Quick answer
A homestay means living with a local host, usually with meals included, and it is the accommodation choice that most improves your Spanish because your evenings stop happening in English. It suits stays of two weeks to three months. Ask whether the school vets its hosts and whether another student will be in the house speaking your language.
A homestay is the single decision that most changes how much Spanish you actually leave with, and it is also the one students hesitate over longest. This guide covers what it really involves, who it suits, who it does not, and the questions worth asking before you agree to one.
In this article
What is a homestay?
You live with a local family or host in their home, with your own bedroom, shared living space, and usually some meals included. It is not a hotel with a family attached: you are a temporary member of a household, with the ordinary give and take that implies.
The language effect is the point. In a shared flat with other international students, your evenings happen in English. In a homestay, they happen in Spanish, which roughly doubles your daily exposure without adding a single class hour.
Does a homestay actually improve your Spanish?
More than any other accommodation choice, and the reason is arithmetic. Twenty hours of class a week is twenty hours. Add a household where nobody speaks your language and dinner, breakfast, the television in the background and the conversation about the weather all become practice.
It is also the kind of practice that classes cannot supply: unstructured, unpredictable, and about nothing in particular. That is exactly the Spanish you need and the hardest to rehearse.
What is included in a homestay?
- A private bedroom, furnished, in the host’s home.
- Meals, usually breakfast and often dinner. Half board and full board are the terms to ask about.
- Utilities and wifi, normally included rather than split.
- Laundry, typically once a week.
- Shared living space, and the expectation that you use it rather than hiding in your room.
Who is a homestay right for?
It suits you if: you are serious about the language, you are staying between two weeks and a few months, you would rather not deal with deposits and contracts, or it is your first time in the country and a soft landing is worth something.
Reading about Buenos Aires from far away?
Our school is in the middle of it: small-group Spanish classes with local teachers who send you to the places tourists never find.
See our Buenos Aires schoolIt suits you less if: you want to come and go at four in the morning without anyone noticing, you are staying six months or more, you cook seriously and want your own kitchen, or you are travelling with a partner and want privacy.
The honest version: a homestay trades some independence for a great deal of language. Most students who choose it say the trade was worth it. Some find it constraining, and that is a legitimate preference rather than a failure.
What should you ask before accepting one?
- Does the school vet its hosts, or is it a booking platform? Vetted homestays through the school are a different proposition, with someone to call if it goes wrong.
- How far from the school, and by what? Ask for minutes and the mode of transport, not distance.
- Which meals, and can dietary needs be handled?
- Will there be other students in the house, and speaking which language? Two students sharing a homestay often speak English to each other, which quietly removes the main benefit.
- Does the host speak English? Counterintuitively, you want the answer to be “not much”.
- What happens if it is not working? A school that will move you is telling you something about how it operates.
Homestay, shared flat or student residence?
| Homestay | Shared flat | Residence | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spanish exposure | Highest | Depends entirely on flatmates | Usually low, mostly internationals |
| Independence | Lower | High | High |
| Cost | Meals included, so compare totals not rent | Rent plus food plus bills | Varies |
| Effort to arrange | School books it | You find it, often on arrival | Booked in advance |
| Best for | Two weeks to a few months, language-focused | Longer stays, independence | Younger students, sociability |
How do you get the most out of one?
- Eat with them. The meal table is where the Spanish happens. Taking food to your room defeats the purpose.
- Ask questions you know the answer to. It keeps conversation going while you are still slow.
- Say when you do not understand, rather than nodding. Hosts adjust, and most enjoy explaining.
- Treat it as a home, not a hotel. Say when you will be back for dinner; it is basic courtesy and it buys enormous goodwill.
- Resist English, even when they offer it kindly.
We arrange vetted homestays for students at both our schools, in Buenos Aires and Málaga, with hosts we know rather than a listings site. The free level test is a sensible first step if you are still planning.
Frequently asked questions
What is a host family in Spanish?
A familia anfitriona or familia de acogida, and the stay itself is usually called alojamiento en familia. Schools often just use the English word homestay.
Is a homestay better than a shared flat for learning Spanish?
Considerably, because a homestay puts you in Spanish during the hours you are not in class. A shared flat can be equally good if your flatmates are local and equally useless if they are international students who default to English.
Do you get meals in a homestay?
Usually breakfast, and often dinner as well. Ask specifically whether the arrangement is half board or full board, and whether dietary requirements can be accommodated, before you book.
How long should a homestay be?
Two weeks to three months suits most people. Shorter than two weeks and you never fully relax into it; much beyond three months and most students want their own space, at which point a shared flat makes more sense.
