Intensive and long-term Spanish language courses at the Funcarele school in Cartagena

Learning Spanish is fun and effective at the only Instituto Cervantes school in Cartagena

Funcarele caters for students of all ages and abilities

As well as being an unfulfilled aim of many British expats living in the Costa Cálida, learning the Spanish language is also important to millions of students all over the world, and the Funcarele language school in the heart of the historic city of Cartagena offers a wide range of courses to cater for all needs and abilities while also offering free and subsidized activities to help people integrate into Spanish culture.

On the one hand, for expats living in the Region of Murcia or spending part of the year here, the long-term courses are an excellent way of improving your language skills in a relaxed atmosphere. Even beginners’ classes are conducted in Spanish from Day One and can be combined with the regular cultural activities and conversation classes to provide a relaxed but productive learning environment.

Course content, timetables and group sizes can all be adapted to your needs, meaning that there is no longer any excuse for failing to have a basic grasp of Spanish while learning more about life in the Costa Cálida!

Intensive and long-term Spanish language courses at the Funcarele school in Cartagena

And in order to make things even easier new students are invited to try their first class free of charge and without obligation, and to ease their way into the seeing of things by attending the regular tours, cultural activities and excursions organized by the school.

On the other hand, linguistic tourism is growing in importance in the Region of Murcia and Funcarele is at the forefront in the sector. Groups travel to Cartagena from all over the world for intensive immersion courses on the Mediterranean coast, staying with host families, in student accommodation or in hotels (all arranged by Funcarele), attracted not only by the highly professional approach to language teaching but by the range of afternoon activities, the attractions of Cartagena’s history and landscape and, no doubt, the fact that the cost of living is cheaper here than in many of the other major cities of Spain!

Intensive and long-term Spanish language courses at the Funcarele school in Cartagena

For language learning to be successful it is vital that it should be fun and related to learning about other topics, and at Funcarele, the only language school in Cartagena to have received accreditation from the Instituto Cervantes (the government agency responsible for promoting the study and the teaching of Spanish language and culture worldwide), great efforts are made to ensure that this is the case.

Whether you are an absolute beginner wishing to gain a grounding in Spanish or already have a certain degree of fluency and proficiency, look no further than Funcarele in the centre of Cartagena: learning Spanish isn’t a chore, it’s an adventure, and the teachers at Funcarele are the best guides!

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Calle Jara, 28, 30201 Cartagena

Tel: 968 128953

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Intensive immersion Spanish classes or long-term tuition from beginner level up

Funcarele is the only language centre in Cartagena to have received accreditation from the Instituto Cervantes (the government agency responsible for promoting the study and the teaching of Spanish language and culture worldwide), and specializes in the teaching of Spanish as a foreign language to people from all over the world who are living, staying or studying other subjects in the Region of Murcia.

The approach to learning and teaching Spanish at Funcarele is that for success to be achieved classes must be interactive, entertaining and yet serious at the same time. All aspects of the language are covered - grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and culture - above all, students are taking part in Spanish from the very first day.

Funcarele language school in Cartagena for classes in Spanish as a Foreign Language The courses at Funcarele cater for all levels of student, from absolute beginners to those with an advanced degree of linguistic proficiency, and are designed to lead to the six levels of ability outlined by the European Framework of Reference for Languages (from A1 to C2). But exams, of course, are merely optional (although DELE or CCSE certification is necessary if you are looking to acquire Spanish nationality, and preparation for both is provided): the important thing is to improve students’ ability to communicate both orally and in writing, and with this in mind courses can be tailored to suit the requirements of both individual students and groups.

No group ever comprises more than 12 people (usually between 3 and 6), and for group bookings private courses can be prepared. As for the teaching staff, all are native Spanish speakers who specialize in the teaching of Spanish as a foreign language and have acquired years of experience.

Typically, intensive courses consist of 10, 15 or 20 hours of classroom time a week, a popular option among groups travelling to the Costa Cálida from all over the world, with trips and excursions during the afternoons and the options of accommodation with families in and around the city centre. This, of course, means that students are genuinely immersed into the Spanish language and culture for the duration of their stay, rather than leaving the classroom, meeting up with their friends and reverting to their native tongue!

Alternatively, hotel and student residence accommodation can be organized, while airport pickups are offered from the airports of Corvera and Alicante-Elche.

Longer duration courses (for example from September or October until June) might be programmed to occupy 4 hours a week and are ideal for those with second homes in the Region of Murcia who have somehow “never got round” to making an effort to learn the language – and new students can even try out their groups free of charge for one lesson free of charge and under no obligation.

The premises in which classes are held reflect the prestige of Funcarele: the school is based in the historic Palacio Molina in the city centre, and classrooms at the Polytechnic University of Cartagena (UPCT) are also used, where students enjoy all of the university facilities such as libraries, cafeterias and the like. This is made possible by the support of the UPCT and the Town Hall, both of which recognize the importance of the language centre in attracting visitors to the city.

To complete the range of classes offered, the teachers at Funcarele also give online Skype!

Free and subsidized Spanish cultural activities

Apart from the linguistic tuition, one of the most important aspects of the courses at Funcarele is the social activities which take place throughout the year. These include museum visits, sports, exhibitions, cookery, boat trips, excursions … in short, a range of activities, many of which are entirely free, in which you have the chance to meet and communicate in Spanish with people from a variety of countries and cultures. Particularly popular among the free events are the Spanish culture and conversation classes!

These culture classes are held every Friday from 18.00 to 19.00, and typically cover topics such as gastronomy, fiestas, traditions, places of interest and famous people: all are welcome to attend and sample the atmosphere at Funcarele, although prior booking is required.

Funcarele language school in Cartagena for classes in Spanish as a Foreign Language These free events are just one illustration of how accessible the courses are at Funcarele. Unfortunately, of course, it is not possible to provide a complete Spanish language tuition free of charge, but prices are highly competitive and for those considering travelling from abroad it is worth pointing out that the cost of living in Cartagena is considerably lower than in most other major Spanish cities.

The city of Cartagena

Which is not to say, of course, that it is any less fascinating as a destination. Located on the shore of the Mediterranean and blessed with a natural harbour, Cartagena has a recorded history dating back 3,000 years and an identity shaped by the influences of cultures and civilizations including the Iberians, the Greeks, the Carthaginians, the Romans, the Visigoths and the Moors as well as the Catholic church and other western European neighbours, and offers a range of cultural events and monuments to match this historical wealth.

Add to this the climate of the Costa Cálida, with well over 300 days of sunshine a year, and the varied landscape from the Mar Menor (the largest saltwater lagoon in Europe and a Mecca for water sports enthusiasts) to the unspoilt coastlines to the east and west of the city, and it is not hard to see why over the last 30 years the number of people coming from all over the world to this part of the Region of Murcia has soared.