Choose your Accommodation

By immersing yourself in the daily life of a local family, you'll practice the language constantly and gain authentic insight into local culture and customs. Host families usually live fairly near the school (sometimes within walking distance but usually a short ride on public transport away) though in big cities they will be further away.

Our partner schools are highly selective when choosing host families and monitor them via student feedback. Unless you request otherwise, you will generally not be accommodated with students who speak your mother tongue. Any other specific requirements or preferences you may have will be taken into account whenever possible, including things like special diet, preference for smoking/non-smoking households, pets, children, etc. You must let us know if you have any allergies or medical conditions so we can inform the family in advance. It's also useful if you let us know your interests and hobbies so we can take these into account when placing you with the most suitable host family.

Staying with a host family is a memorable and invaluable part of your language course. Friendships are often forged and many students stay in touch with their host families long after returning home.

Stay in a single or, more commonly, shared twin room with other students. This is a great way to enjoy your independence while meeting people from all over the world. You'll usually share bathroom and kitchen facilities with other students; the exact level of comfort and facilities depends on the standards of the destination but is usually comparable to university residence halls in the UK.

In a shared student apartment, you'll stay with other students and/or locals. You'll have a single room to yourself and enjoy complete independence, including use of a kitchen, while living with people sharing a similarly independent outlook. This option is very popular in Germany (WG or Wohngemeinschaft) and England (student house), but is also offered in Australia, Canada, Spain, Ireland, Malta, Italy, Austria and Latin America.

If you're looking for something a little more luxurious, you could consider a hotel room or a rented apartment. Many of our partner schools offer a hotel or apartment reservation service. This is more expensive than staying in residence halls or shared accommodation and you won't benefit from the language immersion of a host family or the social experience of a shared apartment or student residence.  

Because your package will be tailor-made according to your individual needs and objectives, you can also book a course without accommodation. If you want to find longer-term accommodation with other students or locals, we would recommend booking some form of official accommodation for the first few weeks while you find your feet.

The majority of our partner schools require students who are staying in residence halls or shared apartments to pay a deposit on arrival. For further details about the deposit, please refer to the “options/extras” section of the price list of each school. The charge is approx. GBP 130 but varies depending on which school you choose. Students are required to pay this amount in cash or by credit card. The deposit is returned to them on the day of their departure, provided that no damage has been done.