueber Tandem machen koennen und habe nur 85 Euro bezahlt mit Bord/ Anzug und Lehrer. Tandem ist sehr zu empfehlen, auch wenn du fuer einen kuerzeren Zeitraum bleibst.
Donnagf, shared on TripAdvisor nov. 2018:
My friends and I had always wanted to go to Spanish language school (bucket list), and we selected Tandem because of its credentials and the fact that it seem to cater to a wider age group. How happy we are that we did! Administrators and teachers were excellent - knowledgeable, accommodating, and fun! They were willing to work with us on scheduling to allow us to experience the Basque region. We also met the most wonderful fellow students. The school has a selection of excursions each week which we enjoyed very much. We learned a lot and are inspired to continue our studies at home.
Olga Marina, shared on Facebook March 2018:
I had a wonderful experience in Tandem San Sebastian. I spent 5 weeks there and could learn Spanish from really beginner till A2 level. After my time there I could speak in Spanish and stopped to use my English. This school is like a big family and when you join them you are part of this family. The teachers are amazing, I never had such interesting lessons. They were always full of energy, different stories and of course jokes :)! Highly recommend this school to study Spanish!
Miss you, guys!
Vanessa Ng from Hong Kong, shared on Facebook:
TANDEM San Sebastián - a fantastic place for studying Spanish!
I studied in TANDEM San Sebastián for 10 weeks starting from absolutely zero! … The teachers had helped me to build a very solid foundation of the language on grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary etc. When I left Spain I didn’t feel that I have learned enough. But when I came to South America I am surprised that I can now do A LOT of basic communication with the locals here and people here are amazed by how little time I have put into it.
Other than this, I also loved the accommodation TANDEM found for me, my landlord was super sweet and the location is just fantastic. The city of course is super pretty, mild weather, good surfing beaches and wonderful food. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!
Katharina J.
Cooking class was supernice and fun!! Highly recommended!
Morgane L.
Volví porque las clases eran perfectas. Ángel es mi profesor favorito.
Astrid K.
I liked what I saw when I visited the website, but I am very happy with my choice now.
Anna S.
The best teachers in the world!!!!
Sarah H.
I had a great time and learned lots of Spanish and made lots of new friends
Isabel Torres
Maite es una profesora excepcional. Mi profesora en Brasil me ha recomendado TANDEM.
Nathan C.
It is a really good school and the experience in San Sebastián with the surf classes is really nice and amazing!
Benjamin D.
It is a great mix of fun and learning in a great city!
Nathan, Australia
Me encantan los profesores de Tandem, son profesionales y muy amables.
Marius, Polonia
Best school ever ;-)
Good value for money, the course was very helpful!
Caleb, Australia
R. Great Britain
TANDEM was highly recommended to meby someone who has visited before. Teachers are very pleasant and patient. Full experience of learning Spanish, culture, speaking,
Lisa-Marie
San Sebastián is an amazing city, loved the trekkings and beach volley as well as you can learn a lot in school. I think I improved a lot!
Good mixture of language learning and culture. Interactive way to learn a language. Good for solo travelers! Exciting city location.
Georgia, Poland
My teachers in this two weeks, Carolina and Ester, are both amazingly passionate and interesting teachers. I will miss them!
Beatriz, EEUU
"Muchas gracias a todo el equipo de Tandem. Uds. tienen una escuela de idiomas fabulosa"
Review by Cara Mills - Facebook TANDEM San Sebastián
"Tandem is the best Spanish school ever! I have just finished five weeks. Every teacher is so great and passionate about teaching Spanish. I had a really wonderful time. The classes are diverse, fun, and encouraging. Not to mention how incredible it was to live in San Sebastián. I have had the best five weeks. Thanks, Tandem, see you next summer!"
Tandem San Sebastian Facebook page, edited - Review by Jonathan Mark Aaron
"Just had three weeks at Tandem and it has been an amazing experience. It was everything that I wanted from my summer: a fun and productive environment for learning Spanish, well organized and varied planned activities, and a great bunch of course mates, as well as people running the school. I went for the surfing add-on, which worked really well. The instructors were amazing despite taking some hits from waves! Overall, an amazing experience and I would definitely recommend and seriously consider doing it again. Thanks, Tandem."
Ursula, France
The teachers were really nice to me. Thank you a lot! It was a big pleasure to study with you!
Georgia, Poland
My teachers in this two weeks, Carolina and Ester, are both amazingly passionate and interesting teachers. I will miss them!
R. Great Britain
TANDEM was highly recommended to me by someone who has visited before. Teachers are very pleasant and patient. Full experience of learning Spanish, culture, speaking,
Marie
¿Porqué elegiste TANDEM San Sebastián? "Por que ya estuve aquí el año pasado y ¡me encanta! Se aprende mucho y es divertido."
Would you recommend TANDEM to your friends? "Yes, a good mixture of language learning and culture. Interactive way to learn a language. Good for solo travelers. Exciting city location."
B. A., profesora, USA.
"Muchas gracias a todo el equipo de Tandem. Uds. tienen una escuela de idiomas fabulosa. Me encanta que usen recursos del siglo XXI para las nuevas generaciones. Los estudiantes de hoy en día aprenden mejor con las técnicas que utilizan en sus clases. ¡Suerte!"
Georgia, Poland;
About accommodation: P. and R. are amazing hosts. The experience was incredible. I feel lucky.
Kirsten, Germany
"We enjoyed the mix of teachers and their different teaching styles. Especially Angel, he made the classes lots of fun. Enthusiastic teachers and friendly staff."
Marianne
TANDEM Pintxo-Tour: Eine super Idee: Visita guiada combinado con un “tour de pintxos”. Carolina hat uns interessante Informationen zur Stadt gegeben. Der Rundgang hat bereits Appetit auf die Tapas gemacht.
Auch wenn ich schon viel ausprobiert habe, die Besonderheiten/Delikatessen einzelner Bars hätte ich kaum entdeckt. Einfach köstlich, dazu unterschiedliche Getränke, angeregte Unterhaltung! Es war ein gelungener Abend und ich habe entschieden: ich koche nicht mehr selbst.
Claude, Australia
"Yesterday from 6pm to dark (11pm) we were entertained by professor Carolina who gave an informative description of the history of San Sebastian and pointed out the interesting spots of the town. Following this Carolina satisfied the group of seven students with delicious pintxos and a variety of “delirious” beverages.The entire evening was friendly, amusing and educative. Bravo Carolina! It will be memorable, let’s do it again and ¡muchas gracias!"
Family, USA
We (my husband, 9 year old son, and I) had a wonderful experience at Tandem. I learned an amazing amount of Spanish in 3 weeks and wish we could have stayed longer. The teachers are very adept at meeting each student at his/her level and pushing to get each student conversing in real situations as quickly as possible. I LOVED our teachers - they were very professional but also very approachable, friendly, funny, and helpful with whatever questions we had. The office staff were also very helpful and responsive by e-mail in our time leading up to the course.
Nora, Germany
"I liked the website. I had some questions before I signed up, so I called Tandem. The secretary was very nice, her answers were very helpful and I felt very welcomed. During my stay I learned a lot. Everybody is really nice and I had a great time at TANDEM and in beautiful San Sebastián."
Linda, USA
"For me it was a wonderful introduction to the Spanish language and culture. It has made me want to know more. Next year hopefully I will be more advanced and come back." (
Klaas - Netherlands
Other comments about our teachers? "Nada, todo estaba perfecto. ¡Gracias! Estoy muy contento: he aprendido mucho esta semana, y la gente es muy amable."
Michelle - USA
Why did you choose TANDEM? "Just felt right after talking to Idoia at the front desk. I was extremely happy with the teachers. Leisure and cultural programme is very diverse - something for everyone. It is a very welcoming friendly environment, that helps make “school” less stressful. The teachers are great and seem to enjoy their work."
Isabell - France
"High quality school - we can talk a lot and it’s very important to speak when you learn a foreign language. All persons of the institute are very pleasant and helpful."
