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Cactus Language Newsletter – July 2015

Welcome to the Cactus Summer newsletter!

Our new quarterly newsletter brings you top tips and ideas for the coming months, as well as some offers and incentives to learn a language while the sun’s shining…

1. Junior language camps – a wise choice for the summer

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The summer holidays may be upon us, but it’s not too late to book a holiday of a lifetime for your children. Our junior language camps for 5-18 year olds are fun-packed, educational and confidence-boosting!

2. 10 top locations to learn Spanish this summer

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Tropical beaches, magnificent colonial cities, superb water sports, Mayan ruins, sumptuous food, wine tasting and nightlife…whatever you want from your holiday, you can find it with a Spanish course!

3. Sneak Preview! Ollie Phillips in Spain

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Cactus Ambassador Ollie Phillips has recently jetted off to Spain with Cactus, to practise his Spanish in Seville and catch some waves surfing in Cadiz. We asked you what you wanted to see Ollie do in Spain and you voted flamenco…so see Ollie dancing flamenco and look out for the upcoming video of his trip!

4. Join Cactus at the Language Show and The Expat Show – Autumn 2015

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Whether you’re learning a language for relocation, work, love or brain power, join us at these two fantastic shows where you can try a language class for free, win a language course and claim your free language learning voucher.

5. NEW Corporate Language Training Website

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June 2015 marked the launch of our new Cactus Language Training website, your new platform for private and corporate language training worldwide. To celebrate we are offering a £50 voucher off your next course!

Have a great summer and we’ll see you in September!

The Cactus Team

Cactus Worldwide Blog: April 2014 – Focus on Spring Ideas

Focus On: Spring Ideas

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Hello, and welcome to the April 2014 edition of the Cactus Worldwide blog for our foreign language courses abroad! My name is Ollie, and I am the Product Manager for our agency – Cactus Worldwide. Our team of experienced course advisors are here every day to discuss options with you and help set up a varied range of unique language-learning experiences, all over the globe, throughout the year, for all of our wonderful students.

This month’s blog offers a quick update on some of the great special offers currently available to book via the Cactus website, and also offers some European destination ideas for brushing up your language skills over the next few months.

If you have any questions about anything you read here, please feel free to contact me directly via oliver.donovan@cactusworldwide.com and I’d be happy to answer any questions.

1. Get twice as much for your money on selected dates in Ibiza!

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Special offer Spanish Course in Ibiza with Cactus Worldwide & Instituto de Idiomas Ibiza

Beyond her globally recognised reputation as a hedonistic ‘party island’, the destination of Ibiza has far more to offer a visitor than nightlife and club culture alone. Stunning beaches, beautiful green spaces and laid-back, friendly people make this a great choice for anyone looking to brush up their Spanish somewhere away from the mainland.

Affordable accommodation and flights from most international airports make this choice an easier one on the wallet as well, not to mention that fantastic new special offer we have for you on selected dates! If you book 2, 4, 6 or 8 weeks of Spanish in Ibiza Town, for a start either on May 12th, or September 29th 2014, then you will receive twice as much for your money – that’s 2 weeks for the price of 1; 4 weeks for the price of 2; 6 weeks for the price of 3; or 8 weeks for the price of 4! The offer applies to the school’s essential General Course of 20 lessons per week (4 lessons per day) in international groups with a maximum of 8 students – all course materials and registration fees are included in the prices you see on our website, and classes are available for students of all levels. There are also huge savings to be had for the same start dates on the school’s Intensive Course of 30 lessons per week, for any students who want to push themselves that bit harder, and spend a bit more time in the classroom – you can see the info here!

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Independent, family-run, Instituto de Idiomas Ibiza is fully air-conditioned and equipped with computers, learning materials and free Wi-Fi, and is centrally located just moments from the coast on Avinguda D’Ignasi Wallis (https://goo.gl/maps/6J4ZC). Its medium size gives the school a welcoming and intimate atmosphere where all students quickly get to know one another, and there is always a great mix of ages, nationalities, and abilities in attendance – so a perfect choice for groups, couples, or solo travellers alike!

2. 5 weeks of French classes for the price of 4 on the French Riviera!

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5 weeks of French for the price of 4 in Nice with Cactus Worldwide & France Langue

This is a ‘Happy Birthday’ offer for our partners in Nice, on the French Riviera. This city centre school, owned and operated by quality small chain France Langue, turns 20 years of age this year – and to celebrate they are offering a free week of French classes for any students who are able to attend the school for a month or more, any time in 2014!

The offer applies to both the General Course (20 lessons per week), offering a saving of almost £200; and the Intensive Course (30 lessons per week), with a huge saving of £275 on the course fees, which are inclusive of all registration fees and course materials. Classes here take place in groups with an average size of 10, and occur in the morning or afternoon dependent on your level, and the time of year (outside of the summer season, most classes take place in the morning, when the school is quieter). The lessons focus on improving comprehension, grammar awareness, and all four vital skillsets of speaking, listening, reading and writing; and for students opting for the intensive course option, additional classes take place in the afternoons which focus on conversation skills, writing skills and understanding phonetics.

The best thing about this school is the huge range of activities and excursions available to students throughout the year, and this makes it a superb choice for solo or first-time travellers. Many students combine their French studies with sports sessions, cookery or culture classes, as well as taking advantage of the extensive social programme scheduled by their experienced team (20 years’ experience that is!). You can view the programme here, and check out the special offers on our website here. Profitez-en!

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3. Great value German courses all year round at the Fremdsprachenforum in historic Cologne

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Learn German in Cologne with Cactus Worldwide & Fremdsprachenforum

Have you ever been to Cologne (Köln)? If not, perhaps now is the time as this is another historic, must-visit European destination that is increasingly well served by affordable flights from a range of international airports. The medieval city spreads out on either side of the River Rhine in North-West Germany, and hosts some of the most incredible modern architecture in the country, as well as the famous Kölner Dom, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The cathedral is Germany’s most-visited cultural attraction, with approximately 20,000 visitors every single day! Plenty of quality shopping opportunities and a vibrant nightlife (more than 70 nightclubs and late-night bars) neatly round the city off as one of the key places to visit in order to discover Germany’s past, present and future.

Our colleagues at the Fremdsprachenforum on Lindenstrasse (Claudia & Chantal) run a true family-feel school close to the city centre, completely independent, and incredibly welcoming to students of all ages, abilities and nationalities. The school prides itself on providing the highest quality teaching possible, and at affordable prices, meaning you can take a General Course of 20 lessons per week here for as little as £88! A Combined Course which provides 20 group lessons per week, plus 5 private lessons, is also a bargain at £193 for one week; or a full-on crash course of 25 private lessons in one week is just £483 – a perfect solution for any student who needs to learn as much as they can, as quickly as possible. Long-term students, for example, can spend a month in Cologne, take 20 lessons per week, and stay with a host family in the city for a total of £820, which is excellent value. All the course listings are available to view on our website here.

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I hope this selection has been of interest, and may have given you some money-saving ideas for the summer months up ahead…

Any Qs at all, as always, please feel free to contact me directly and I’d be happy to help.

Happy planning 😉

Best Wishes,

Ollie

Oliver Donovan

Agency Product Manager

Email: oliver.donovan@cactusworldwide.com

Cactus Worldwide Monthly Blog: January 2014

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Hello, and welcome to the first 2014 edition of the Cactus Worldwide blog! My name is Ollie, and I am the Product Manager for our agency – Cactus Worldwide. Our team of experienced course advisors are here every day to discuss options with you and help set up a varied range of unique language-learning experiences, all over the globe, throughout the year, for all of our wonderful students.

This month’s blog is aimed at letting you know about some of the best special offers and early bird discounts that are available to you this January, including some big birthdays and the birthday deals available to help celebrate them! If you have any questions about anything you read here, please feel free to contact me directly via oliver.donovan@cactusworldwide.com and I’d be happy to help.

1.       Thinking about taking a German course in beautiful Vienna this summer? Call or e-mail us to book any adult course for between June 1st and August 31st this year, and we’ll give you a discount of £100! Valid until the end of January.

German Courses in Vienna with Actilingua and Cactus Language

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For anybody out there thinking about taking some time out to learn German abroad this summer, this is a deal well worth checking out! Our partners in Vienna, Actilingua, are offering a discount of £100 off any adult course booked during January for the summer months of June, July and August – and all you have to do is call or e-mail Cactus quoting ‘Early Bird’ and we can apply the discount to your enrolment straight away.

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The must-visit city of Vienna has a historic cultural tradition and the Actilingua Academy can help you learn not only the local language, but also find out much more about Viennese literature, famous Austrian painters, the local film scene, and the fascinating architecture of what is perhaps also the safest and cleanest city in Europe.

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To make things easier, the school also own and operate their very own clean and modern student residence, which consists of 20 tidy en-suite apartments in a renovated Art Nouveau building just 10 minutes away from the school on foot (photo above and below). The residence fills up quickly, so it’s worth book early to avoid disappointment. Click here for more info.

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2.       Happy 25th Birthday to IH Lacunza in San Sebastian, Spain! Call or e-mail us and say ‘Happy Birthday Lacunza!’ before booking, and we’ll discount £30 off the total price – on all bookings until the end of April.

Spanish in San Sebastian, Spain, with IH Lacunza and Cactus Language

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Perhaps one of the most significant birthdays being celebrated amongst our colleagues in Europe this year is that of IH Lacunza in San Sebastian on the northern coast of Spain, who are celebrating the 25th anniversary of their inception in 1989! To celebrate, they themselves are giving away the presents, by offering Cactus students an immediate discount of £30 off the course price just for wishing them a ‘Happy Birthday’ – and then a further surprise birthday present on arrival at the school, which could be a free dinner, tour, excursion, or ticket for a local activity! The offer is valid on all courses starting in 2014, and is valid on all bookings until the end of April – so plenty of time to get organised.

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Lacunza is just 5 minutes’ walk from the centre of San Sebastian, a town less well-known than some of its bigger counterparts, but growing in popularity for its sandy beaches, surf, nightlife and a generally cool, laid-back and authentically Spanish atmosphere. The school itself offers everything expected of a large and successful language school, including 10 bright air-conditioned classrooms and an excellent range of study facilities. All Spanish teachers are native speakers and work alongside school staff to help students get the most out of their stay in San Sebastian via the social programme, and encouraging students to join their intercambio programme, to meet other students and local people! Lacunza’s success is in their experience, and they are well worth joining for a party this year if you find a spare week or two. More info here!

3.       And finally, Happy 20th Birthday to Intercultura in Heredia, Costa Rica! To celebrate, we can offer our students a discount of $50USD per week – again, just call or e-mail us to say ‘Happy Birthday Intercultura!’ and we can discount your booking for you (Heredia only, not valid for courses on Samara Beach).

Spanish in Heredia, Costa Rica, with Intercultura and Cactus Language

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Throughout 2014, our partners in Costa Rica are celebrating the 20th anniversary of the establishment of their school in Heredia, in the capital area, close to San Jose. To share the celebrations with their students, they are offering a discount on all adult group courses of $50USD (approx. £32/37EUR) per week regardless of how long you stay in the town. Better still, this offer is valid all year long! You can call or e-mail us anytime, and as long as your course starts in 2014, the discount is all yours.

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Why visit Intercultura in Heredia? From the second floor roof terrace of the school you can see the mountains to the north and the valley to the south; from the balcony you can see the colonial church spires and the palm trees of the central park, 4 blocks away, where bright green parakeets gather at sunset, singing so loud you can sometimes hear them all the way from the school! Nearby you also have Barva volcano, the Ojo de Agua natural spring pools, and the La Paz waterfall gardens, where you can hike down a path right next to 6 giant waterfalls. Enough said? Click here for more info.

We hope this selection has been of interest, and may have given you some ideas for some bargain study options for the year ahead. Any Qs at all, please feel free to contact me directly and I’d be happy to help.

Happy planning 😉

Best Wishes,

Ollie

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Oliver Donovan

Agency Product Manager

Email: oliver.donovan@cactusworldwide.com

Cactus Worldwide Monthly Blog: November 2013

Welcome to the November edition of the Cactus Worldwide blog! This month we’re bringing you ideas and inspiration for the fast-approaching festive season…

Hello, and welcome to November’s edition of the Cactus Worldwide blog! My name is Ollie, and I am the Product Manager for our agency, Cactus Worldwide. Our team of experienced course advisors are here every day to discuss options with you and help set up a varied range of unique language-learning experiences, all over the globe, throughout the year, for all of our wonderful students.

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This month’s blog is aimed at letting you know about some of the best options that we have available for language study over the fast-approaching Christmas period! As the vast majority of the private language schools out there close for a few weeks around this time, it can be difficult to find the right option for a special seasonal getaway – so here are our recommendations.

If you have any questions about anything you read here, please feel free to contact me directly via oliver.donovan@cactusworldwide.com and I’d be happy to answer any questions.

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English in Brighton with Cactus Language – Christmas 2013

Regent Language Training, one of our partners here in Brighton on the south coast of the U.K., are keeping their doors open during the festive period (closing only for the Bank Holidays on the 25th and 26th of December, and January 1st) – and they are offering a very special package of classes, host family accommodation and activities for any students who would like to spend the festive season in England, and enjoy a unique cultural experience! You can click on the link here for more details, and please feel free to contact us via info@cactuslanguage.com to check availability, or if you have any questions.

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Regent is an academically-focussed language school, which places emphasis on helping students to achieve their goals in terms of English language. As a medium-sized school, students here benefit from a family-feel environment, excellent facilities and large, bright classrooms, and also receive a personalised learning experience where all teachers really get to know each student and are happy to help with any issue.

Also, why not come to Brighton a day or two early, so you can see the traditional ‘Burning The Clocks’ ceremony on December 21st! The event is a winter solstice festival unique to Brighton, created in 1993, and known for its alternative carnival atmosphere. (Image at top of page)

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German in Berlin with Cactus Language – Christmas 2013

Alternatively, why not spend the holiday period in the second-biggest European city, and arguably the must-visit destination of the decade? Everybody seems to be talking about Berlin at the moment – so why not take the opportunity to visit our partners, GLS, for a very special ‘Christmas Culture Special’, and take the time out to experience the best that this incredible city has to offer.

The full seasonal course is priced at a reasonable 950EUR (£819) all inclusive, or 650EUR (£560) without residential accommodation, and the site opens on December 22nd and closes on January 4th 2014. The course attracts students of all shapes and sizes from across the world – between 40 and 80 students each Christmas, made up of solo travellers, couples and small groups – so you can be assured of plenty of company from friendly, like-minded people!

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Image: the ‘unofficial logo’ of GLS Berlin, who are based on Kastanienallee.

Here’s the full schedule:

22nd:  Arrival, check-in, plus a traditional 3-course German Christmas dinner at the school
23rd: 4 German lessons, plus a Pergamon Museum visit
24th: A guided walk along the famous Under den Linden boulevard, plus movie night at the school
25th: Christmas market shopping at Gendarmenmarkt, plus an evening organ concert at Konzerthaus Berlin
26th: Day trip to Potsdam, a visit of Park Sans Souci, Neues Palais, plus coffee in town
27th: 4 German lessons, free afternoon, plus ballet (Der Nusskracker) in the evening
28th: Guided day trip to Dresden
29th: Visit to Berlinische Galerie, plus a traditional dinner at Max und Moritz
30th: 4 German lessons, shopping, plus a visit to the Johanna Keimeyer art studio
31st: Guided walk in Treptower Park, plus Opera del Futuro & a NYE party at Radialsystem
1st: Ice-skating, plus an evening concert at Berliner Dom
2nd: 4 German lessons, plus a guided visit to the Topographie des Terrors museum
3rd: 4 German lessons, a guided visit of the Jewish Museum, plus farewell drinks and tapas
4th: Departure

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Image: a panoramic view of one of the high-quality studio rooms in the on-site student residence at GLS.

If you like what you see, you can book online here – or feel free to contact us if you have any questions, via info@cactuslanguage.com!

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European Portuguese with Cactus Language – Christmas 2013

Finally, how about a Christmas trip to Lisbon? Our partners, CIAL, also stay open throughout the festive period, closing only to observe the Bank Holiday on December 25th, and what they offer here isn’t a full package of activities and excursions, but an affordable closed group course for a maximum of 12 people, either at Beginner level or Intermediate (two groups). This makes it much more suitable to the independent traveller, and the cost is very reasonable at £401 for the fortnight, so great value in comparison with the high season.

Eirill Søiland, from Norway, spent 4 weeks with CIAL back in August, and she has been kind enough to provide us with some great photos and a brief personal review of the school, her course, and the surrounding area:

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“I did a 4-week Intensive Course at CIAL in Lisbon. I originally wanted to live with a host family, but applied too late for this so did my whole stay in a hostel close to the school, Unreal Hostel. This turned out for the best, as other people from the school also stayed here.

I do not have any Latin language background at all, so found it a bit frustrating to be placed in a Beginners’ class where 5-8 students spoke (almost) fluent Spanish. I felt a bit uncomfortable in this class, so I asked to move, and was placed in a new class which was much better for me.

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Together with the language school I had signed up for 10 surfing classes, which were well organised and really fun! The whole experience was really good, and the only thing I would have done differently would be to change my class a bit sooner, as I think I would have learned even more this way. Lisbon is an amazing city and I would love to go back.”

Again, I hope this has been of interest, and may have given you some ideas for a great way to end the year! Although availability tends to be good on seasonal courses until late on, I would still suggest early booking, before those holiday flight prices shoot up.

Any questions, please feel free to contact me directly and I’d be happy to help.

Happy planning! 😉

Best Wishes,

Ollie

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Oliver Donovan
Agency Product Manager
Email: oliver.donovan@cactusworldwide.com