Language Programs in Chile

There are ski resorts, vineyards, surfing, Moai human figures on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), fjords, desert, lakes, mountains, glaciers, waterfalls, volcanoes, and beaches. To put it simply, Chile serves up an endless supply of buena onda (good vibes) from the Parinacota volcano in the Norte Grande region all the way to Punta Arenas.

As the capital and largest city, Santiago is where it’s at, and where about one-third of Chile’s population is, too. Take the funicular from Plaza Caupolicán to Cerro San Cristóbal get an expansive view of the city situated against the Andes, get a glimpse of Pablo Neruda’s poetic (and romantic) history during a tour of La Chascona, and satisfy your senses roaming the fish market at the Mercado Central. With tons of cosmopolitan delights, including restaurants, cafes, architecture, crafts markets, and wineries, to give you plenty of language practice, Santiago is a súper bakán (cool) place to enroll in language courses in Chile. 

Colorful houses line steep hills in Chile’s main port city, Valparaíso. Take a lancha (boat) close to Plaza Sotomayor, check out some killer street art in Cerro Concepción and Cerro Alegre, eat chorrillana (huge plate of fries topped with meat and egg), hit up the busy Sunday feria on Avenida Argentina, or take a twenty-minute bus ride to beachy Viña del Mar. As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Valpo has endless cultural options to kick your language studies into immersion overdrive. Visit Pablo Neruda’s house, La Sebastiana, do as the locals do and drink a terremoto (pineapple ice cream, grenadine, Fernet, and Chilean white wine pipeño), and don’t miss exhibits and events at the Parque Cultural de Valparaíso.

Branch out and sign up for language courses in Chile’s off-the-beaten track places. From Pucón in the Chilean Lake District to Iquique in northern Chile with access to the Atacama Desert to Viña del Mar, Valpo’s sister city, on the central coast, there are countless jaw-dropping destinations to learn a new language in Chile without the hum of the city.