If you have decided that your next destination is the Basque Country, you will probably be curious about the Basque language. The official language of the community is one of the oldest in the world and one of the most mysterious too, as no one knows for sure what its origin is.

Why lie? It is not an easy language to learn, and even those who have lived there all their lives find it hard to get into the swing of things. But we are not going to be afraid of success: we are here to give you a hand with the best options so that you can at least learn how to order a beer like a good Basque.

Where to learn Basque in Bilbao?

The Basque capital is one of the best places to learn this language (and to live too). There you will find up to 15 private euskaltegis and an Official Language School, where courses are offered for all levels (yes, even for those who have no idea how to say “hello”). If you want to know where to find them, the Bilbao City Council website has a list of all the options, the address of each one and different methods of contact.

As always, though, we’ll save the best for last: if you’re registered in the city you can get subsidies to get discounts on your tuition. As you can read: the Basque government offers all those who are registered in the city various options for those who want to learn the language, as well as offering a wide range of free tools to help you take your first steps.

Learn Euskera online If your idea is to attend classes from the comfort of your bed and go out alone to practice the language -with a few beers and pintxos-, we won’t judge you (and if you’re reading this in winter, we understand you even more). The good thing is that, as for everything, we have the solution that best suits you. Below, we show you a series of online platforms that offer courses, some of which are even free!

• AISA
• BOGA
• Euskaltzaleak
• AEK
• Basque Lingua
• IKASTEN
• University of Nevada
• RadioKultura
• Easy Basque
• Euskara Munduan
• Mintzanet

These are just a few of the online tools you can find, so now it doesn’t seem so impossible to learn Basque? In addition, to complement your learning, you will also find various books, extensions, YouTube channels, games… there’s no shortage of options, Cotowner!

Various recommendations: if you want to have contact with the language in your daily life, you can also install an Euskalbar plug-in, use the Xuxen corrector, practice with EuskalPlay or download the book Euskararagara, which is available in both virtual and printed versions.

How long does it take to learn Basque?

Like everything in life: it depends, young padawan. Officially, the whole process of becoming Basque-speaking will take you around 2,500 hours -to reach the famous C1 on the European scale-.

The thing is that the more you practice and live with the language, the easier the process will be and the faster you will reach the level you want.

Now is the time when we are going to make your life even easier (you owe us the cane you are going to learn to ask for, eh?): in September 2023 you will be able to practise your Basque as much as you want from our coliving in Bilbao!

Yes, yes, you can start planning your time in the Basque capital, because the life of a digital nomad awaits you there (and so do we).

While you get ready, we’ll leave your room ready for you here and we’ll prepare a post with all the details about how a coliving in Bilbao works, so that the only thing you have to worry about is choosing the best pintxos in town.

We’ll be waiting for you!