With Cactus Volunteers Abroad you can take a Volunteering Holiday on its own, or combine your volunteer work with an in-country language course with our Language & Volunteering programmes. Language & Volunteering is available in the following languages and locations:

Spanish & Volunteering: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru
Portuguese & Volunteering: Brazil

Why Learn The Language?

At Cactus we know only too well the benefit of speaking a bit of the lingo in a foreign country. It's not just the confidence and feeling of self-reward that comes from being able to communicate with the locals - it's also a valuable tool in making friends, breaking down barriers, staying safe, getting to grips with the local culture and, most importantly, having fun! By taking a language course before your volunteer placement you will achieve all these things and get much more out of your placement as a whole, as will the volunteer organisation out of you.

We work with what we consider to be the best school in each location for our client's needs. The criteria we base this on include location, quality of teaching, size of classes, facilities, accommodation and value for money. Having personally visited each of our schools we have both built strong relations and negotiated special prices to enable you, the volunteers, to gain the maximum from your programme at a low cost.

Your Language Classes & School

You choose the length of your language course (2 to 12 weeks: see Language & Volunteering for full details). Your course will start on the first Monday of the month, and you will have 20 group lessons each week, which works out as 4 lessons each day in the morning, Monday to Friday. Classes are kept small (the exact class size is dependent on the school you attend) and all teachers are native, university-trained professionals. You will sit a short placement test on your first day to ensure that you are placed in the correct group according to your level.

The school also runs a comprehensive programme of activities and excursions for you to take part in during the afternoons and weekends, some of which are included in the price (eg. film night, dance class) and others of which are not (eg. trip to the beach, museum entry, meal night). During your language course you will have the chance to meet your local Volunteer Coordinator and prepare for your placement, which will follow on directly from your course.

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