Whenever you travel, some things are essential. One of them is security. Another is having the right budget. And then there is comfort. Just like our caveman ancestors, we all need somewhere safe and comfy to sleep!

With this in mind, at ESL we place great emphasis on finding the right accommodation option for all of our students; when you feel secure and comfortable in an environment that suits you, then you can really have the experience of a lifetime during your language study trip.

Naturally, your first considerations when booking your trip should be the destination and the language school, but your accommodation will make a big difference too and should be a factor in your decision.

You need to think about your personal motivations for taking a language course abroad as these will affect the kind of accommodation that is best for you.

In the last decade, as the study abroad industry has grown and evolved, there has been a noticeable shift in student expectations and accommodation options have expanded to meet the new needs.

Homestay/Host family

Staying in the home of local people is known as “homestay” and was, for many years, the only option available to language learners who didn’t want to stay in a hotel. It is sometimes called “host family” accommodation but isn’t always a traditional mum/dad/kids arrangement.

There are many advantages to homestay and we believe it is still the most effective accommodation choice if you want to make rapid progress with the language you are learning. That’s because you are in real immersion. Staying with a local family, you speak the target language first thing in the morning and last thing at night. You taste the flavours of local food, have an authentic experience of local life and often develop a strong bond with your hosts.

Homestay is an attractive option for students who have never lived away from their own families before – a kind of gentle introduction to life away from the comforts of home, while still enjoying the comforts of home.

But the last ten years have seen a gradual shift away from the homestay/host family tradition and towards residential accommodation shared with other international students.

Student residence accommodation

If you are ready to experience real autonomy, a shared apartment or student residence is the option for you. In this kind of accommodation, you share digs with international and local students and have responsibility for your own meals (although some catered options are available), laundry… and waking up on time in the morning!

Your study abroad experience will be quite different to the traditional homestay arrangement. Student residences and shared apartments offer an incredibly diverse and international living environment where you will share your time with people from a whole variety of different backgrounds. You have the chance to spend your evenings with people from all corners of the Earth, sharing experiences and enjoying a crash course in new cultures.

In this kind of accommodation you learn to use the language as a lingua franca. The flipside is that you will not enjoy the same level of immersion as you would with a host family and you will not be exposed to the same level of the language. It’s a much more international experience: you lose some cultural insight into the place in which you are staying but gain experience of living in an international environment.

Most residences offer shared kitchen facilities, a great opportunity to meet other students and share recipes or some of the food budget.

When schools first started offering student residence accommodation, it usually belonged to local universities whose students were away during the summer months. In recent years, however, the comfort needs of young travellers have increased dramatically. 

Standards of residences are constantly increasing; many offer leisure areas like swimming pools (here in Fort Lauderdale), roof terrace with common areas or a fitness centre.

En suite bathrooms, free Wi-Fi and a flat-screen TV in the common areas are now becoming commonplace in developed markets such as the United Kingdom, Australia or the USA which are part of the top international destinations for learners of English.

A wide range of residential accommodation is offered to suit all budgets, like here in Australia, from dormitory rooms to shared luxury apartments.

ESL’s Products Director Krister Weidenhielm says “We have seen a big increase in both demand and expectations for residential accommodation. Main reasons for choosing residential accommodation are the level of autonomy and independence, particularly in terms of timetable for eating or managing your daily life. Then, the choice to live alongside other students on the same wavelength, truly an international community experience that adds a real value to a language stay in terms of meetings, interaction and friendship. Another reason would be the needs for a more tangible or standardised description of accommodation; in terms of facilities or in terms of location and distance to school that a residence can immediately offer.

For a long time, ESL has been actively encouraging its partner schools to offer a wider range of accommodation in line with student expectations; it is good to see many schools are now investing in this essential part of the study abroad experience. On our side we have also increased the level of information we provide about accommodation as we are convinced that picking the right accommodation plays an important role in making the language stay a successful one at all levels”

Students having breakfast together in a residence in Bournemouth and Student checking emails while having breakfast in the common kitchen of a student house residence in Brighton. Community experience, timetable autonomy and wifi access are amongst the main criteria of students today.

The ESL team regularly visit the accommodation options offered or new accommodation being developed by our partner schools around the world.

Krister Weidenhielm visiting a new residence accommodation under construction in the UK just beside the building of our partners from Liverpool School of English. The rooms will include en-suite bathrooms and comfortable social areas for students to mix and enjoy their independence. The accommodation will be available from summer 2013.

Don’t underestimate the importance of your accommodation

Believe it or not, our Teams, who are responsible for the organisation of ESL students experience abroad, probably deal with more queries about accommodation than about academic or other travellers questions. Choosing the right accommodation is a very important step when organising your language study stay.

Think about the kind of experience you want to have. If your goal is to make maximum progress with the language you are learning while enjoying an authentic insight into local culture, homestay is hard to beat. Many of our students stay in touch with their host families long after returning. Besides, homestay often remains the best value for money accommodation option.

If you want more independence and a cosmopolitan atmosphere, student residences and shared apartments will be more in line with your expectations. There can be a party atmosphere, so be prepared!

And, most importantly, remember that we regularly visit partner schools and are familiar with what is on offer at each school. Don’t be afraid to ask our team for accommodation advice! 

Students having a barbecue on the roof terrace of the residence overlooking Sydney