Looking for nice towns in Mexico (with little or no American tourists) to study Spanish?
Hello, I'm a Spanish major interested in studying abroad next fall to learn Spanish. I would like to go to Mexico because it's less costly and more relevant to American culture (because of all the Mexican immigrants). So, I would like to know what you guys think of Mexico and the best places for me to study abroad where I would have little contact with Americans! I've heard Guanajuato, Queretaro, Cuernavaca, and Morelia are nice...
Home | Contact | About | Privacy Policy | Sitemap
Filed under: Spanish Lessons
Other than the beach resorts, avoid these cities/places:
San Miguel de Allende
Lake Chapala
Morelia and Guanajuato are beautfiul cities, and, while there are tourists, you will be able to speak Spanish the entire time if you want.
However, if you really want to get the full Mexican experience, I recommend staying in a small town.
The State of Jalisco has plenty of beautiful small towns!
Between La Piedad, Michoachan and Guadalajara, Jalisco, you can take Highway 90. There are several beautiful towns where there are NO tourists and almost nobody speaks English: Ayotlan, Atotonilco, Totolan, and Zapotlanejo. These towns are beautiful, safe, and not tourist traps (though they should be!). They also have great food. I pass through these cities all the time when I have to go to Guadalajara.
Queretaro and Leon, Guanajuato are big cities, but you will rarely speak English if you don’t want to. Both are very modern and clean, as well.
I’ve heard Tequisquiapan, Queretaro is a nice, small town (though there may be tourists!) where you could practice your Spanish 24-7.
Beyond these places, I recommend visiting as many small towns (in any state) as possible. Most of the inhabitants of these towns do not speak English, and will have trouble understanding heavily-accented Spanish, so you will have to make your best effort to be understood by the locals.
So, for example, if you stay in Guanajuato, make sure you visit all the towns in the state (definitely possible) like Abasolo, Dolores Hidalgo, Penjamo, Cueramaro, etc.
If you can get placed in a small town, that would be your best bet (depending on transportation).
Try Merida.
i think you should go to cordoba, veracruz of just the capital of veracruz. its soooo nice. ocean and everything nice people
or another place would be…. monterrey, nuevo leon. itz really nice. its like mexicos los angeles.
All of the places you mentioned will have American tourists, more in the summer than fall, winter or spring. There are large numbers of college students that study Guanajuato and Cuernavaca.
I studied in Zacatecas, Mexico at the Fenix Language Institute for two weeks and never saw anyone from the US except for the students in my classes. I stayed with a Mexican family and never spoke English for the entire period. The school was excellent, I had a private teacher, at no extra cost, because I was the only one at my level. They have an updated website, so just Google it and check it out.
Hola. I always recommend Guadalajara or Oaxaca for studying Spanish. Both are amazing, vibrant places where you will get your fill of culture. They are on the west, the places you’ve named are east so I just wanted to add them as potentials.
Go to Manzanillo, Colima. It’s a small state in Mexico known for it’s giant port & coco trees. Of course it’s gorgeous. Research that state, I’m sure you’ll love it.