Residential
friLingue Camp St. Bernard
Liddes · Language · 8–17 yrs
from CHF 1,250
1 / 5
Ages12–17 yrs
Language lessonsEnglish & German & French
SeasonJul – Aug
Duration1–3 weeks
friLingue runs this residential camp in Schwarzsee, Schweiz. The camp welcomes children aged 12–17, with sports, languages, and academics on the programme. Typically open July to August — new dates coming soon. Sessions last 1–3 weeks. Activities run in English, German, and French.
Residential camp in Schwarzsee, Schweiz
At Schwarzsee, friLingue runs one of its residential Swiss language camps, where young people from different parts of Switzerland and beyond come to learn French, English or German in a setting that deliberately feels nothing like school. Mornings belong to the classroom, with twenty 45-minute lessons a week in groups of no more than six, led by teachers who are native speakers or near-native and trained to work with teenagers; the rest of the week is filled with three excursions and two workshops, evening activities and supervised swims at the lake. Everyone arrives on Sunday, sits a short placement test and is put into the right level from A1 to C1, so complete beginners are as welcome as confident speakers. Full board is homemade by friLingue's own kitchen teams, with a proper breakfast, lunch, dinner and fruit-filled Znüni and Zvieri breaks, and campers sleep in shared rooms grouped by age. Most children come on their own, and the camp is built around the idea that friendships, humour and real conversation are what make a language stick.
What's Included
20 lessons of 45 minutes per week, taught in the mornings
Placement test on arrival to set the right level (A1 to C1)
Small classes of four to seven participants
Three excursions and two workshops every week
Varied evening programme
Full board with homemade meals, including morning and afternoon snacks
Accommodation in the camp, with bedding provided at Schwarzsee (no sleeping bag needed)
Supervision by the friLingue camp team, with German-speaking staff on site
Optional — available at extra cost
Optional intensive course, bookable as an add-on for two or three afternoons a week
Not provided
Laundry, organised for stays of two weeks or more against a small charge · Surcharge for special diets such as gluten- or lactose-free menus · Health, accident and cancellation insurance, which remain the participant's responsibility · Travel to and from camp, including flight bookings
Have a question for the camp?
Ask a questionActivities
The week has a clear and reassuring rhythm: language lessons every morning in small groups, then afternoons given over to workshops, excursions or an optional intensive course, and evenings to a changing programme of activities. Workshops are elective rather than imposed — the choices are announced after class and campers enrol in whatever interests them, so the groups reshuffle regularly and nobody is stuck with a subject they did not pick. Across a week that adds up to three excursions and two workshops, plus supervised swimming and the shared life of the house. What makes the programme distinctive is the mix it creates: young people from different parts of Switzerland and abroad, teachers who behave more like partners than authority figures, and an expectation that participants bring their own initiative, punctuality and sense of humour to the week.
Reviews
Safety & Supervision
Staff to child ratio1:5
Staff on site and available around the clock
German-speaking team members in every camp
Trained teachers experienced in supervising minors
Swimming only under the supervision of several staff
Strict no-alcohol and no-drugs policy
Lights out at 22:00 (23:00-23:30 at weekends)
Rooms allocated by age group
friLingue staff live on site and are available around the clock, and every camp has several German-speaking team members so that a child can always be understood outside the classroom. Teaching staff are trained teachers with experience of working with and supervising minors. Clear rules frame the day: lights out at 22:00, extended to 23:00 or 23:30 at weekends, with younger children free to go to bed earlier, and a strict ban on cigarettes, alcohol and drugs that leads to immediate return home. Nobody swims alone — during swimming times, usually in the afternoon and sometimes in the evening, several supervisors are always present. Rooms are allocated by age, and the team will look for another solution with a camper if a room situation is not working out.
Meals
breakfast
A rich breakfast to start the morning of lessons.
lunch
Hot midday meal cooked in-house.
dinner
Evening meal before the evening programme.
snacks
Znüni and Zvieri breaks with fruit and other treats.
Every friLingue camp in Switzerland serves homemade full board prepared by the camp's own kitchen team, with a deliberate emphasis on balanced menus made from regional ingredients. The day starts with a generous breakfast and continues with lunch and dinner, while the Swiss Znüni and Zvieri breaks bring fruit and other small treats between meals. Children with a lactose or gluten intolerance, or any other dietary requirement, are catered for with an adapted menu prepared by the cooks (for a weekly supplement covering the extra shopping and work).
Gluten-freeLactose-freeVegetarianVeganNut-free
Screen time policy
Phones and music players may come along, but they stay firmly in the background: screen time is limited to roughly one hour a day, plus use during excursions, so that campers spend their days talking to the new friends they have just made rather than scrolling. Nintendos and other games consoles should be left at home — they have no place in the camp week.
Accommodation & campus
Where your child sleeps
Per bedroom
3 campers
Bedrooms
Shared bedrooms
Bathrooms
Bathrooms shared between rooms
Campers normally sleep in four-bed rooms with shared bathrooms. Room allocation follows age, so teenagers share with others of roughly their own age and friendships tend to form fast. friLingue houses its Swiss camps in hotels, residences and mountain chalets. Schwarzsee is the one camp where no sleeping bag is needed — bedding is provided, unlike at the other friLingue locations.
Very large (50+ ha)Lakeside
friLingue’s Schwarzsee camp is located in the beautiful Fribourg Pre-Alps, surrounded by mountains, forests and close to Lake Schwarzsee. The welcoming accommodation, shared spaces and natural surroundings create an ideal setting for language learning, activities and an unforgettable summer camp experience.
Campus facilities
Sports hall
Football pitches
Climbing wall
Dining hall
Shared bathrooms
Location & getting there
Seestrasse 119, 1716 Schwarzsee, Schweiz
Campus Schwarzsee
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Getting your child there
Airport
Geneva
As an optional service, friLingue offers an airport transfer from Geneva for an additional fee. · Rte de l'Aéroport 21, 1215 Genève 15 Aéroport, Schweiz
By car
Seestrasse 119, 1716 Schwarzsee, Schweiz
Invidiual arrival or departure possible.
Train station
Zurich or Bern
As an optional service, friLingue offers an accompanied train transfer from Zurich or Bern for an additional fee.
Frequently asked questions
Run by friLingue
Since 2007
Profile managed by the campUpdated this week
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Jul – Aug
2027 dates not open yet