Book a Spanish course in Granada: FAQ

We are medium-sized school with approx. 550 to 600 students per year. This means that you will meet about 20 students (for example in January) or 40 students (for example in September) during a course week at our school.

The school building with its Andalusian style, its friendly classrooms, and its beautiful courtyard retains much of the charm and intimacy of a family home. It is located in a quiet area, only 15 minutes away from the city centre. The key monuments of the Alhambra and the Cathedral, the old Moorish quarter of the Albaicín and the gipsy quarter of Sacromonte, as well as numerous shopping areas, are all within walking distance.

We have offered Spanish courses in Granada since 1986. The school is accredited by the Spanish Instituto Cervantes and a D.E.L.E. examination center in Granada. Escuela Montalbán is a member of TANDEM International.

The average age is generally between 25 and 28 years. However, it can vary from course to course and from year to year. We are not a school with mostly teenager students. A lot of 40+ students book our courses all year round.

As far as nationalities is concerned, the student profile at our school is very international.

Regular or low-cost flights to Malaga are available from most European airports. An airport bus takes you to the bus station in the centre of Malaga (C/ Paseo de los Tilos). From Malaga bus station there is an hourly bus service to Granada (07.00 h to 21.00 h; on Fridays and Sundays until 22.00 h) with ALSINA GRAELLS Company. The journey takes 90 minutes. If you are unable to catch the last bus from Malaga to Granada, we can reserve a hostel or hotel for you in Malaga. Granada Airport has flight connections to Barcelona and Madrid allowing students to connect their flights directly to our city. In recent years, the low-cost market has boomed, and this kind of company has proliferated throughout Europe. A lot of these companies now offer new connections to Granada. Together with the course documents we will send you by email information regarding public transport connections from these airports to Granada. We also offer students an organized transfer from Malaga or Granada Airport to your accommodation.

During the weekend you always can contact us at our emergency number 00 34 635 670 460.

Admission to the Alhambra Palace is restricted to the timetables of morning, afternoon or evening, according to the type of ticket purchased.

Alhambra Opening hours:

From November to February:
During the day:
Monday to Sunday:  08.30-18.00 h
- Morning Ticket:     08.30-14.00 h
- Afternoon Ticket:  14.00-18.00 h
Opening hours of the ticket office: 08.00-17.00 h
Evening visit:
Friday and Saturday: 20.00-21.30 h
Opening hours of the ticket office: 19.30-20.30 h

From March to October:
During the day:
Monday to Sunday:  08.30-20.00 h
- Morning Ticket:     08.30-14.00 h
- Afternoon Ticket:  14.00-20.00 h
Opening hours of the ticket office: 08.00-19.30 h
Evening visit:
Tuesday to Saturday: 20.00-21.30 h
Opening hours of the ticket office: 21.30-22.30 h

The Alhambra is closed on the 25 of December and the 1 of January.

As you are taking the Spanish course in the morning, you should reserve an afternoon ticket or visit the monument during the weekend. We strongly recommend students to order Alhambra tickets in advance. The La CAIXA Bank allows tickets to be bought up to three months in advance through their website at www.servicaixa.com. When you arrive at the Alhambra you can then collect your tickets at the ticket office or at a bank of yellow machines in an alcove to right of the ticket offices. You need to insert the credit card which you used to pay for the tickets in order to collect them.

The La CAIXA bank also has a telephone service whereby you can buy tickets by credit card. You will have to select either a morning or afternoon visit but cannot specify the time for entering the Nasrid Palaces. Operators speak English. Make sure you have your reference number and credit card that was used to make the purchase when you collect the tickets at the Alhambra ticket office.
Tel.: (+ 34) 934 923 750 from outside Spain
Tel.: 902 888 001 from within Spain.

Most of your time at the Alhambra Palace complex will be spent in the Nasrid Palaces. A complete tour of the Alhambra Palace complex takes about three hours. You should organise your visit according to the assigned time of admission to the Nasrid Palaces which you will be given when you buy your tickets. Entrance to the Nasrid Palaces is strictly limited to the half hour indicated on your ticket due to the restrictions on maximum capacity in this area (350 people each half hour). You will be refused admission outside this time frame.

Some tickets do go on sale every morning for the same day when the ticket office opens at 08.30 h. Please note you'll need to get there early as long queues quickly develop especially during the high season.

All Sold Out?
The Alhambra often sells out and many people who leave buying tickets until the last minute find themselves unable to gain access. A possible solution is to buy the Granada City Pass (Bono Turístico) which provides access to all the city's main tourist attractions including the Alhambra. These passes are usually still available even when Alhambra tickets have sold out. You can buy this card at the Royal Chapel of the Cathedral. Price: 30 €.

The Alhambra Ticket costs 13 €.

For our general Spanish courses, the minimum age is 16. Sometimes we also accept students younger than 16 years. We also offer a Summer Course for Teenagers with a minimum age of 14/15 years.

No. If you have had no prior experience learning Spanish you should book a beginners course. Students with previous knowledge of Spanish, receive by email together with their course documents, a written level test. They should send back the test at least a week before the course starts.

If you are a beginner, you must start on the specific start dates. If you have some Spanish language experience, you may start on any Monday. It is possible to change a course date without additional costs. We always incorporate our participants in already existing level groups. Our school offers 6 different Spanish course levels.

This depends on your length of stay and personal needs. For example, students who are staying for longer periods of time (more than 8 weeks) generally prefer our Standard Spanish Course with 4 lessons of 45 minutes per day. We offer these long-term courses at reduced fees. Others, who only have a few weeks to learn and want to achieve the maximum benefit in a limited time, prefer to choose Intensive or Superintensive courses. We also offer special programmes such as: One-to-One Courses, Teacher Training, Business Spanish, D.E.L.E. preparation and D.E.L.E. exams or combined Spanish & Flamenco.

After receiving your advance payment we will email the course documents (travel tips, course information, a Granada city map, the accommodation address and a level test). Please give us an email account with enough capacity and check your spam account from time to time, as sometimes documents can get lost.

Call us and ask for José Manuel García. He handles the bookings and his working hours are from Monday to Friday from 09.00 to 15.00 h. He speaks English, Spanish, French and Italian.

Yes, of course. If you do feel that the class you are taking is not at your level, or that your learning progress differs from your class mates', you can speak with the teacher or the director of studies to have your class changed to the appropriate level, or find another solution.

There are no Spanish classes on national and local holidays. These classes are not recoverable. In the case of 1 week courses we only charge the specific course days. One-to-One Courses are made up. Please check the public holidays by clicking here before confirming your enrolment.

All new students meet at 08.30 h at the school office. They start immediately with the course. At the end of the first course day we give all new students an information session about Granada and the school.

A certificate of attendance will be given at the end of each Spanish course and is included in the course price. If they so wish, students are also able to participate in a final, internal examination to obtain the «Certificado de Nivel de Español como Lengua Extranjera» (Price: 30 €).

Yes. We offer combined Spanish courses together with our TANDEM partner schools in San Sebastian, Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid und Cadiz.
For further information regarding the costs and the enrolment procedure, please contact José Manuel García at: cursos@escuela-montalban.com

Granada is a popular tourist destination and if you wish to book accommodation during high season (Easter Week or September/October) we advise you to make the reservation as soon as possible. We do accept last minute reservations. Please check accommodation availability with us.

We will email you the accommodation address and a city map, together with the course documents.

All accommodations are booked from Sunday prior to the beginning of the course until Saturday (12.00 h) after it finishes.

Yes, you can check in on Saturday and check out on Sunday if you wish. There are special fees for extra nights. Please visit our prices section for more details.

Yes. Please inform us about your visitors and the dates. Visitors pay these nights at the school office. Please check our prices section for more details.

All our accommodations are located in Granada city centre and in walking distance (approx.10-15 minutes) to the school.

Sheets and blankets are included. Please bring your own towels and other necessities you may need to make your stay comfortable.

This depends on the type of accommodation you have:
- Shared flat with Spanish people: you participate in the cleaning tasks; you can use the washing machine.
- Shared flat with students from the school: you participate in the cleaning tasks; you can use the washing machine. The school cleans the flats on a regular base.
- Host family: the cleaning service is included, as well as one laundry per week.
- Student Residence: the cleaning and washing service is included.

Please note, that the main meal in Spain is generally lunch at 14.30 h, for those who have booked half or full board at a host family or at the Student Residence.

Yes. Please inform us about your special needs (vegetarian, animal allergies etc.).

Please email us your arrival date / arrival time at least a week before your course starts. We will inform your hosts. In the case of accommodation with other students from the school, the students generally will wait for you. Go directly to your accommodation address and ring. If you have a delay or any other problems call us at: 00 34 635 670 460.

Yes. We also offer accommodation to students who do not enrol for a Spanish course with us.

Electricity and water are included in your payment. Especially in summer there is a water problem in Granada. Please don't waste water.

Yes. Please inform us as soon as possible before your arrival. If you already have moved into your accommodation and you decide to leave it, we do not reimburse the amount.

We will do everything possible to ensure that your stay is comfortable. In case of problems, doubts or questions, please talk to us and we will offer you a solution.

We offer an interesting culture and activities programme, with at least four events every week.There are also day trips during the weekends and a 3 days excursion to Morocco once a month. Most of these activities are not included in the course price. We present the culture programme every Monday. Students enrol for the activities and pay the costs at the school office. Here you will find the actual culture programmes.

In order to obtain a local language exchange partner, you need to attend a long-term Spanish course for at least 8 weeks. TANDEM is not suitable for beginners. We cannot guarantee this programme, particularly during the vacation period from June to September or for languages which are uncommon. This service is free of charge.

We offer an optional travel health insurance that we recommend to our students. The costs are 1 € per day.

Yes. We recommend that you give your friends and relatives the school's address rather than your accommodation's.

We offer free Internet access/WIFI to our students during school hours.

Monday to Thursday: 09.00 - 18.30 h
Friday: 09.00 - 14.30 h
The school is closed on Saturdays, Sundays and feast days. If you need to talk to us during the weekends, call us at: 00 34 635 670 460.

We accept short notice enrolments (depending on availability) until Friday before the course starts on Monday.

Yes. On receipt of a 120 € deposit we will reserve your course and accommodation and we will send you all course documents.

Please check our conditions before you enrol: In the event of cancellation, the school reserves the right to retain the advanced payment of 120 €. However, this fee will remain valid for another course in the future. Students who start but do not finish their programme will not be refunded any amount of course and accommodation fees.

You can pay:

- in cash during the first course day.
- by credit card (VISA/MasterCard) during the first course day.
- by wire transfer to our bank accounts before the course starts.

Should you wish to pay by credit card we add a 3,5% to the total amount payable.