Nous sommes Australiens et nous parlons le français au niveau B2.

Dans le passé, on a pris deux cours intensifs qui étaient très efficaces et agréables. Mais cette fois-ci, on a choisi FrenchToday pour la beauté de Belle-Ile, pour l’ambiance tranquille du village, pour l’opportunité de l’enseignement et des conversations personnalisées avec Michel. On n’a pas été déçus !

On se trouvait dans un petit hameau, au milieu des prés et tout était tranquille. On prenait des cours le matin et l’après-midi on était libres. On pouvait faire des randonnées à  vélo ou à pied jusqu’à des plages à l’est, ou à la côte sauvage à l’ouest. Là, les falaises sont à couper le souffle.

Michel est un hôte vraiment génial, avec un bon sens de l’humour, et on a beaucoup ri, même pendant les séances de grammaire. Et voilà un “plus” : Michel est bon cuisinier. On mange tout simplement des repas végétariens ou “pescetariens” délicieux.

A la fin d’une semaine, nous parlions le français plus couramment avec plus de confiance et, bien sûr, de plaisir. Merci Michel !

We’ve now studied with Michel 5 times over the years, so obviously we’re fans, and Belle Île has become one of our favorite places in the world.

If you want a quiet, peaceful place to really concentrate on perfecting your French with a funny, kind, and patient teacher, this is it.

When we started this little language adventure, we had no idea where it might lead us. We have now moved to Paris. You never know how much your life can change once you put things in motion!

I had a week experiencing Michel’s very patient teaching in Belle Isle in July. He lives in an unspoilt hamlet, where the only noise is that of a tractor or the birds.

Without the distractions of other students it is a perfect setting to live and breathe the language.

Learning French in a classroom with a grammar book is one thing, but as I found can not equip you for the “real world” and everyday situations.

I found my listening skills came ahead in leaps and bounds as one is only hearing French spoken at a normal speed.

The opportunity to meet a couple of Michel’s friends who have superb gardens on the Island was a wonderful experience.

If you have a week to enjoy France and love learning the language this in my opinion is the perfect place to go.

A magic place to improve your French

In June 2017, as part of a six week leisurely drive around the heartland of France, my wife and I spent a week on Belle Isle en Mer (France’s largest island – just off the south coast of Brittany) to improve our somewhat basic French language skills.

To cut a long story short – if you have not been to Belle Isle – make sure you get there sometime, even if you don’t want to do a French language course. It is a beautiful place with interesting history, and interesting people. We were fascinated by some of the myths and legends of the island. Jean and Jeanne (two local megaliths) have a particularly interesting story to tell. The place is also a photographers’ and artists’ delight. Claude Monet did about 40 paintings during one of his stays there.

At the outset we had some minor concern about “wasting” the precious time of such a talented man as Michel. However, within a short time, Michel had picked out a few grammar and verb constructs that we were clearly missing – so proceeded calmly and supportively to help us move forward with our French during the week that we stayed in the very nicely renovated 16th century cow shed attached to his house.

You will have the opportunity to hear and learn French from a master of the French language by doing an intensive with Michel. His cooking is not bad either, often including the freshest of produce from his extensive garden. Thanks Michel – for being so patient with, and supportive of, a couple of seniors from Oz!

Logistics: We had rented a car in Zurich so we had that with us on the island. It allowed us to easily get around and see sites of interest. Many other visitors to the island seemed to get around ok either on bikes, by locally rented car, or just walking and using the bus. The very small village where Michel lives has no shops, but we found it to be wonderfully quiet, and with no traffic, as it is at the end of a section of road. The main supermarket for the island is only about 10 minutes away by car.

I recently spent nearly two weeks in the company of Michel Denance in stunning Belle- Ile-en-Mer where I focused on perfecting my French and learning about this lovely island.

If you are an advanced student, serious about taking your knowledge of French to the next level, this is the professor and location for you! Our program, tailored to my needs, consisted of daily lessons from 1000-1230, followed by a delicious lunch prepared by Michel and an outing to a nearby site every few days.

Michel assigned short stories by both French and Québecois writers and that generated lively conversation for us. Although I have a Masters in French, I was challenged by Michel to learn the finer points of French grammar and encouraged to speak as much as possible to enhance my fluency.

He included intriguing articles from internet sites and newspapers and provided songs that illustrated points of grammar and pronunciation particular to me.

While I have studied French for over 40 years with more than 20 teachers/ professors, I have never been more pleased with the attention and talent of an instructor.

I look forward to returning for another immersion next year with Michel.

This was our first French immersion experience, and in spite of our apprehension we were made very welcome by Michel.

Soon after our arrival we were into the study, Michel quickly grasped our strengths and weaknesses, and we agreed on a program for the two weeks of our stay.

The location of the cottage was beautiful, and we soon got into our French routine of going through our homework over breakfast before heading off next door for our morning lesson. Lunch and walking the gardens or down the country lanes surrounding the hamlet during the afternoon before homework. Some afternoons Michel’s smiling face would appear with a baguette to help us through our afternoon study which was always very welcome. We had lots of opportunities for long exploring walks, even a walk into LocMaria, and then back for an evening meal with Michel.

We enjoyed ventures out with Michel to the movies or to tour local highlights, including his friends’ beautiful gardens. This allowed us to practice our french, and torture Michel and his friends with our attempts, but Michel was always encouraging us to continue to try to speak.

Michel is a good and patient teacher, and keen to ensure we learnt correctly. He cares greatly about giving his students a good experience, and has a great sense of humour.

We really enjoyed our time with Michel and he helped us greatly on our onward journey through the French language.

Our thanks Michel from your ‘chouchoux’

Highly recommendable! Michel is an exquisite cook, excellent pedagogue, friendly, jolly and considerate.

Belle-ile offers fantastic outdoor experiences and a nice climate from mid february to november. An experience for a lifetime!

Fantastiskt och effektivt intensivt franskt språkbad.
Tehokad ranskan intensiivi kielikurssi ja kielikylpy.
Effektiv Intensivsprachkurs in Französisch – besser als im besten Hotel!

This was my second immersion course with Michel Denance. Once again, I feel he has helped me enormously.

My challenge was to recover the French I had studied all through school which had become dormant after 30 years of speaking only Spanish.

Last year, after a week’s work, I still spoke in a contorted mixture of French and Spanish, though I was able to read French better and (sort of) comprehend the spoken language.

After this second visit, however, thanks to his attentive instruction, I can now speak much more fluidly, write more clearly and understand a good deal of what is said. All of this has given me much more confidence to speak spontaneously.

As a teacher, he is both adaptable, willing to vary his teaching to the student’s needs, as well as inventive, quick to suggest readings and excursions that might be of interest.

The cozy student living quarters, located in a former stable beside his house, are completely separate with a small kitchen and bath. The arrangement offers both privacy and easy contact.

I found that both the privacy and the isolated location in a tiny village in the center of the island were quite conducive to serious immersion.

Although telephone coverage is sketchy, the internet is fast and reliable and texting is easy via apps like Whatsapp.

French immersion in Belle-Île-en-mer with Michel is the perfect setting to improve your French language skills.

I recently spent a week there and found that as soon as I disembarked the ferry in Le Palais, I felt the noise and stress in life being left behind and replaced with the peacefulness and tranquility of the island. Perfect to get the mind focused for the days ahead.

Good thing because its not long after you unpack that you have your first lesson! Michel quickly identified the nuts and bolts of the language I have difficulty with and put together a learning plan for the week.

There is not much I can add to the outstanding reviews written here by others about their French immersion experience other than I can confirm it is all true.

Michel is a patient and sensitive teacher with a great sense of humor. In no time you will feel “comme a la maison!”

Michel, Borchudan and Belle-Île are the perfect blend to move your French skills forward. Vraiment. It’s real France. Vas-y!