We are a cooperative school that facilitates Spanish teaching as a second language, our school is not a private school. We also offer extra activities for our students, avoiding the expensive travel agencies. You also have the option to live with a local host family to have a real immersion. Likewise, we contribute to the development of our community through our social projects. We are an experience, we are a family, we are friends, we are a community, WE ARE MORE THAN A SCHOOL!
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I visited la Cooperativa last December for a week. I stayed with a lovely host family steps away from the school, who were perfect hosts. As a solo traveler, the school graciously helped me arrange transport to and from Guatemala City. I studied 4 hours a day with Karen who was the best! She felt more like a friend at the end of my time. I had the most wonderful experience and very much look forward to retuning to the school. I HIGHLY recommend this school to anyone! Gracias a la Cooperativa for everything
This school is fantastic! I visited many(8) schools in Antigua and San Pedro and I think this is the best. They teach very polite and fit your level. I met some students that changed from other school and they say also it is better! I highly recommend here!
I studied for a week at the Cooperativa Spanish School. It was an amazing experience! The whole process was really well organized and very flexible. My teacher was extremely patient and taught me very well. I also stayed at a home stay. Massive thank you to Violeta and her amazing family. Extremely warm and kind people that did everything to make me feel at home and make this an unforgettable experience! Would definitely recommend, irregardless of your level of Spanish!
I came here based on a recommendation and it was an amazing choice. The school is beautiful, centrally located with a green garden and a lake view.
My teacher Violeta was incredible - fun, energetic and she tailored the lessons to my needs.
I also did a homestay with Ana Maria and her family which was really nice. Her house is close to the school and she makes fabulous food.
Highly recommended for anyone who wants to improve their Spanish while having an authentic and memorable experience!
My teacher Violeta was incredible - fun, energetic and she tailored the lessons to my needs.
I also did a homestay with Ana Maria and her family which was really nice. Her house is close to the school and she makes fabulous food.
Highly recommended for anyone who wants to improve their Spanish while having an authentic and memorable experience!
I studied Spanish here in December of 2023, and again in January of 2025. I had an amazing experience both times! My teacher, Nicolas Coché Tuch, was excellent. He is a great teacher, very engaged, and makes learning interesting. I learned a lot and enjoyed every moment of it. The location and the grounds are beautiful and the teachers and other staff are welcoming and inspiring. And the school has a practice of contributing to the community which is incredible. I also met a lot of incredible people from all around the world. I can't wait to go back again and will make sure next time it is for a longer period of time. Thank you for the experience!
We had a great experience with Cooperativa Spanish School! The teachers are really really nice and good 🙂 The lessons take place in the beautiful garden of the school with lake view!
The school takes care of everything: study materials, coffee, tea and even a snack in the break. Also, the homestay with a Spanish family was a great experience and ours was even located next to the school. Very much recommended!!!!
The school takes care of everything: study materials, coffee, tea and even a snack in the break. Also, the homestay with a Spanish family was a great experience and ours was even located next to the school. Very much recommended!!!!
Cooperativa Spanish school has a family atmosphere. The 1:1 classroom in an open air setting makes learning enjoyable while still being challenged. My teacher, Karen, had the perfect balance of patience, sense of humour and ability to know when to adjust the lessons to suit my learning style. The entire staff, including Antonio who greeted me and got me set up when I arrived, was friendly and inviting. It was a pleasure to be greeted by Seńor Delphino Cortez, the grounds keeper, every morning.
I studied Spanish with Cooperativa for 7 weeks and I experienced with two teachers. Here're some things and photos may help you understand it better! 🙂
School:
Campus itself is really beautiful and chill. I like the vibes of this school, it's different from other schools that might be too loud and busy for me. The location is 5 minutes walk to all busy areas where has the restaurants, bars and lake.
The fee isn't the cheapest by neither the most expensive. I found it a reasonable price from what we got. The school offered different snacks everyday, coffee and tea are there for you all the time.
There's also community service the school dedicates, part of our tuition goes to the grocery for local families who suffer from financial difficulties.
Front desk employees are super kind and helpful. They organized several activities throughout the week, it depended on the number of students at the moment, the more students there were, the more events they organized. I attended: cooking class, salsa, kayak, chocolate factory, bonfire, local mayan exhibition, etc. Each activity costs around Q20-30.
Teachers:
I like the one on one setting a lot, since I tend to ask more questions in class and I feel more comfortable when it's private.The teacher I had were Any and Clarita. Both of them are very experienced. They are willing to speak in all Spanish throughout the lesson and obviously they know Guatemalan/Mayan culture very well, that's a big bonus for me!
Clear communication and expectations I found it important, since the culture can be different from back home.
What I'd recommend is if you are a student who tends to be more organized and motived, you could discuss weekly lesson plan with the teacher ahead. That helps both of you keep on track, have a goal and also make your progress measurable.
As 4 hours can be intense on the days your brain isn't ready for absorbing new grammars and the chatting can go too long sometimes when you are so ready to learn new topics.
Host family:
I had a great time with my host family Teodora and Mathias. They are super friendly and fun!
Plus their house has a really nice view to the lake, it makes you start the day with good vibes!
To be honest, at beginning I was a little bit hesitant whether staying with a family, as I didn’t want regulations during my vacation and it turned out they were super chill. If I have to say, the only thing they care about probably would be the eating schedule. Since the mom cooks every meal and she wanted us to have it warm. As I work remotely, with pre communication, they were able to accommodate according to my working schedule which was really nice.
The homestay I stayed has good wifi, I was able to give online lessons at home most of the time. Sometimes it does encounter power outage, but that’s the whole town thing.
Their family visits a few times during my stay, they invited me to one of the kid’s birthday party! 🤍
Overall, I really enjoyed my time study with Coopeativa.
Set your goal, communicate with the teachers, make connections with local family, enjoy the town and views, and support the community!
This will become a life long memory for you 🙂
School:
Campus itself is really beautiful and chill. I like the vibes of this school, it's different from other schools that might be too loud and busy for me. The location is 5 minutes walk to all busy areas where has the restaurants, bars and lake.
The fee isn't the cheapest by neither the most expensive. I found it a reasonable price from what we got. The school offered different snacks everyday, coffee and tea are there for you all the time.
There's also community service the school dedicates, part of our tuition goes to the grocery for local families who suffer from financial difficulties.
Front desk employees are super kind and helpful. They organized several activities throughout the week, it depended on the number of students at the moment, the more students there were, the more events they organized. I attended: cooking class, salsa, kayak, chocolate factory, bonfire, local mayan exhibition, etc. Each activity costs around Q20-30.
Teachers:
I like the one on one setting a lot, since I tend to ask more questions in class and I feel more comfortable when it's private.The teacher I had were Any and Clarita. Both of them are very experienced. They are willing to speak in all Spanish throughout the lesson and obviously they know Guatemalan/Mayan culture very well, that's a big bonus for me!
Clear communication and expectations I found it important, since the culture can be different from back home.
What I'd recommend is if you are a student who tends to be more organized and motived, you could discuss weekly lesson plan with the teacher ahead. That helps both of you keep on track, have a goal and also make your progress measurable.
As 4 hours can be intense on the days your brain isn't ready for absorbing new grammars and the chatting can go too long sometimes when you are so ready to learn new topics.
Host family:
I had a great time with my host family Teodora and Mathias. They are super friendly and fun!
Plus their house has a really nice view to the lake, it makes you start the day with good vibes!
To be honest, at beginning I was a little bit hesitant whether staying with a family, as I didn’t want regulations during my vacation and it turned out they were super chill. If I have to say, the only thing they care about probably would be the eating schedule. Since the mom cooks every meal and she wanted us to have it warm. As I work remotely, with pre communication, they were able to accommodate according to my working schedule which was really nice.
The homestay I stayed has good wifi, I was able to give online lessons at home most of the time. Sometimes it does encounter power outage, but that’s the whole town thing.
Their family visits a few times during my stay, they invited me to one of the kid’s birthday party! 🤍
Overall, I really enjoyed my time study with Coopeativa.
Set your goal, communicate with the teachers, make connections with local family, enjoy the town and views, and support the community!
This will become a life long memory for you 🙂
If you're looking for the perfect place to learn Spanish, Cooperativa Language School in San Pedro is it! From the moment I arrived, I felt at home thanks to the incredibly welcoming team and environment. My teacher, Violeta, was exceptionally well-trained, tailoring lessons perfectly to my needs and making the learning process both fun and effective.
The school is very flexible, accommodating your schedule whether you prefer morning or afternoon classes, and allowing you to choose how many hours you want to study each day (3-6 hours).
But this place is more than a school: The community at Cooperativa is a true highlight – both students and staff form a close-knit group, making it feel more like family. We shared meals, laughs, and activities together. The school organizes daily events like cooking classes, conversation tables, football matches, salsa evenings and bonfire nights. It’s a true immersion experience where you’re not just visiting San Pedro but becoming part of its culture.
The setting by Lake Atitlán is stunning, offering endless opportunities to swim, hike, explore nearby villages, or relax with friends at a nearby bar. The school’s beautiful garden invites to hang out, study or have a chat with co-students and teachers.
My homestay with Ana was another unforgettable aspect. She provided delicious, healthy meals and spent time chatting with us every day, giving us a chance to practice Spanish and experience local life firsthand.
No matter your Spanish level, Cooperativa will help you progress quickly – I saw an incredible improvement within just a few weeks. I kept extending my time week after week because it was such an incredible experience - and still after 6 weeks it was hard to leave. I give this place 100% recommendation and cannot wait to return!
The school is very flexible, accommodating your schedule whether you prefer morning or afternoon classes, and allowing you to choose how many hours you want to study each day (3-6 hours).
But this place is more than a school: The community at Cooperativa is a true highlight – both students and staff form a close-knit group, making it feel more like family. We shared meals, laughs, and activities together. The school organizes daily events like cooking classes, conversation tables, football matches, salsa evenings and bonfire nights. It’s a true immersion experience where you’re not just visiting San Pedro but becoming part of its culture.
The setting by Lake Atitlán is stunning, offering endless opportunities to swim, hike, explore nearby villages, or relax with friends at a nearby bar. The school’s beautiful garden invites to hang out, study or have a chat with co-students and teachers.
My homestay with Ana was another unforgettable aspect. She provided delicious, healthy meals and spent time chatting with us every day, giving us a chance to practice Spanish and experience local life firsthand.
No matter your Spanish level, Cooperativa will help you progress quickly – I saw an incredible improvement within just a few weeks. I kept extending my time week after week because it was such an incredible experience - and still after 6 weeks it was hard to leave. I give this place 100% recommendation and cannot wait to return!
Cooperativa is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, let alone studied Spanish! We spent 3 weeks there last year and it was 3 weeks of immersion, nature, and fun. San Pedro is a special place and it's great to use your free time to enjoy the lake, go hiking and explore other towns. The lessons are private one-on-one lessons which really allow you to focus on areas you most need to work on, all taught in the peace of their beautiful, bright garden. The school puts on great free activities throughout the week and it was really easy to make friends. It was an amazing experience to live with a local family, ours were so welcoming and they all make great food in vast quantities!
Special mention to my amazing teacher, Raquel, she made every class interesting and easy (despite all the complications of the subjunctive)! She knows so much about Guatemalan history and politics which I loved to learn about. She is a great, experienced teacher and will remain a good friend of mine and I hope to come back to visit one day.
I can't recommend Cooperativa enough - it's an unforgettable, immersive experience and you will see your Spanish markedly improve!
Special mention to my amazing teacher, Raquel, she made every class interesting and easy (despite all the complications of the subjunctive)! She knows so much about Guatemalan history and politics which I loved to learn about. She is a great, experienced teacher and will remain a good friend of mine and I hope to come back to visit one day.
I can't recommend Cooperativa enough - it's an unforgettable, immersive experience and you will see your Spanish markedly improve!
