I’m thinking about investing in a french immersion course to improve my language skills and so would be grateful to know of anyone’s experiences with them and what you might advise or recommend. Thank you!
I twice took a two week course in the south of France, 4 hours every weekday morning. They offered cultural activities in the afternoon. I learned a hell of a lot, and enjoyed meeting people from lots of different countries. 4 hours a day was enough for my brain. I’m afraid it was a long time ago, and I can’t remember the names of the schools, but I can definitely recommend it!
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I spent two weeks at a total (residential) immersion course in Spa, Belgium to improve my French. Ceran is the institution (see link). It was outstanding.
There is no escape - you are not “allowed” to speak anything other than French, 24/7, for the entirety of the course.Their rule of thumb is that 2 weeks in an immersion course is the equivalent of 6 months living in the country concerned. Warning - it’s v expensive but worthwhile in my opinion. For example there was a Japanese salaryman at Ceran, ahead of his secondment to France, who arrived speaking zero French. Six weeks of total immersion and he was speaking (to my ear) fluent, business French.
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I can neither afford the time or the money to take such a course but the vital answer I need to know is, how good is your French now, a long time later?
I ask because my own French is worse than it was over 20 years ago. Then I was employed as a driver and all my instructions for the next load etc. came via the telephone in the cab, totally in French. I had no problem with that at the time, apart from the fact that I became well known for asking vital details to be spelled.
However, now, despite living here for all that time and not being largely in an anglophone community, I struggle to keep up in conversation. I know it is partly due to increasing deafness because it has improved with the advent of my hearing aids, but I still don’t find it easy.
I can’t vouch for the course, so I’m not much use!, but the village in which it happens is very pleasant.
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and Fontevraud Abbey has a good restaurant, if I recall correctly… 
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It’s got a very interesting Abbey and Monastery too and is a world heritage site - Henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Richard I and many other luminaries were all interred there. I went to see it in the early 90’s when it was being restored and it was a tumbling down mess with not much to see. I went back about 10 years ago and it’s magnificent. A job really well done by the restoration teams.
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yes, we visited with our Paris car club… some time before 2014.
It must have been after the restorations as it was all very interesting and well presented.
and, of course, the club had arranged a wonderful meal in the cloisters. I thought we would literally be eating “in the open air” of the cloisters, but it was actually indoors
Just looked it up out of interest and the restoration finished in 2006 and started in 1975 ! From what I remember, only parts of the Abbey were open when we first visited and that was around 17 years after restoration started. Most of the interior was stripped bare and the stone sarcophagi of the Kings and Queen were to be found in a side room resting unceremoniously on wooden beams. I’ll have some photos somewhere.
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I didn’t notice anything unceremonious… but each of us views things differently.
I suspect that our experience was coloured by the fact that we were surrounded by our French pals, babbling in French (for some reason 
) very keen to tell us of the history and present Henry and his Wife…
I’m describing what it was like in 1992, part way through the restoration, when everything was in upheaval. When we returned about 10 years ago. The sarcophagi were pride of place in the Abbey.
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Yes indeed - the chef, Thibaut Ruggeri, got his first Michelin star a couple of years ago (maybe more). The prices didn’t go up greatly.
And they’ve developed a museum of modern art in the courtyard in front of the entrance to the Abbaye, though we haven’t yet been.
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One of the many joys of life in France… discovering restaurants/cafes which offer delicious food…
and to get back on-topic… if one joins a French-speaking Club… it is almost as good as an immersion course…
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Certainly the associations we’ve joined, like the choir, dance class and social club, are extremely good for getting to grips with (often very complex) French!
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Yes I visited Fontevrault last September and was blessed with perfect weather:
(click images to enlarge)
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As good as ever. It’s important to experience French every day, and not spend too much time reading/listening to English.
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1 WEEK – 50h of French immersion
– 50 h of French immersion with face to face classes and class related activities
– Visiting emblematic sites of the region
– Meeting Sylvie’s friends and her local partners
– Accommodation in B&B for 6 nights in your teacher’s 4-star gîte La Samsonelle
– 6 lunches with your teacher
– Entrance tickets to local sites and events
– Level assessment and course materials
– Constant personalised coaching and support from your teacher
Rates :
All inclusive 1 to 1: 3250 €
Quite expensive for what appears to be a gîte holiday for a week - albeit a nice one with some French lessons thrown in - but is “50 hours of French immersion” 50 hours of active tuition or a lot of visits to local attractions?
Is this link of any use?
Or, indeed, this one
https://www.google.com/search?q=intensif+cours+de+français
Thanks - really very useful!
I am finding that there are more options available around the country than I had expected, and that the costs and offered course structures vary quite a bit.
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Forgot to mention that you can get them to put you up with a host family fairly cheaply, so you speak French at breakfast and dinner too. Also highly recommended!
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Rocket Languages for me as I can dip in daily for as long as I want daily or whenever I can.
Also, I found this site helped a great deal reading children’s stories with the sound and the translation turned on.