French Immersion Programs: Behind L’Alliance New York’s Culture and Language Voyages

L’Alliance New York’s Culture and Language Voyages are international experiences led by native French speakers, and the mastermind behind their programming is L’Alliance New York’s Pedagogical Director, Guillaume Lefèvre. Born in Normandy, France, he began his career as a high school French professor in Quebec City, became the academic director at private language school Edu-Inter, then moved to New York City eight years ago and joined L’Alliance. 

Thanks to Lefèvre’s deep knowledge and curation, you’ll discover the beauty and diversity of locales such as Paris, Quebec City, Normandy, and Bordeaux while strengthening your French speaking skills and traveling alongside fellow Francophiles. 

And better yet, your entire itinerary is pre-planned, so all you need to do is show up and prendre la parole. You’ll go on guided tours of cultural sites, attend daily classes at partnering language schools, enjoy group dining outings, and have allocated solo exploration time. We spoke with Lefèvre about what it’s like to experience these unforgettable French immersion programs. 

Are most of your participants from New York City? And how big are the groups?

The majority, yes, but I have people from San Diego and Seattle, people from Chicago and Boston. 20 people is the goal for group size.

What can travelers expect from a culture and language voyage? How should they prepare?

We try to arrive on Saturday or Sunday, so people can rest…either in their hotel or with their host family. And if we arrive on Saturday we try to arrange an activity or excursion on Sunday so they don’t lose too much time. What we do depends on where we are going and the specialities of the region. For example, we recently went to Bordeaux, a region famous for its wines, so we visited the Cité du Vin, which is a big wine museum. And then every morning throughout the week, our travelers take French classes at L’Alliance or another private school we work with. After having lunch, we go to an activity or an excursion throughout the region. 

What are some notable excursions and activities you’ve taken?

It all depends on the destination and the season. Of course we always spend a lot of time exploring the city itself, but we also do lots of other fun activities. In Quebec City, if it’s wintertime, we’ll do mostly outdoor activities in the snow, like ice skating, skiing, or snowshoeing. In Bordeaux, it’s a lot of vineyards and wine tasting. In Rouen we go to Giverny and the garden of Claude Monet, as well as the famous Mont Saint-Michel. 

Why is a culture and language voyage with L’Alliance New York better than going to a French-speaking country or province on your own?

It’s an all inclusive type of trip, so everything is pretty well organized for our travelers. It makes it easier, so people don’t have to worry about what’s going to be next. And the French classes in the morning… without those they wouldn’t enjoy it as much! It’s a great immersion in the language. We only have really great feedback from our students. Some people really enjoy the home stays and I encourage people to stay with a host family if they want to enjoy the culture and not just the language. The itinerary that we plan is something they can enjoy during the day, but at night when they’re with their host family, they’re going to eat and share experiences with a local person. 

Why are French immersion programs like these so important for building language skills? 

For French classes here in New York, they only have 90 minutes per week, sometimes three hours a week… but even though it’s a great start, it’s not enough. Students will come, do their French class, and then they go back to their other activities and work and family, and they don’t really practice French outside of the class, because they don’t have this opportunity. So I just wanted to give them this opportunity—it’s a continuity of class. The immersion is like pushing a baby in the swimming pool. Like, sorry, but you just have to learn to swim now! And they’re learning new dialects, new ways that people speak. It’s going to be different accents, different expressions, words, but in the end you’re going to be able to communicate with more people. Depending on where you are in the country, people don’t eat at the same time, they don’t eat the same food… so it’s good for our students to see the different aspects of France. 

What are some ways you see voyage participants blossom during and after their trips? 

I would say in their confidence. They realize they can go to a store and just converse, discuss. And sometimes you can see it in their eyes, you know, like little stars. When we go to a new place for them and they see the beauty of nature, or they go to a museum for the first time. They are just very happy to be at this place, all together. It’s really great. It’s not just like going on a trip—it’s also an opportunity to meet new people and make new friends. Lots of people continue on after trips in chat groups, texting, or they go to brunch together–even sign up for more trips together with us! 

What’s a special memory from a past culture and language voyage?

In October 2022, I wanted to go back to Cannes. That was a great success, we had 20 people… they were this awesome group, a big variety of people from different backgrounds. But lots of them realized they went to the same high school, even if they’re retired now. Two of them realized they were neighbors—like, one or two blocks away from each other. I remember one day very clearly on that trip, we were at a restaurant…everybody stopped and was like, “Where are we going next?” So I organized a Bordeaux trip around this group, I already knew what they wanted, and this same group did it!

What’s one of your favorite French-speaking locations to visit?

Through these trips, I always discover lots of great areas, especially in the South of France. Rouen was a classic because it’s so close to Paris, and it’s an hour away from Normandy. It’s one of the biggest cities in the Normandy region, and to me that was the perfect destination. For the trip, it’s just one weekend in Paris and then the rest is in Normandy and Mont Saint-Michel, which is a village between Normandy and Brittany. Mont Saint-Michel is a tiny hilled island, and on the top there’s a very famous church. At low tide you can access it easily—even by walking through quicksand!—and during high tide the water goes all the way up to the village, surrounding it on all sides. The place is absolutely beautiful—it’s part of the seven new wonders. It’s something that’s going to be one of the highlights of our upcoming Normandy trip. 

No matter what level of French speaker you are, French immersion programs help enrich both your language and your experience as a citizen of the world. Learn more about upcoming voyage itineraries, tuition details, sign up for an info session, or fill out a registration form here. For any questions, contact Guillaume Lefèvre at glefevre@lallianceny.org or (646) 388-6626.