LTL Language School 

Iv'e been at LTL (Shanghai and Chengdu) for half a year now and so far I can definitely recommend this school to anyone who wants to study Mandarin! I have a lot of positive things to say so i will try to make it as organized as possible.

Organization:
Mojca was very quick to respond and the application process went smoothly. Check your Documents for the Visa Application though, since my first ones had incorrect information on them.

Management:
I had some problems with my Homestays (First in Shanghai due to miscommunication , second in Chengdu due to lack of cleanliness in the apartment). Both times the schools were very quick to react and changing Homestays was no problem. In Shanghai they reacted a bit too quick, which led to more additional problems with my homestay since I didn't get the chance to talk to them first before the school did. So if you encounter any problems with the Homestay talk to them first before you tell the school about it because LTL takes these problems very seriously and wants to eradicate them as soon as possible. It turned out very good in the end and I'm grateful for their quick response and good advice, just keep in mind that sometimes you can fix these issues yourself, without having the school get involved.

Location:
Both the Shanghai and Chengdu school were very central, with lots of restaurants and other interesting places around them, which was very convenient.

Shanghai School:
I made some of my best friends in Shanghai and I would love to go back someday. Both of my teachers, Kristen and Jason were very kind and made my Chinese progress from absolute 0 to HSK3 in 5 months. They didn't just teach me the words in the book and the grammar but additionally taught me more frequently used words, other alternatives and put me to the test in regularly making me use those words and structures. The lessons were very easy to follow and made me learn a lot about chinese culture and history. They were very helpful whenever I had problems (whether that might be setting up an account on a platform, ordering coffee for the first time,...) Especially Kristen went out of her way to help us and even accompanied my friend to the hospital. Jason on the other hand was very involved in freetime activities, often accompanied us to eat and taking us to his leisure time activities, such as archery. I loved this and me and my friends always had a lot of fun while having a chance to connect even more! These activities are definitely a great opportunity to make friends. It was hard to say goodbye to them and I hope I'll see them again!

Chengdu School:
When I first came to Chengdu my teacher PanPan and I became friends immediately. She is very quick to pinpoint my weaknesses and helps me to erase them very quickly. She is also very assuring and gives me a lot of motivation to study. Classes with her always feel very comfortable, even though she pushes me lot, especially when it comes to writing characters. The wellbeing of her students is very important to her and she makes sure everyone is included! She also regularly goes out with us and plans fun trips, even taking us to travel to another city and organizing the entire trip. We all had different interests but she made sure that everyone got to see the places they wanted to visit and do the activities the showed interest in. (Which was only another demonstration of her great organization skills).Making friends in Chengdu felt as easy as in Shanghai, thanks to her. I want to go to University in China and Panpan helped me look up a lot of universities, their requirements and even called one of the schools! She isn't only a teacher that wants to help, she truly is a friend that wants to see you succeed. Even when not at work she spends time with her students and simultaneously teaches a lot about cultural differences, how to bargain prices and a lot of words people use on the internet that otherwise might confuse people that only work on the HSK books. Because of that, it has also been a lot easier to communicate with Chinese people roughly my age because I understood more of their inside jokes and references. All of the Chengdu teachers are amazing, that dedicate a lot of time and passion to their students and you can tell they all enjoy doing their job. They helped me gain a lot of confidence in my chinese speaking and even taught me Sichan hua! (The local dialect). It was a bit of a struggle at first to understand the locals here but after their explanation of pronunciation and how certain letters are used differently I've become way quicker at understanding it.

In total LTL is a good school that I would definitely recommend to other people who want to study chinese efficiently!

Huge thanks to Daniel for being such an incredible Chinese teacher during my time with LTL in Chengdu! He’s kind, hilarious, and great at explaining the nuances of the language. Our group lessons were always the highlight of the day thanks to his interesting topics that got us very deep into Chinese language and culture :) Highly recommend! 谢谢 Daniel 🫰

I have just returned from my second stay in Chengdu and can strongly recommend the LTL language school. The atmosphere is shaped in a very positive way by the teaching team—Panpan, Unicorn, Alex, and Ying laoshi—who work closely together and are clearly very committed to their students’ progress.

What stood out to me most was how welcoming and supportive the environment feels. The teachers make a real effort to include students in informal settings (lunch!!) as well, which helps create a relaxed learning situation and encourages more natural use of Chinese in everyday conversation.

My teacher Panpan was particularly memorable. Her lessons were always engaging and full of energy, and she has a wonderful sense of humor that makes speaking Chinese feel much less intimidating. I also admired her Chinese handwriting—it is exceptionally neat and aesthetically pleasing, and makes reading characters surprisingly easy.

Overall, my experience at LTL was both enjoyable and highly motivating, and I would gladly recommend it to anyone serious about learning Chinese.

One of the things that is really impressive about the LTL program is the amount of flexibility they offer to what you want to learn. In many ways, I think I am probably one of their “difficult” students, as my goal isn’t to pass the HSK or get a certain proficiency in business Mandarin. People with those goals will have well defined curriculums they can follow. My goal is a lot more vague – being able to communicate with Chinese people in everyday settings, which has probably meant a lot more work for my teachers as they figure out how to design a curriculum around that.

I have been really impressed with what they have done. I have two teachers: Wei and Daniel. Daniel engages me for two hours every afternoon, asking me questions about life, my philosophy, and trying to build my Chinese vocabulary for deep discussions I would have with people. It helps build insight into Chinese culture, as we translate various proverbs from English to Chinese, and discuss how the Chinese wa of thinking differs significantly from a Western style of thinking.

In terms of everyday Chinese, Wei had been an absolute gem. She quickly identified that I had a mid-intermediate level for speaking, but quite a low level for listening. I have really appreciated how strict she has been at not letting me take shortcuts by only picking out keywords and ensuring I can identify each word.

I think in my previous classes, my teacher on iTalki had focussed on encouraging people, and learning Chinese culture. This had allowed me to get away with grasping at keywords and trying to fill in the blanks from context, with the assumption that as I continued working that I would get better at filling in those gaps. Unfortunately I was really reaching the limit of this technique, and the natural listening improvement wasn’t happening. Wei identified this, and really helped me build techniques to improve my ability to listen to Chinese.

Wei is also very connected throughout Chengdu, and will often invite various college friends to the school, giving us opportunities to continue practicing Chinese with native speakers who are also trying to learn English. This has added to the number of “effective hours” of immersion I had during these 3 weeks.

Drawbacks?

I would say the biggest drawback is that LTL runs a little like a startup, so sometimes things can fall between the cracks. This made my first couple of days a little bit of a bumpy ride as I tried to figure out how things operated in China. But once everything was set up, and I was in classes, everything has gone really smoothly since!

tl,dr;

I would highly recommend LTL in Chengdu. Their program is very flexible, and tailored to what you want to learn. Chengdu is a city that is easy to navigate by rail (even without no Chinese!) and a very pretty part of the country, but also one where it will be hard to find other native English speakers. You end up having to use the Mandarin you’ve learnt for all your everyday activities.

I had the best experience with LTL Chengdu! The classes were really taught well, and my classmates and me were really engaged with the class. Our teacher Cora was also very good and supportive with each of our learning challenges, helping us progress through our Mandarin levels. I only wish I had more time so that I could enroll in a longer program. I hope to come back soon!

I had a great class 1v1 with My Linh, she was really accurate by analysing my skills & needs and customizing my individual class.
I was working really hard with her on my reading skills, and my cultural knowledge. She taught me a lot about Vietnamese culture, literature, and language. She was also really accurate with my pronounciation and corrected me whenever I made a mistake.

I'm so glad I decided to join LTL Chengdu. I have the best teacher! Wei is absolutely amazing. When I signed up for the intensive course I was a bit nervous about the intensity and whether I'd be able to do it but it's been great so far and that's all thanks to Wei! She makes the classes fun and we spend time on various aspects including learning new content, revising existing content, speaking exercises and listening exercises. She mixes things up and there is never a dull moment. She took her time to really understand my goals and is always thinking of how to help me. Each day, she shows up with new ideas on how to help me with my blockers. She also encourages me to speak to locals in mandarin and sometimes accompanies me helping me to get the conversation started. This has really pushed me out of my comfort zone and as a result I've improved so much!!! It's unbelievable how much I've progressed in just two weeks! She is a top-notch teacher and I'm very much looking forward to the rest of the programme.

Thanks LTL Chengdu!!

I had two weeks of educational leave in Chengdu.

Chengdu is a great city with many opportunities. Great food and pandas to see! The school is in the City center. A modern building. I was very impressed with the LTL School. All the staff are incredibly welcoming, very helpful, and always there for me with advice and support.
I had six hours of classes daily. Four hours were group lessons. There were three of us, and our teacher, Amy, did a fantastic job. She always motivated us and gave us a lot of information. She was also incredibly patient and even got us singing. That was fun and we really enjoyed it.

My private lessons were two hours a day. Unfortunately, I had three different teachers during the first week. However, during the second week, I had the same teacher, Qi, and she was simply amazing! She helped me speak, was very patient and motivating, really listened to me, and we found topics we could talk about. Thanks to her, I felt very supported and was able to improve my Chinese.

My homestay was with a woman who was a little younger than me. She was absolutely lovely, a fantastic cook, and I was very surprised by her friendly nature and helpfulness. She's a wonderful woman, and we're still in touch today.

I'm so incredibly grateful that I had the opportunity to get to know China, that I was able to improve my Chinese, and that I made new friends.

I had two weeks of intensive chinese with Sara Liu. Very good teacher. She was able to judge my level and help me to advance quickly. Patient, encouraging, intelligent and charming. Very good experience.

My stay at the language school in Beihai was a truly positive experience. From the beginning, I received a very warm and friendly welcome, which made me feel comfortable right away.
What impressed me most was the strong focus on individual needs. The teachers adapt the lessons to each student, making learning both effective and motivating. The staff is always helpful, approachable, and ready to support in any situation.
The learning program is excellent—well-structured, engaging, and highly practical for everyday use.
I can highly recommend this school to anyone looking for a supportive and professional environment to learn Chinese.

Я считаю мой учитель самый лучший , Summer , это лучшие 4 недели обучения в этой школе. Спасибо огромное, что я сегодня могу выражать свои мысли, применять полученные знания и общаться с новыми друзьями .

Studied at LTL Chengdu and have been very impressed with both the flexibility of the lesson scheduling and cohesion of the LTL community’s social life. My teacher Yi Wu is energetic and created the space for me to explore the Chinese language beyond the HSK curriculum.

Highly recommend LTL and particularly their Chengdu school!

Das Team der LTL Sprachachule Tokyo ist ein lustiger und bunter Haufen mit vielen unterschiedlichen Interessen, was im Hinblick auf den Unterricht super ist! Wenn man die Lehrer zeitnahe informiert, gehen sie auf Wünsche und Forderungen ohne Weiteres ein. So kann man sich also auch mit Wortschatz, Phrasen und Redewendungen seines eigenen Interessengebiets eindecken lassen, denn man ist keineswegs an das Lehrbuch gebunden. Der Stoff, der in der Stunde durchgenommen wird, wie viel und auf welche Weise kann von der Gruppe/einem selbst bestimmt werden und ist daher hervorragend für Personen, die aus eigener Motivation lernen können und wollen.

Die negative Seite dieser Flexibilität ist, dass es schwer werden kann die richtige Gruppe zu finden. Es wird durchaus versucht Schüler mit unterschiedlichen Sprachleveln unterschiedlichen Gruppen zuzuteilen, jedoch passiert dies mit Hilfe von Einschätzung des Lehrers und vorallem des Schülers selbst. Dies kann manches Mal den Lernprogress des Unterrichts verlangsamen.
Auf der einen Seite ist es wirklich super, dass es im regelmäßigen Abstand Events/Ausflüge gibt, die man besuchen kann. Auf der anderen Seite wirkt die Art und Weise, wie man davon erfährt bzw. dazu motiviert wird leicht chaotisch und/oder ist manches Mal zu kurzfristig. Da der Altersdurchschnitt relativ jung ist, denke ich, dass in diesem Bereich möglicherweise mehr Struktur nicht schaden könnte.
Beispielsweise könnte man am Vortag/Vormittag Listen durchgeben, mit denen man sich (un)verbindlich für das anstehende Event anmeldet. Auf diese Weise müsste man nach dem Unterricht nicht die Schüler anwerben sondern zählt nur einmal durch ohne großes Durcheinander.

Abgesehen von den paar angesprochenen Mängeln habe ich mich während meines zweimonatigen Aufenthalts gut aufgehoben gefühlt! Man wird immer mit einem strahlenden Lächeln und einer familiären Atmosphäre an der Rezeption begrüßt und auch während des Anmeldeverfahrens wurde mir mit viel Geduld bei meinen Problemen geholfen.
Ich bin sehr froh diese Schule gefunden zu haben und kann sie herzlich weiterempfehlen.

Summer teacher was the best one I had in my life.
I had really a good time there, I learned a lot of chinese.
Really good Experience, I reccomend this school to all.
Summer is truly the number one—an exceptional professional and an even better person. Her passion, dedication, and ability to make every lesson engaging set her apart from anyone else. She explains everything with clarity and patience, making even difficult topics feel simple. Learning with her is always motivating and enjoyable. I couldn’t ask for a better teacher—highly recommended to anyone looking for the best! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

My teacher, Summer, was excellent! We started every class on time and her speaking of Mandarin was always very clear. Her classes were always challenging and helpful! The city of Beihai is small for a Chinese city and the prices for food and other things are inexpensive compared to other cities in China and much cheaper than my hometown in the United States. The school organized many activities that many students participated in. The weather was quite nice while I was in Beihai and the city is on the sea. I am quite happy I chose to come to LTL Beihai.

I had a great experience studying Vietnamese at LTL in Ho Chi Minh City.

The Vietnamese classes were a good balance of theory and practice. My teacher explained things clearly and often told stories, which made it much easier to remember new vocabulary.

Fang ying juan tang

I had a really great time here and was welcomed very warmly. Had to chanche to get taught by two great teachers named Fang Ying and Juan Tang. Thank you guys for everything

Hey Korean Language Learners!
I originally spent 3 weeks at LTL Shanghai learning Mandarin, and had such a good experience that I decided to return to LTL, but this time in Seoul to improve my Korean. LTL Shanghai included not only classes, but a fun community of fellow students, as well as some fun activities in the evening organized by the school. This is more or less also what I expected when I signed up for another 3 week stay at LTL Seoul, but my actual experience so far has vastly exceeded my expectations.
As I’ve only had classes with one teacher, I can only speak to my experience with 다영 선생님, who makes class fun and full of laughter, but also ensures that she both challenges and supports us students when it comes to both comprehension and oral expression. Class often passes by very quickly, as there’s been a high emphasis on speaking, as opposed to the teacher simply lecturing us about the language for 4 hours. Speaking from my experience both in Shanghai and Seoul, your fellow students also tend to be very motivated, as they’re spending their time and hard earned money to make as much progress as possible in the limited time they have at school.
While the academic portion so far has been very enjoyable and effective (in 2 short weeks I’ve already seen visible progress on my goal to read Korean at a quicker, more natural pace and increase my practical vocabulary), where LTL Seoul shines the brightest is the staff, which I feel are the heart and soul of the academy. Hailee, Manuel, Sebastian, and Violet have done, and continue to do, such an amazing job welcoming us and fostering an incredible experience for all the students.
Before even arriving in Seoul, Violet would respond to various questions I had about the academic program, learning materials, and even helped to sort out accommodations (which I don’t think is even part of her responsibilities). Once I arrived in Seoul, Manuel was in constant contact with me, making sure that I knew how to get to my accommodation without getting lost, and also ensured that everything at the accommodation was prepared properly. Shortly after settling into my 고시원 (a kind of low rent, single occupancy room), Violet and Hailee took myself and other students out for a picnic on the Han River. I had been in Seoul not even 3 hours and I was already getting a nice local experience with fellow students that I probably would never have considered doing on my own. Hailee not only helped to organize events and accompany students to them while the school was looking for a new Culture Specialist. And finally, when Sebastian (the new Culture Specialist) arrived, he hit the ground running with organizing a karaoke event, getting to know the students, and planning further events according to the interests of the students.
I went to LTL Seoul expecting to have a nice time while improving my Korean a bit, but I never really thought I would seriously consider returning anytime soon. Now I’m looking at my schedule and trying to figure out if another trip this year is possible, or if I’ll have to wait until next year. In either case, I look forward to returning to LTL Seoul very soon!

Ho frequentato per 10 settimane la LTL school. Sono rimasta estremamente soddisfatta della mia scelta e la consiglio vivamente a chiunque sia interessato ad imparare per davvero a parlare in coreano. Il mio insegnante Kyle é stato eccezionale: il suo approccio nell’insegnamento è innovativo, le lezioni sono sempre state molto interessanti, passando dalla grammatica ad argomenti di cultura. La mia classe era composta da 4 studenti e ció ha fatto si che fossimo perfettamente seguiti dal nostro insegnante. Menzione speciale allo staff della LTL: Manuel, Vivian, Max e Hylee sono persone speciali, ti accolgono nella scuola come fosse una grande famiglia, sempre sorridenti e gentili. Ho lasciato un pezzo del mio cuore alla LTL e sono certa che torneró a studiare in questa scuola ♥️

I was thinking a lot before actually applying to a language school and I’m so glad I did. I came here with my best friend and we were really anxious of speaking. Since we started 6 weeks ago we improved so much! We are very very grateful for the whole team, the nicely organized activities, the lunch together, the Support, the effort of capturing our experiences via photos or videos and also for our teacher. We had and still have a blast ❤️ lots of love, 노라