Student Success Stories
Hear from how our courses have helped real students to turn frustration into learning success!
With moving to Mexico with no Spanish other than Hola & Gracias, I decided to take this Spanish course. I loved being taught practical words & phrases that I needed immediately. We were not given a list of words to memorize but instead, we were taught how to order in a restaurant, asking how much something cost, where something is in a store, etc.
Having lessons to study during the week then after having and in-person class (on Zoom) in small groups really helped with correcting pronunciation. Other programs that are solely online leave you thinking you are pronouncing words correctly but you are actually saying something different. I highly recommend Expat Spanish.
Amy’s course starts with the basic things you need to start actually speaking. I was able to speak my first real sentence in Spanish during the first class, something that Duolingo didn’t help me with after 1 year, even after paying the full course! Amy is an excellent teacher who makes learning fun. Now I’m more confident with daily interactions and have a clear understanding of how the grammatical structures work. The one on one feel of her class has been particularly helpful. I highly recommend this for anyone who wants to be able to speak the language of the country they live in or visit.
I have renewed hope that I will be speaking Spanish someday soon! I am only halfway through Level One and the program is exceptional, as is the teaching style!! I am thrilled in your Spanish Class.
– Ellie from Cabo San Lucas
~ Malialani A.
“I recently completed Expat Spanish from Zero and I couldn’t be happier with the progress I have made. I had previously taken a beginner course with a strong grammar focus and was extremely frustrated that I didn’t have the confidence or ability to recall what I had learned.
Amy’s practical course design provides for ease of learning for everyday situations, builds a strong foundation with lots of opportunity for review to improve speaking and listening skills.
She is incredibly intuitive and adapts to her students individual learning styles and course progress making everyone feel comfortable.
I am so much more confident to speak and understand basic phrases in stores, restaurants, taxis etc. I highly recommend this course 100% and look forward to continued learning with my Maestra Amy! ¡Ella es la mejor!”
~Heather Fischer
I want to start off by thanking you (all) for being such great teachers! You make learning Spanish fun and exciting!
I really feel good about the progress I’ve made and want to continue learning.
You really have changed my life for the better and have made my experience living in Puerto Vallarta that much better!
Louise Holmes full-time resident in Puerto Vallarta
I’m happy to share my experience with Amy and her team. Eighteen months ago, I was hesitant to learn Spanish, but moving to Mexico and immersing myself in the culture made it a necessity. So I took the leap with Expat Spanish Lessons, and the experience was fantastic.
Amy and Denisse have created a course that pushes us to improve at a comfortable pace. Pronunciation and verb tenses were a challenge for me, but through repetition, clear explanations, and practice, I overcame them. Now, I can speak with my contractors, friends, and neighbors at a level I never imagined. Thank you, Amy and Denise!
Scott Crowley living full-time in Mexico.
My husband and I plan to retire to Mexico, and Expat Spanish has been a game-changer for me. I started at Level 1 and just finished Level 3. The lessons are well structured—building vocabulary, sentence structure, and verb conjugation step-by-step. Amy and Denisse are patient, wonderful teachers, and the small group classes make learning interactive and supportive. I highly recommend Expat Spanish for anyone planning to travel or retire to Mexico, and I’m excited to start Level 4!
Sally Cartwright
I have already learned more from one class than I did from 6 years of on-again off-again Duolingo. Estoy muy feliz! Thank you so much!
~Charlene P.
After 15 years of living in Mexico and numerous attempts to learn Spanish from the apps to private lessons to attending 4 different schools in Panama and Mexico, I was still very much a frustrated beginner.
Spanish seemed hard to learn – easy to forget. And I’m no dummy. I was a straight A students, have a Master’s and a Doctorate.
Finally, I discovered Expat Spanish which seems to have the ‘secret sauce’ to teach this language with a blend of audio, visual and live classes that all focus on speaking and listening.
The other courses seemed to have a fixation on grammar and conjugating verbs, but this course avoids “teaching” grammar, but yet you learn grammar organically without rote memorization.
The result is you learn quickly and painlessly. And it is fun. I wake up each day looking forward to studying and completing upcoming lessons.
If you want to learn Spanish, I would say start out with Expat Spanish and save yourself years of frustration.
~ Peter L.
~Ry Hickey
I have been trying to learn Spanish for decades with very little success. It has always been a point of shame for me since I am Puerto Rican and did not grow up speaking the language.
I am grateful to have found you and your very logical and straightforward approach to learning. Now that I live in México my motivation is higher than ever. Looking forward to the journey ahead!
~ Maria C.
I felt compelled to let you know how much I enjoyed the Spanish from Zero course. I have learned a tremendous amount through your structured approach and have been motivated to practice and learn daily.
Our live instructor, Denisse is wonderful, full of energy, advise, encouragement, and bless her endless patience. The self-paced homework lessons are perfect for my learning style and the various tools for practice and testing are perfecto!
~Rob Young
Originally from Singapore, my husband and I moved to Mexico with no Spanish background. I relied on Duolingo for a year, hoping to become conversational, but after two years, I was still struggling with simple tasks. Then, my husband found Expat Spanish, and after speaking with Amy, I decided to give it a try!
Beyond the live classes (Amy and Denisse are amazing!), the after-class materials—videos, worksheets, audio stories, and word memory—helped reinforce lessons and kept me accountable.
Now, a year later, I can make small talk, ask questions, give directions, and handle everyday tasks!
Muchísimas gracias, Expat Spanish! I can now speak and understand more. Highly recommend this course!
~Jacqueline Lee
I enrolled in Expat Spanish Lessons to help me speak Spanish. I had taken several Spanish Courses such as Pimsleur Spanish, Duolingo, 3 Minute Spanish, private lessons on italki and others and gained a lot of vocabulary and grammar; however, when I spoke Spanish, I was not conversational. Learning a language has been very difficult for me.
Halfway through the Spanish from Zero course, a separate teacher I work with (to learn grammar) noticed that spoke in 90% in Spanish in a 1 hour lesson! I credit Expat Spanish for this progress. The program helped me master the connector words which allowed me to use the vocabulary I already knew. The program focuses on basic communication using common words you really need to know.
Melvin Cole living full-time in Puebla, Mexico.
This course has really helped me feel more confident building sentences and not be intimidated. I feel like I can think through the building blocks and vocabulary to get my point across much better now.
I found that the course structure has helped me speak and understand more of the Spanish language. This course was designed for a beginner student and gives a great base to continue learning. I have taken other courses and gave up part way through.
Taking this course gave me more confidence in speaking Spanish while in Mexico. I also found that I could pick up some parts of the conversations I overheard from others!
Michael L. shares an exciting breakthrough with his Spanish!
I highly recommend the Spanish from zero course. It provided me with the basics I need to interact with locals while in Mexico. I will feel much more comfortable speaking with restaurant staff, store keepers, building staff etc. The course progresses at a good pace and was just the right amount of difficulty. Amy is an excellent instructor. I thoroughly enjoyed the course and look forward to the next level!
Amy’s classes and lessons feel easy and the pace and speed are perfect. That proud moment when you realize that you can string together a whole 9-word sentence after one lesson in Spanish is indescribable! I wasn’t sure what to think going into this, but WOW, it is fun.
Learning a new language is scary and can be a daunting and difficult task if you don’t know where to begin but thanks to Amy, learning Spanish is fun and exciting.
I was delighted with the achievement I had in learning conversational Spanish from this course!
Previously I had started a couple of online beginner courses without much success as the grammar and verb tenses were so confusing which led to frustration and loss of interest.
The Spanish from Zero course is designed for everyday situations like shopping, getting a taxi, going to a restaurant and ordering food.
Amy’s teaching ability adapted to each student’s level of understanding and capability.
The course is set up for continual review, listening and speaking skills. I have gained more confidence to speak Spanish by taking this course. I highly recommend this course to anyone!
As a beginner in Spanish, after a few lessons, I can safely say that I have a better understanding about the fundamentals of the Spanish language. Amy is professional but at the same time, she keeps it light and easy. She knows how to convey the subject matter to the student and meets them on the level they are at.