Join Alexa in Aix-en-Provence for our special guest immersion programme!

We’re delighted to announce that we’re hosting our first French immersion guest programme, together with the wonderful team from SL Immersion.

Now, if you’ve read our previous blogs, you’ll know we’re huge advocates of learning immersively. By immersive learning, we mean putting yourself in the middle of a French-speaking environment, and learning by listening to, reading and using French as it’s spoken in the real world (or more specifically, in France itself).

But this isn’t just a fantastic way to get your French into shape — it’s also the perfect opportunity to experience French culture and cuisine first hand while soaking up the divine weather the south of France is so famous for.

The immersion programme will take place over five days, from 13-18 October 2024, in Aix-en-Provence, one of the most beautiful cities in all of France, and will include a host of activities alongside morning classes and plenty of opportunities to explore the city and mingle with your teachers and fellow learners.

In our complete French course, we aim to teach you everything you need to know to speak French with confidence.

But there’s only so far we can take you on your journey towards fluency in French. To fully understand a language, with all its subtleties and nuances, you need to put yourself in the shoes of a native speaker. This is why we’ve partnered with S L Immersion to bring you this unique experience.

An immersion experience such as this allows you to put your skills into practice by speaking with locals — who may not know English - using your knowledge of French to greet people, purchase items from shops, order food from restaurants, or simply strike up conversations with local people. The point of an immersion programme such as this is that you’ll be surrounded by French speakers, and you’ll see French everywhere you look, from advertisements and menus to road signs and television screens.
You’ll be amazed how much you’ll learn by just absorbing the language in this way, with the added help of relaxed, but rigorous, classes to help you get into a French-speaking frame of mind. You’ll be able to form a stronger understanding of the way French is spoken, as well as how it’s used in a variety of contexts.

Aix-en-Provence, or Aix, as it’s often shortened to, is a city in Provence, near the Côte d'Azur. It’s renowned for its stunning scenery and rich history, which is apparent in everything from the romanesque architecture to the city’s pride in its cuisine. It was the home to the painter Cézanne, but is perhaps just as famous for its water features (another nickname for Aix is ‘The City of a Thousand Fountains’) and its calissons, marzipan-like French sweets, which you’ll of course have the opportunity to try as part of the immersion programme.