5 Steps to Create a Travel Itinerary for Your Language Immersion Trip

We study a foreign language because we enjoy the priceless experience of visiting a foreign country and feeling at ease

Imagine traveling to Italy and feeling at home: shopping in Italian at the local market and preparing your lunch with the fresh vegetables you purchased in the morning. Imagine relaxing on your couch after dinner and watching a good Italian movie on TV, or walking your dog through the cobblestone streets of a medieval Italian town at dusk.

To be honest, feeling at home in a foreign country entails abandoning everything you have done as a tourist previously. As a non-Italian, it takes bravery to let yourself go and fully immerse yourself in the local culture.

You can have an experience like this in Italy by planning a Do It Yourself Italian Immersion trip. I’ll demonstrate how!

It’s time to break out of your shell, forget about the classroom and your Italian teacher, and unleash your inner Italian superpower (Also, reward yourself after years or months of hard work.)

Let’s get down to business…

1. How to Choose a City for Your Italian Immersion Trip

Do you prefer the beach or the Alps, or do you prefer the hustle and bustle of a bustling city? Whatever your tastes are, Italy has it all.

The general rule is to choose a location that is not overrun with tourists, and where locals will be curious about you and willing to speak with you. Remember that off-the-beaten-path destinations are surprisingly inexpensive and beautiful.

 

2. What Kind of Accommodation Should you Choose?

• Homestay at a teacher 
• Airbnbs
• Bad&breakfasts 

 

3. Things you Can Do to Practice Your Italian

Explore Italy through the lens of a local 

• Uffici del turismo provide official guided tours (there is one in every city)
• Free tours: these are more informal tours that usually allow you to interact with the other participants.
• Private local guides

 

Hire a temporary Italian teacher 

 

Take an Airbnb experience 

What’s better than joining an experience led by locals, such as cooking classes at at a private home, painting classes, and yoga classes.  This is an excellent way to improve your Italian while doing something useful. 

 

PROS of planning a DIY Italian immersion trip 

• It will be less expensive than you think. Traveling as a tourist (eating at restaurants, purchasing tickets to attractions, shopping) is, in my opinion, far more expensive than experiencing a place as a local.
• Accommodations away from the tourist traps are significantly less expensive and are frequently run by a family.
• Prioritize slow living over tourist activities; instead, you will stay in the same place for a while and relax.
• Living like a local will provide you with a better understanding of the Italian way of life, as well as more natural interaction. All of this is provided for free.

 

DONT’S

• Don’t plan your Italian  language immersion trip in a popular tourist destination for two reasons:  you will be tempted to behave like a tourist and miss out on authentic Italian immersion activities.  The locals are used to to foreigners and will be uninterested in interacting with you or speaking Italian.
• Avoid traveling with non-Italian speaking friends.
• Do not schedule it for August – August is the worst month to visit Italy and expect to live like a local. The majority of the locals will be elsewhere. August is the most popular month for Italians to go on vacation.
• Do not enroll in an Italian language school. Although there are some excellent Italian language schools, classrooms frequently include students of various levels. You run the risk of having a perfect international experience rather than a local one. 

Northern Italy 

• Aosta, Mantova, Trieste, Modena, Ferrara

Central Italy 

• Terni, Gaeta, Viterbo, Ancona

Southern Italy

• Salerno, Bari, Lecce, Cosenza, Monopoli  

Sicily & Sardegna

• Siracusa, Trapani, Modica, Cagliari, Alghero