Best places to learn Spanish in Melbourne
We hear the romantic Spanish words such as ‘Te Amo’ and ‘Buenos dias mi amor’ all the time, but don’t know what they mean. Well, anyone would agree that Spanish is one of the best languages to learn – not only because of its romantic nature but also because of its wide adoption across many regions.
Whether you are looking to master Spanish for the purpose interacting with people and groups that speak the language or just love the idea of learning foreign languages, you can find the best places to learn Spanish in Melbourne.
We are going to take you through a number of Spanish schools in Melbourne as well as meetups groups that that will help you become fluent in Spanish. We also have some convincing reasons why we think you should go ahead and add Spanish as you one of your language skills.
Top Spanish classes Melbourne
There are a number of places in Melbourne where you can find great opportunities to learn Spanish. Right from the location to the packages offered, have a look at our best selection of the top 5 Spanish schools in Melbourne.
- The Spanish Cat (that’s us!)
If you are looking to get some Spanish classes in Melbourne, the Spanish Cat is perhaps one of most popular places you can consider. And when it comes to the location, you are lucky because top institutions of the Spanish Cat are located in three places in Melbourne. These include:
- Melbourne CBD Lt. Bourke St.
- Melbourne CBD at Ibis hotel,
- Melbourne (St. Kilda).
The Spanish Cat has great native teachers and facilitators who understand a lot about the Spanish culture which makes it a plus for you. Get great offers for your learning packages including free learning material. Their packages go for as little as $169 for an eight-week long class. There are approximately 8 packages that are geared to making you an expert in speaking Spanish.
Which mode of learning are you looking into? Is it online classes or regular classes? The Spanish cat has it all at your disposal. If you prefer studying at the comfort of your home you are not left out. You can go with the option of the online studies and make it happen. What’s more striking is that, the institution also offers Skype classes as well. All you need to do is to book your class appointment and you are good to go. So worry less about missing that favorite class in case you have a scheduled meeting on the way. Unbelievably great!
- El Patio
El Patio is conveniently located within the CBD, 152 Little Lonsdale St. Again this is a very convenient location with great access to everything you need in town. There is ample parking within the location if you are planning to drive you way to the school. If you prefer public transport, you can conveniently access the location too. The Melbourne Central station is located just 5 minutes away from the school and 10 minutes away is Parliament station.
El Patio offers different packages for Spanish classes in Melbourne. Whether learning Spanish to complement your travel plans and interest or for business purposes, El Patio has all packages to suit your needs. The travel packages runs for 5weeks at 1.5 hours per week for just $184, general language package at 10weeks, rapido package at 5weeks and finally the intensive package at 10 weeks with a little over $300. The packages are all at your disposal to choose from depending on your schedule and availability. You cannot miss to find a place to fit in.
- Lyceum Language Centre.
Lyceum which is located on Level 8, 131 Queen Street is amongst the top best learning Spanish schools Melbourne. Again, here at Queen Street, a range of social amenities are at your disposal including the great Melbourne theatres and restaurants. The institution is situated close to the federation square, not forgetting the main railway square for public transport. If you prefer taking the bus to school, the buses will drop you along Queen Street and pick you up on the same street. Worried about where you will park your sedan? There is ample parking along Queen Street and within the vicinity.
Do you plan to travel soon? Are you hoping to have reached a certain level in speaking Spanish? With only 10weeks of training in the Basic and Elementary level, No doubt, you will be able to travel freely and engage with Spanish speaking groups like a professional. The intermediate and advanced levels are also something to consider if you have great interest in literature, culture and the modern affairs.
So how much will this cost you? Well, be glad you won’t have to dig deeper into your pockets. Each 10 week term will running for 1.5 hours per week will cost you a whopping $350 for the basic and elementary level. Upon graduating to the Intermediate and Advanced level, you will have to part with $650 for another 10week term running at 2.75hours per week.
- The Centre for Adult Education
Situated on 253 Flinders Lane is this innovative Spanish school in Melbourne, a great adult learning hub. Being located in the heart of Melbourne much like Lyceum is convenient enough due to transport considerations while getting to and from is revolutionary learning center. Talk about taking a bus and they will tell you it will drop you right at the entrance. Or you prefer the comfortable train? Just a couple of minutes and you are in your classroom ready to hone your Spanish.
Variety is good, especially when you are not sure which is the best option for you. That’s why Center for Adult Education offers you a variety of packages that you can opt for. The traveler package which has a relatively short period of 6weeks goes for $249 while the elementary is much higher than lyceum’s rounding up to $319 for 9weeks. $468 for intermediate at 13weeks and finally the advanced level at the same cost and period. But there’s always that last minute rush in case you have to get things done straight away. The last minute package going for just $99is a four hour language package for the travelers design to focus on just the basics.
- Listen & Learn
Listen & Learn is located on Level 8, 179 Queen St Melbourne. Learning just got simplified in this institution. Picture this scenario! You don’t have to worry about parking, taking the bus or maneuver your way in the crowded substation to get to class, or even better sit in that boring classroom! Instead, you can have the tutor come to you. Wherever you are! Whether in your office or at home. And even when you don’t feel like inviting him/her over, take the classes to their work place! What about the learning material? They will be delivered wherever you are.
If you decide this is the place for you, then you might as well be conversant with their packages which range from:
- Face-to-Face general Spanish.
- Face-to-Face Business Spanish.
- Face-to-Face private business.
The charges are solely dependent upon the number of hours booked, though you can negotiate for a more favorable price. In general, the price range from $99 per hour for a 10hours session to $54 per hour for a 60hours session. Basically what this means is that the fewer the number of hours per session, the pricier the course. The more the number of hours per session, the cheaper the course. Skype charges also vary depending the number of hours.
- Meet-up groups.
Meeting new people and groups with which you can practice and explore Spanish is very crucial to the development of your vocabulary. Interacting in clusters exposes you to new ideas even as you groom your lexes. So before you get started, here are some of the best groups worth considering in Melbourne.
- Spanish Amigos Language group – with slightly over 2300 members, try this group and get to experience new activities as you hone your Spanish.
- Melbourne’s Hispanic Language, Social and Cultural Group – this group has over 4000 members that meet up very often upon agreement to engage in various activities such as picnics, dancing classes, live music nights and speed dates.
- Melbourne Spanish and English Language Exchange. – This group much like the former has more than 4000 members too. Meet the organizers, Andrea Palacios, Camila R., Chad Y and Sindy. Get a hang of the best eating, drinking, language and culture conversation activities amongst others.
- Melbourne Mums Meetup – Mums that speak Spanish. If you are a mom, this is the best opportunity for you to join a group of over 200mothers and share your experiences as you practice on your new language.
Why you need to learn Spanish
Why learn Spanish in Melbourne today? Of course there are very many benefits of learning this romantic language, just as some research scientists affirm. Here’s what we are talking about:
- Improving personal potential
Taking into consideration how many people speak Spanish in the world (470 million) let alone those in Melbourne, think about the possibilities that it opens you to. All this people are in many ways different minded and that improves by far your economic prospects while also improving personal growth.
The notion that your culture is the best will now be a thing of the past as you learn to embrace a whole new world of ideas.
- Improving economic prospects.
Learning Spanish is an added advantage to you as a person taking into mind your career. When it comes to applying for that job in Melbourne, being able to express yourself in Spanish is a great asset because you will have something extra that employers are dying in need of.
In Melbourne for instance, doctors and nurses who can speak Spanish are better equipped to serve the many Spanish speaking patients who flock the hospitals. Over and above, having an extra language to your skillset opens you up to whole new world of possibilities.
- Cognitive Advantages.
Did you know that bilinguals are known to have a higher level of the grey substance matter found in the brain? Yes. That’s a fact. But how does it relate tour daily activities? See for yourself.
- Vast level of multi-tasking: a research done by the Pennsylvania State University concluded that people especially children who are multilingual have better multitasking abilities due to their capacity to switch from speech, written and structure systems. The research involved using driving simulator whereby the drivers were distracted. The multilingual drivers were found to make fewer errors than the ones who spoke only language.
- Higher level of creativity: being able to speak in a foreign language improves your brain functionality by challenging it to speak in different language systems as well as recognize meaning. This in turn enhances its ability to negotiate meaning when it comes to different delinquent tasks.
- Great attention spans and improved memory capabilities: How does this work? Memorizing language rules and vocabularies exercises your brain muscles strengthening them. This in turn improves your memory.
- More Perceptive: Multilingual people are also known to be very keen when it comes to focusing on relevant information and eliminating out irrelevant one. This is according to a research done by the Pompeo Fabra University.
- Become less disposed to contracting dementia and Alzheimer’s.
- Improved decision making skills: the University of Chicago affirms that multilingual people tend to make more lucid decisions. This is due to the influence on their judgement process by nuance and subtle implications found within the vocabulary.
Other than just being able to order that tacos, and throwing in some Spanish pick-up lines, you will have a lot more advantages to help you in personal and intrapersonal growth. Who would not want to enjoy all this benefits? So it’s time for you to add Spanish to your skill set and embrace all this advantages.