Budapest is in CET – Central European Time (GMT + 2) so please consider this when booking your online CELTA course.
IH Budapest opened in 1988 – we’ve been teaching languages and training teachers for more than 30 years. We’ve moved location three times, but we are still in the same neighbourhood of Buda.
We are very central, next to next to Széll Kálmán Square, a key transport hub in Buda.
IH Budapest has always had a great reputation for teacher training, and in terms of English teaching the school has always covered the full range of adults, young learners, company classes and exam preparation courses.
Managed by Judit Varady, IH Budapest maintains a wonderfully diverse teaching team and student base that makes it an interesting school to work and study at. The different departments of the school all work together to make it a success: happy students and a loyal staff.
Doing the CELTA online with IH Budapest was a rewarding experience. It was tiring, due to Zoom fatigue and the intensive course content, but well worth the effort. Advice – download Zoom onto your laptop and iPhone before the course begins. Then unwind at the end of each day during the course by going for a walk. And … enjoy it! Kaya, April 2020
Life in and around Budapest
At a time when you can only do the CELTA with us online, why would life in and around Budapest be relevant to you? Well, anyone who completes their CELTA with us online is offered a FREE one-week face-to-face course where you can try out your CELTA techniques with a live group and the support of one of our trainers. Once this is possible, you might just find yourself travelling to Budapest after all. So read on.
There's no shortage of culture, with monuments and museums in (to name just two examples) the historic castle district and Heroes' Square. For nightlife, too, there are many options including the famous "ruin pubs" of the 7th district. Nature-lovers are also well-serviced, with the expansive Margaret Island situated in the Danube between Buda and Pest, as well as plenty of walks in the forests of the Buda Hills. Essential relaxation can be sought in one of the many popular thermal bath complexes in Budapest.
Within Hungary there are numerous day and weekend trips you could take - notably to Szentendre, a historic village 20 kms north of the city. Lake Balaton, the main summer resort in Hungary and largest lake in Central Europe, is 90 minutes away by train. Further afield, capitals such as Vienna and Bratislava are a 3-hour train journey.
Studying at IH Budapst
We’ve been a major centre for the Cambridge CELTA since the late 1980s, and have run hundreds of courses, training thousands of teachers. When we made the transition to 100% online delivery in spring 2020, it was vital that we maintained our high standard. Thank to that, and our strong reputation worldwide, we’ve run full courses monthly since then, and have honed our approach to providing top-notch CELTA training.
You might want a window into what that’s like. One way to get a taste is to listen to recent ‘graduates’ of our online CELTA, as they give advice to anyone considering doing the course in this format. In the video below you'll see former trainees talking with Senior Trainer Neil Anderson via the Zoom platform, which is what we use for all live-interactive elements of the course (teaching practice, feedback, assisted lesson planning, input and tutorials). By the way that’s Dan Foyster in the top right frame– He was one of the trainers on that course.
Budapest is the hub or a primary destination for a number of discount airlines, and otherwise a major airport in the region, so it’s easy to get here from just about anywhere.
IH Budapest is located near a main transport hub, so it’s easy to get to by metro and tram from just about anywhere in Budapest. Most CELTA trainees have a “commute” of maximum 20 minutes, with some just taking a short stroll to the school.
There are lots of eateries within minutes of the school. Along with Arriba (tacos, burritos and other Mexican fast food) just next to the school entrance, other popular places include Sandwich Guru (in Mammut shopping centre across the street) and the falafel place facing Széll Kálmán tér. There are tons of coffee shops, including of course Starbucks (two locations nearby).
There are several supermarkets within minutes—one in the basement of Mammut shopping centre across the street, another at street level also across the street, and several others a bit further away.
Accommodation
For that time when we will be able to welcome you face-to-face to Budapest, we will help finding accommodation for anyone who requests it. Flats through us cost around 115.000 Ft per person in a share, 155.000 Ft for a single, including utilities, for a four-week period.
Aside from flats available through us, there’s a huge range in the AirBnB market, with prices from about 200 euros a week for a single or cosy share in the off season and upwards. A room in a shared apartment can be significantly cheaper.
I chose to do my CELTA at IH Budapest because I had heard about its fantastic reputation as a teacher training centre providing TEFL courses, and I wasn’t disappointed. In fact, despite what I had heard, I was still surprised at how excellent the course was. It exceeded all my expectations. The CELTA was one of the best experiences of my life. I had taught for a year before attempting CELTA and I found I had so much to learn. Claire
