Location
  • Spain
    • Santiago
    • Madrid
    • Barcelona
Length
4 - 52 weeks
Program Tags
Au Pair Cultural Immersion Language Immersion

Program Details

Timeframe
Academic Year Fall Spring Summer Winter Year Round
Housing
Host Family
Primary Language
Spanish
Age Min.
18
Age Max
27

Pricing

Price Details
Free registration.
Other costs: Flight fares, visa fares (if applicable), language course (if attending), travel and medical insurance.
What's Included
Accommodation Meals Wifi
What's Not Included
Airfare Domestic Airfare Visa
Sep 30, 2020
Oct 29, 2020

About Program

Would you like to improve your Spanish? Take a gap year? Or just spend your summer holidays? Have you considered being an Au pair?
As an au pair you will receive food, board and stipend at your host family, also free time to attend language lessons or simply relax and enjoy your stay in exchange for childcare and sharing your culture and language with the kids. All these within the safety and confort of a family home. Plus the advice and expertise of Destino Idiomas as a reliable au pair agency.

A cheap, easy and rewarding way to travel, live and learn.
Stays from 1 to 3 months in summer up to 12 months all year.
We receive host families' request from all over Spain.

Video and Photos

Program Highlights

  • Welcoming families
  • Diverse locations all over Spain
  • Our continuous support and follow-up
  • Free board and lodgings plus weekly stipend
  • No admin charges for you

Program Reviews

8.82 Rating
based on 17 reviews
  • 9-10 rating 58.82%
  • 7-8 rating 41.18%
  • 5-6 rating 0%
  • 3-4 rating 0%
  • 1-2 rating 0%
  • Housing 9
  • Support 9.1
  • Fun 8.1
  • Value 9.5
  • Safety 9.5
Showing 1 - 8 of 17 reviews
Default avatar
Sharleen
9/10
Yes, I recommend this program

Amazing Au Pair Programme

Destino Idiomas is amazing! The application process is extremely easy as Ana made a template and prompts that allow you to know exactly what you need to in order to create a great application. I recommend this programme to everyone; there is no fee and you are able to earn money without having to pay rent or for essentials!

I was able to match with a family in the exact area I wanted to stay and I loved being in Cordoba! Despite coronavirus I was still able to enjoy being in Spain, improve my Spanish and be immersed into the culture. I learnt so much and am so happy for the experience. It is completely different to the tourist experience of Spain and I was able to understand the country and Spaniards a lot better! It was a great segway to my university studies (I am studying Spanish) as I was able to improve my fluency and learn a lot about cultural customs. I was able to go to socially distanced concerts, outdoor cinema, visit Castles and Churches, historic sites, go hiking, swim in a stream by a waterfall, eat lots of paella and get to know a family really well!
Ana is very professional but also very kind, I can't thank her enough!

What was the most unfamiliar thing you ate?
Mussels (just a lot of seafood in general!), aubergines with honey, and olive oil with bread with every meal including breakfast
13 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Sive
10/10
Yes, I recommend this program

Au Pair in Spain. Destination Ourense

I stayed in Ourense for 9 months and had an incredible experience. My host family was very welcoming and helped me adjust to the differences in life here. They truly want their au pair to be part of the family, and the whole time I felt valued and loved. My host mom was very understanding and gave me a lot of freedom to go out at night and travel to other cities on the weekends. Ana from Destino Idioms also helped me when I had some small problems and periodically checked in to make sure I was doing well.
I had a unique experience because I decided to stay with my family during the Coronavirus quarantine, which was especially strict in Spain. My host family was very understanding during such a difficult situation, and my host mom and I shared the responsibilities of taking care of the kids. Ultimately, we spend 6 weeks indoors and were able to get even closer through the experience.
I feel that during my au pair year, I was very lucky in terms of finding my family and choosing to live in Galicia. The people here were all very friendly, and the surrounding country and cities are beautiful. My Spanish improved a ton, I became part of a family here, and I made memories that will last a lifetime. I would recommend that anyone considering taking an au pair year should do it!

What is your advice to future travelers on this program?
Explore other cities too - trains and buses are cheap!
14 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Agnieszka
8/10
Yes, I recommend this program

A massive growing experience

I contacted Ana as a bright eyed 18-year-old wanting to immerse myself in the Spanish culture and improve my language. I left my host family feeling like a completely new person- I built a strong connection with my host family, I experienced working hard for the first time and I improved my Spanish massively. It’s definitely a life changing experience, but Ana was available for support whenever it was difficult. I grew up a lot through this experience and I recommend it for anyone seeking a challenge!

What is your advice to future travelers on this program?
Choose your family carefully and manage your expectations. It will be difficult but it will also be rewarding.
10 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Eva
8/10
Yes, I recommend this program

Big challenge

Wow! One word: Challenge. But a good one. It was a great experience, and I grew a lot as a person. Why challenging? Because you will have to adapt to another lifestyle, living with a family you do not know and far away from your friends and family. But that is exactly at the same time the beauty. Your host family will guide you and will make you feel at home, so no worries! It is almost guaranteed that you will grow! so dont doubt it and just go for it. to me it has been an experience i am happy i did not missed it.

If you did this all over again, what's one thing you would change?
Choose your family wisely and take time to choose one. You have to live for a long time together! So it is important to have a good feeling about your future family.
11 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Angela
8/10
Yes, I recommend this program

A Summer in Galicia

This past summer, I spent two months in Galicia, Spain with a wonderful family I met through Destino Idiomas. Ana was very helpful in guiding me through the family-selection process, as this was my first time as an au pair. After I arrived, Ana checked in with me to see how I was doing for the first few weeks, and even after she stopped checking in, I knew she was still a resource for me. It was very comforting to know that if something went wrong, I would have help nearby because my family was back in the United States. In fact, one time, I had stomach issues and went to the clinic, and Ana was on the phone and able to translate for me. I improved exponentially in my Spanish through little effort on my part because I was constantly surrounded my Spanish. I learned so much about Galician culture and fell in love with their wonderful food. During my free time, I took weekends trips with other au pairs from Destino Idiomas that Ana put me in contact with. Although this experience was ony two months, I grew and learned so much and made lifelong friends.

12 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Alexandra
10/10
Yes, I recommend this program

Au Pair in Valladolid, Spain

During this past summer I had the amazing opportunity to live with a great family in Valladolid, Spain. This was an experience I will never forget, I was able to meet many new people, both locals and others in the Au Pair program. My Spanish improved exponentially even with minimal effort on my part. And I met an amazing little girl that I was lucky to take care of for 10 weeks. I also had the opportunity to travel every weekend which allowed me to get a greater cultural experience. Through my agency I was guided from the beginning of my experience when I was preparing to leave, throughout with phone calls to check in, and at the end with follow up messages to make sure I enjoyed my time in Valladolid, Spain. I would recommend this experience to anyone looking to go outside their comfort zone and learn about a new culture.

What would you improve about this program?
More publicity about this program, I would love to see more au pairs in every area of Spain so that right away new au pairs have someone they can explore the cities with.
11 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Jennifer
8/10
Yes, I recommend this program

Au pair in Barcelona

I had a great time in Spain! I've been an au pair in Barcelona for 6 months and really enjoyed my time here. I was able to meet a lot of people from all over the world, learn and improve my spanish and learn more about myself and what I want in life. Being an au pair is truly an amazing experience and you will definitely become more independent.

I am Dutch and was staying with a dutch family, so if you want to learn or improve your spanish my tip would be to stay with a spanish family. This way you will learn quicker because you only hear spanish and you don't have to switch between languages.

I would definitely recommend this program! Ana always let us know when there was a national holiday or when events would happen near you and she also checked up on you every once in a while.

What is your advice to future travelers on this program?
Visit as many places as you can and just enjoy every minute of it, because it is over before you know it!
10 people found this review helpful.
Default avatar
Sabien
9/10
Yes, I recommend this program

au pair Santiago de Compostela

I've been an au pair in Santiago de Compostela for 8 months. The day after I arrived, I went to the office of Destino Idiomas to introduce myself. Ana, from Destino Idiomas, told me a lot about the city and we had lunch together. My hostfamily was amazing, they showed me the city and made me feel at home. Ana was checking on me every once in a while. I didn't have any troubles, but it was nice to know that there was someone in case I needed help.

I've had an amazing time during my stay in Santiago de Compostela. I've visited lots of places, I've made new friends and I feel like my hostfamily became my second family.

Unfortunately, I had to leave Spain earlier than planned, because of a small accident. I've been in the hospital for a surgery and Ana from Destino Idiomas came to visit me. She supported me in my decision to go home earlier and she helped me with everything she could. I would've prefered to finish my gap year differently, but I still look back at it with a big smile.

What is your advice to future travelers on this program?
Visit as many places as you can, try food you've never tasted before and do things you've never done before. But especially; enjoy your time!! Before you know it, you'll be back home!
12 people found this review helpful.

Questions & Answers

Hi, Amelia, Sure you can, the only thing you need to consider is that depending on your citizenship you may have to apply for a visa to enter Spain. Generally speaking any non EU country will need a visa for any stay over 90 days. Visas to enter Spain as au pair are called "au pair visa" but you could also be told by the Spanish consulate in your country about "student visa". Either case, you will...

Hi Lockie, thanks for your interest in au pairing in Spain. Of course you get time off during your stay. General rule is during the week to attend language lessons + at least one complete weekend a month. However, average families offer au pairs full weekends on top of time off during the week. And you also get some holidays: For every 12 months of stay, the au pair has the right to 2 weeks paid...

HI, Lockie thanks for your interest in au pairing in Spain. Basic knowledge of Spanish will help you settle in quicker, but many families host au pairs with no Spanish. What it is most important is that you speak good English regardless of your nationality as English is by far, most requested language by Spanish families. You will interact at all times with the kids in English. Host parents will...

Hi, Anabella, Thanks for your enquiry. Yes, you can. There are a couple of things to be taken into account. Being a Mexican citizen I think your motivation is not learning the language - as we share one - but about our culture, traditions, way of living and so on. That is fine, but you have to bear in mind that Spanish families' motivation to host an au pair is that their children learn a foreign...