Nowadays, being able to speak Spanish is a good option for a new academic or work opportunity. And, among the options that exist to develop learning this language, travelling abroad is one of the best. That’s why, below, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about learning Spanish when you go abroad.
Why learn Spanish abroad?
It may seem like a crazy idea to many, but learning Spanish when going abroad is one of the best ways to quickly develop your command of the language. In fact, immersion in the country provides a great learning experience, not only in grammar and pronunciation, but also in everyday life.
One of the main tips when learning Spanish is to immerse yourself in the language as much as possible. For this, you can listen to songs, watch films or read books. If all this is a great learning experience, imagine how much more so if you surround yourself with people who speak the target language every day.
However, even though it seems like a very rewarding goal, this is a tiring task that will require perseverance and discipline. To make this task a little easier for you, here are some essential tips for learning Spanish when you go abroad:
1. Plan your trip well
Learning Spanish abroad is a tempting goal, but it needs to be planned sensibly and consistently. It won’t be as simple as picking up your backpack and boarding for the first destination you meet at the airport: to make your experience more rewarding, you’ll need preparation.
Choosing a holiday destination is the first step in learning Spanish when going abroad. To do this, you need to assess the range of possibilities, comparing them with your budget, and the time of year in your chosen area.
Also, it is best to have a reservation made before you go, or, in general terms, a place to arrive, and a plan to survive in the meantime. Many people choose to go abroad and work in a bar, or as an au-pair, to perfect their language skills.
In any case, the important thing is to have a travel strategy and not to go on an adventure, and to take into account the lifestyle you are used to. This way, you will avoid feeling uncomfortable so many miles away from home.
2. Learn to socialise
It’s important to keep in mind that learning Spanish when you go abroad doesn’t just mean enrolling in a course to learn the language (for that, it would be enough to enrol in an academy in your own country and learn Spanish from home).
Therefore, one of the most rewarding experiences of learning Spanish abroad is making new friends with whom you can do activities, spend time, or go for coffee, where the prerequisite is to interact in Spanish, to improve your knowledge in a complementary way.
3. Get away from tourist areas
Every country and region in the world has its own tourist attractions which are naturally full of English-speaking tourists. For this reason, one of the best tips for learning Spanish when going abroad is to avoid these places as much as possible.
In large tourist destinations full of English speaking people, it will be difficult to learn Spanish in depth. So, the best thing to do is to look for areas where English speaking people are less common, and get by as if you were a local, doing various daily activities.
4. Offer your knowledge
For sure, English is a language that many foreigners are eager to learn, and being your mother tongue, you master it more easily.
Offering your knowledge means making new friends who can help you learn and improve your Spanish, while you teach them to speak English too. So you create bonds where there is feedback.
5. Know the legal regulations
Depending on where you decide to travel to learn Spanish, legal regulations may vary. It is therefore important to know the requirements in advance. In many places you will need a visa, or a residence permit, if you decide to stay there for a long period of time.
As you can see, learning Spanish when you go abroad is often a way of improving or completing the skills you have learned in online or face-to-face language courses.
It should be noted that this can vary according to job requirements, for example, in the case of actors, writers or teachers, it is more common for them to need to learn a new language in order to find a wider scope within their field of work.
However, it is advisable for anyone to set themselves the goal of learning at least one other language in addition to their native one.
