Officially recognized by Italian Ministry of Education
Italian Language School SCUOLA TOSCANA

scuolatoscana is a member of the Association of Schools of Italian as a Second Language (ASILS) and holds UNI 11863 certification, thereby guaranteeing excellent quality standards.The school is large enough to run all courses year-round, yet small enough to avoid feeling impersonal; this means we know every student personally, and students can always provide us with feedback. At scuolatoscana, you engage not only with the language but also with the Italian culture through our popular extracurricular activities, included in the price. Furthermore, since its beginning in 1989, scuolatoscana has implemented a "Green Choice" program to reduce its environmental impact.

scuolatoscana offers small-group courses with a maximum of ten students per class. However, class sizes usually average 6 to 7 students, offering a real opportunity to practice the language right from the start.

The school offers all levels—from absolute beginner to advanced and masterclass—ranging from A0 to C2 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Courses are highly interactive, allowing students to actively practice the language in both grammar and conversation classes.

You can choose group courses consisting of two, four, or six lessons per day, depending on how much time you wish to dedicate to your studies. An interesting option is the "mix" course, which combines classroom lessons with one or two hours of private tuition, allowing you to address or delve deeper into specific topics of interest.

Cultural activities are one of the school's key strengths. The course price includes three weekly activities, such as city tours and visits to monuments; short seminars on topics like wine, Italian gestures, coffee, pronunciation, and the history of Florence; and excursions to Siena, Pisa, Arezzo, Lucca, and Fiesole. Art history courses include guided tours of all the major museums and sites—such as the Uffizi, Palazzo Pitti, the Accademia, the Duomo, the Baptistery, Palazzo Vecchio, and Santa Croce—with tickets and reservations included.

scuolatoscana offers courses combining Italian with wine and cooking (or intensive cooking), art history, barista training, business Italian, and fashion Italian. We also offer courses for the whole family, featuring specialized classes for children.

scuolatoscana offers single-room accommodation with kitchen access—either with private hosts or Italian families (including half-board options). Thanks to our partnership with a reliable agency, we also offer independent apartments in the center of Florence.

Our courses are open to everyone aged 15 and up. One-third of scuolatoscana students are 26 or younger, one-third are up to 50 years old, and one-third are over 50. There are more young students in the summer, while the winter months attract more adults and senior students.

scuolatoscana’s teachers are all native Italian speakers with university degrees and certifications in teaching Italian to foreigners. They are employed under official contracts and regularly attend professional development courses. They are patient, passionate, and dynamic!

It depends on the season. scuolatoscana is a mid-size school, small enough to allow the directors to know every student personally - and to respond with efficiency and speed to every student' s needs - big enough to have all the courses and levels up and running, the whole year round. You can calculate around 50-60 students in the low season (november through march) and 80 to 110 in the high season (april through october).

It never happens at the scuolatoscana. All the classes are always running, and we do not have a minimum of students for a course: when you receive the confirmation the course, you can be sure that the course will take place anyway, even for you only - no suplements, no last-minute cancellation !

Every month has its advantages - Florence is an all-season international city : if you want to enjoy the "open air" activities it is better to come from May through October - while the museums and art history "fans" enjoy Florence at best during the winter months, because there are less tourists and more time to stare at the masterpieces of Michelangelo, Leonardo, Brunelleschi ...

By air: Florence has an international airport, Firenze Amerigo Vespucci (FLR). It is also possible to arrive at Pisa Galileo Galilei airport (PSA), which is just one hour via shuttle train or "terravision" bus. From Rome Leonardo da Vinci there is a shuttle train to Roma Termini central station and then less than 2 hrs train to Florence Santa Maria Novella central station.

By train: there are international train to the stations of Firenze Santa Maria Novella and Firenze Campo di Marte. Firenze is about 3 hrs train from Milano and less than 2 hrs from Rome.

By car: the historical centre of Florence is closed to the private traffic - only taxis and buses are allowed. Out of the centre is anyway difficult to find a parking - it is adviced to park in a garage (prices from 10 euro/day up). Consider that the historical centre is quite small and it is possible to reach all the famous places by walk; the city buses connect the center with the whole city and you can reach most of the towns and villages in Toscana by bus or by train - therefore we recommend not to come to Florence by car if you do not really need it (we will help you anyway !)

Florence is an international city, therefore prices - especially in "toruistic places" can be sometime unreasonably high. On the other side, there are many ways to visit and enjoy Florence whitout spending too much. At the secretary of the scuolatoscana you can ask for lists of places (restaurants, cafes, bars, hotels, but also markets, shops, museums, cinemas, theatres) where the prices are still surprisingly low and the quality surprisingly good. Moreover, every teacher at the scuolatoscana will be more than happy to share with you her/his advices to live in Florence on a low budget !