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Colegio Arenas Atlántico

Spain, Las Palmas

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The school at a glance
Instructs in Spanish, English
Fees €5,750 - 6,330
Ages 6 months - 18 years
Pupil numbers 506
Type Co-educational
Opened 1986
Bus Service Yes
Part of
Arenas International School Gran Canaria
Academic offering
Curriculum IB (PYP), IB (MYP), IB (DP)
Taught languages French, German, Mandarin
Typical class size 21
Strengths Sport, STEM, Languages
Clubs Arts and Creative, Cultural and Language, Leadership and Professional
Stages Infant/Toddler Care, Early Years, Primary School, Secondary School
Introduction

Colegio Arenas Atlántico, located in Arucas, provides the International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum for students aged twelve to eighteen. It is the only school in the Canary Islands authorized to teach the full IB continuum, including the Middle Years and Diploma Programmes. Students often combine the IB Diploma with the Spanish Baccalaureate for dual certification. The campus occupies 65,000 square meters of natural grounds, featuring artificial grass courts, tennis facilities, and dedicated paddle courts. A distinctive feature is the school’s private music conservatory, Arenas Albéniz, where students receive professional musical training integrated into their daily schedule. Additionally, the school maintains its own residential center, Sulis Manor, in Bath, England, which allows pupils to participate in immersive language exchanges and multicultural stays. Instruction is delivered in English and Spanish, with options to study German, French, and Mandarin Chinese. Practical initiatives include the "Ultramar Blue School" program, which involves students in active ocean conservation and environmental research.

This campus is part of Arenas International School Gran Canaria

P.º San Patricio, 20, 35413 Arucas, Las Palmas, Spain

The Essentials

Colegio Arenas Atlántico has 506 pupils, typical class sizes of 21, instruction in Spanish, English.

Location
Located on two campuses in Gran Canaria, Spain: Colegio Arenas in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Llano de Los Tarahales, 76, 35013) and Colegio Arenas Atlántico in Arucas (Paseo San Patricio, 20, 35413). The Las Palmas campus is connected to all districts of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria by a school transport service; there are bus routes linking the Las Palmas Preschool and Primary campuses with the Arucas Secondary/Baccalaureate campus.

Stages
Nursery (4 months–3 years); Preschool (3–6); Primary Education (6–12); Secondary Education (12–16); Baccalaureate (16–18, Diploma Programme).

Type
Private, non-denominational, non-government funded international school; IB World School offering the Diploma Programme and other IB programmes.

Additional learning support
Psycho-pedagogical and psychological support and speech therapy sessions, both in and out of school.

Country affiliation
Spain

Religious affiliation
Non-denominational

School day structure
Extended timetable: Morning 7:30am–9:00am; Afternoon 4:00pm–5:30pm.

Bus service
Transport connects all districts of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria; bus routes connect Preschool and Primary in Las Palmas with Secondary and Baccalaureate in Arucas (Colegio Arenas Atlántico).
Diving Deeper

Food Options
The school has an on-site kitchen and dining hall.

Governance and Ownership
The school is private, non-subsidised; part of the Arenas International Schools group (AIS GROUP); owned and operated by COLEGIO ARENAS, S.L.
Fees

Annual tuition at Colegio Arenas Atlántico ranges from EUR 5,750 to EUR 6,330 for 2026/27.

Application and Admission Fees

- A single, one-off matriculation / admission payment is required to secure a pupil's place.

Reservation / Re-enrolment Fee

- A reservation fee is required to secure a place for the following academic year. For the first year this is paid as a single payment; in subsequent years the reservation payment is split into two instalments (April and May).

Tuition fees (billing schedule and instalments)

- Tuition fees are billed on an annual basis but collected in regular instalments; standard practice across the group is that tuition is payable in ten monthly instalments (September–June).
- Classroom supplies (covering classroom materials, some digital platforms and educational technology) are charged separately and are usually payable in two instalments (typically November and January).
- School insurance is charged as a single payment at the start of the academic year (commonly in September).
- School lunch is billed on an annual basis and divided across the school months (commonly September–June) to produce a fixed monthly lunch charge.

Tuition fees by year group (numeric amounts)

- The school does not publish a numeric fee schedule for each year group on the Gran Canaria campus public information pages; full, line-by-line annual or per-term tuition amounts for specific year groups are not available from the publicly accessible Gran Canaria pages. Numeric fee sheets for other AIS centres are published in separate centre-specific fee sheets, but equivalent Gran Canaria tuition figures are not publicly listed.

Boarding fees (if applicable)

- There is an international residential centre associated with the Arenas group (Sulis Manor in Bath, England) used for immersion and study-stay programmes; the Gran Canaria campus itself does not operate an on‑site boarding provision for day pupils, therefore regular boarding fees are not applicable to the Gran Canaria campus.

Other costs and extras

- Uniforms, educational visits/trips, after‑school activities and some enrichment programmes are not included in tuition and are charged separately. School uniform costs and scout/PE uniform items are paid in addition to tuition.
- Extra‑curricular activities each have their own specific fees and are billed separately.
- Classroom supplies / resource fees (separate from tuition) are commonly charged as noted above.

Sibling discounts and concessions

- The group applies sibling discounts where eligible: families with three or more children may be entitled to reductions in tuition for the youngest child and discounts on admission fees for second/third siblings (specific discount levels vary by centre). Exact sibling discount details for Gran Canaria are not listed on the public Gran Canaria pages.

Refunds and refundable deposits

- Where the group publishes refundable-deposit practice at other AIS centres, a deposit or fund contribution is sometimes held and refundable under specified conditions (for example, graduation from the final year or formal resignation by stated deadlines). There is no publicly listed, itemised refund policy or numeric refund schedule published on the Gran Canaria admissions pages; specific refund terms for the Gran Canaria campus are not published on the publicly accessible pages.

Billing schedule and payment terms (summary)

- Typical billing pattern used across Arenas/AIS centres:
- Tuition: collected in ten monthly instalments (September–June).
- Reservation fee: single payment for first year; split payments (April/May) for subsequent years.
- Classroom supplies: two instalments (November and January).
- Insurance: single payment in September.
- Lunch: annual charge divided across the school months to create a fixed monthly charge (September–June).

Fee payment options (methods)

- The Gran Canaria campus public information pages do not publish a definitive list of accepted payment methods (for example, bank transfer, direct debit or credit card) on the public admissions pages. Payment-method practice at other AIS centres commonly includes bank transfer and card payment options (with card surcharges sometimes applied at some centres); for clear, centre-specific payment instructions and available methods for the Gran Canaria campus, the school's admissions office provides the official payment details.

Refund information (specific to Gran Canaria)

- There is no detailed, published refund schedule or full text of the Gran Canaria campus refund policy on the public pages. Refund or deposit-return conditions used by other centres indicate deposits can be refundable under stated conditions; however, no centre-specific numeric refund policy for Gran Canaria is posted publicly.

Summary of what is and is not published

- Published and confirmable for AIS centres: the types of fees that families should expect (matriculation/admission fee, reservation fee, tuition instalments, classroom supplies, insurance, lunch, extra‑curricular fees), typical billing timing (tuition in ten monthly instalments; classroom supplies in two instalments; insurance once in September; lunch spread Sep–Jun) and that some extras (uniforms, trips, activities) are charged separately.
- Not published on the Gran Canaria campus public pages: detailed numeric tuition amounts per year group, per‑term figures, explicit boarding fee schedules for the Gran Canaria campus, precise payment‑method instructions and a full text of a campus-specific refund policy. The Gran Canaria admissions and information pages do not contain a public, line‑by‑line numeric fee schedule for the current academic year.

(Notes: The Arenas group operates an international residence in England used for immersion/study‑stay programmes; this is separate from Gran Canaria campus day‑school provision. )
Academics

Colegio Arenas Atlántico teaches IB (PYP), IB (MYP), IB (DP) for students aged 0.5 to 18.

Curriculum
The school offers the International Baccalaureate continuum: Primary Years Programme (PYP) in Preschool and Primary Education; Middle Years Programme (MYP) in Secondary Education; and Diploma Programme (DP) for the Baccalaureate. It is an IB World School and the only Canary Islands school authorised to offer all three IB programmes across ages 3 to 18. The school operates a bilingual Spanish–English programme; Preschool includes English immersion, and from Primary Education students study in English while also beginning to learn French and German, with Mandarin Chinese introduced from the third year of Primary Education. Language instruction and the IB framework emphasise active, inquiry-based, intercultural learning and global mindedness.

Exam Results
The school achieved IB certification for PYP, MYP and DP in 2016–2017, and is one of 13 schools in Spain certified to teach all three IB programmes. In 2016–2017, 100% of Baccalaureate students who took the EBAU examinations passed, with an average grade of 8.1. IB Diploma Programme results were above the world average in Mathematics, History, Physics and Biology. External language examinations across English, French, German and Mandarin Chinese showed high pass rates: 95% passed English PET; 75% passed English FIRST; 70% passed English CAE; 100% passed French; 90% passed German; 90% passed Chinese.
Wellbeing

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
Emotional Education plays a vital role in the school, helping students understand and manage their emotions effectively and to feel and show empathy towards others. The SEL Programme, LEARNING TO BE BY DOING, is based on Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP), Neuroscience, Neuroeducation, Cognitive-Behavioural and Social, Humanistic and Psychodynamic Psychology, Educational Coaching, Constructivism and basic ethical and moral values. Through a combination of practical and theoretical instruction, the programme provides tools for the entire educational community, with involvement from students, families and staff to guide each person toward greater wellbeing.

Special Educational Needs (SEN)
The Guidance Department offers psycho-pedagogical and psychological support and speech therapy sessions, both in and out of school.

English as an Additional Language (EAL)
Bilingual Education English-Spanish; from Preschool, subjects are taught in English to create authentic linguistic immersion. The second foreign language, French and German, is taught from the 2nd year of Primary Education, and Mandarin Chinese is included as a third language from the 3rd year of Primary Education; Mandarin students have the option to sit YCT examinations.

Mental Wellbeing
Mental wellbeing is addressed through the SEL programme, with Emotional Education helping students understand and manage their emotions and to empathise with others. The programme emphasizes wellbeing across the school community and uses a diverse range of approaches to support students' emotional and social development.

Safeguarding
The Guidance Department provides psycho-pedagogical and psychological support and speech therapy sessions, available both in and out of school to support safeguarding and student wellbeing.
Parent Experience

History
The Arenas Internacional Schools (AIS Group) began to develop in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in 1940 with the founding of Colegio Arenas by Lucía Pérez and Antonio Ojeda, later continued by their daughter and consolidated by the third generation. In the 1970s, Colegio Arenas became one of the first bilingual Spanish-English schools in Spain, and the first in the Canary Islands. In 1976, Colegio Arenas relocated to Los Tarahales – Siete Palmas. The AIS Group expanded with Colegio Arenas Atlántico in Arucas and Lanzarote's Colegio Arenas Internacional in 1995 and 2004, respectively; Arenas Albéniz Music Conservatoire started in 1995 and Sulis Manor opened in 1998. In 2005, AIS began implementing International Baccalaureate programmes, with official certification completed across Preschool to Baccalaureate by 2017, making AIS the first and only IB World Schools in the Canary Islands; Aqua & Sports Centre Gran Canaria was added in 2018, and the infant school Arenas Playa Blanca Nursery joined the AIS Group.

Community
The school presents itself as an international family, with Sulis Manor as its Arenas School campus in Bath, England, offering English language immersion and a long tradition of multilingual education. It is the first multilingual school on the island and the Canary Islands' first to offer the full range of IB programmes across all stages. Exchange and study trips provide exposure to English, German and French languages, including a UK end-of-primary trip, host-family exchanges in the United States, and partnerships with a German school in Stuttgart and a French school in Lille since 2017/2018. Guided tours of the facilities are available for prospective families.
Facilities

Facilities Overview
Arenas International School Gran Canaria operates across two campuses: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Los Tarahales – Siete Palmas) for Preschool and Primary, and Arucas (Colegio Arenas Atlántico) for Secondary and Baccalaureate. The Colegio Arenas centre offers a private kitchen and dining hall, an assembly hall, Preschool Library, Primary Education Library, Science Laboratories, Information Technology Classroom, Robotics Classroom, and VR, Wi‑Fi, and Interactive Whiteboards. It also includes an Art Classroom, a Multi‑Sensory Room, a Guidance Department, a Psychomotricity Room, a Karate Room, a School Gymnasium, Sports Courts, a Uniform Shop, a Swimming Pool, an Advanced Gym, and a Sports Pavilion. The Arenas Atlántico centre provides on‑site kitchen and dining hall, Laboratories, ICT classroom, Art classroom, Music classroom, French classroom, Robotics classroom, Library, Assembly hall, VR, Wi‑Fi, and Interactive Whiteboards, and extensive gardens with a lizard enclosure. The sports facilities span 6,300 m2 and include five‑a‑side football pitches, volleyball, basketball and tennis courts, and a preschool playground, with the Aqua & Sports Centre Gran Canaria planned to add about 5,000 m2 of facilities including a multi‑purpose ground, indoor swimming pool, a therapeutic pool, changing rooms and a multi‑purpose hall.

Sports Facilities
The sports facilities at Colegio Arenas cover about 6,300 m2 and include five‑a‑side pitches, volleyball, basketball and tennis courts, and a preschool playground. The Atlántico centre's sports grounds occupy about 5,800 m2 and feature artificial grass courts and tennis and paddle tennis courts. The Aqua & Sports Centre Gran Canaria is planned to provide an additional 5,000 m2 of facilities, including a multi‑purpose ground, an indoor swimming pool, a therapeutic pool, changing rooms and a multi‑purpose hall. The complex also includes a dedicated sport hall and a sports pavilion, underscoring sport as an integral part of student development.

Academic Facilities
Arenas Albéniz, a private professional music conservatory integrated within the Colegio Arenas, provides music study and private lessons. The campuses include Science Laboratories, an Information Technology classroom, and a Robotics classroom, plus a Library and a VR‑enabled, Wi‑Fi‑connected environment with Interactive Whiteboards. Atlántico adds Laboratories, an ICT classroom, an Art classroom, a Music classroom, and a French classroom, along with a Library, an Assembly hall, and a Robotics classroom. The Preschool and Primary areas feature dedicated spaces such as Preschool Library and Primary Library, plus a Multi‑Sensory Room and a Guidance Department to support learners. On‑site kitchen facilities and dining spaces are available for student meals.

Extra Curricular Facilities
A music education pathway is supported by Arenas Albéniz on campus. There are extensive gardens with a lizard enclosure for outdoor and ecology‑related learning. The campus includes spaces that support after‑school activities, such as a Karate Room, a Psychomotricity Room, a Sport Gym, and a variety of sports courts. The planned Aqua & Sports Centre Gran Canaria will expand opportunities for water and multi‑sport activities. VR, Wi‑Fi, and Interactive Whiteboards support enrichment activities and collaborative learning.
Extra-Curricular Activities

Academic & Intellectual
Study support for English and Spanish is provided after school. Secondary students also have study support. Classes for gifted students and the BizKids program develop thinking and problem-solving skills.

Arts & Creative
Preschool after-school activities include Modern Dance and Rhythmic Body Expression. Primary students participate in Modern Dance and Rhythmic and Artistic Gymnastics, alongside general gymnastics. These activities support performing arts and creative expression.

Cultural & Language
German and French are offered after school, with Chinese for first language speakers in Primary. These language activities complement in-class learning and support language development outside the timetable. They encourage intercultural communication and linguistic confidence.

Social & Hobbies
Team sports include 5-a-side football, basketball, volleyball, paddle tennis, and swimming. Preschool and Primary programs include multi-sports and play-based activities that foster social interaction and teamwork. Secondary students can join additional clubs alongside sport participation.

Leadership & Professional
BizKids develops entrepreneurial and business-thinking skills. Gifted-student classes support advanced learning and leadership potential. These activities help students develop professional skills and confidence.

Lifestyle & Wellbeing
Sports activities support physical fitness, including swimming, karate, rhythmic gymnastics, and team sports. Multi-sports and gym sessions are offered across age groups. Dance and gymnastics contribute to overall wellbeing.
Languages

Language Provision
Languages taught include Spanish and English as the languages of instruction; German is taught from the 2nd year of Primary Education; French is taught from the 2nd year of Primary Education; Mandarin Chinese is taught from the 3rd year of Primary Education. German, French and Mandarin have associated external examinations (Goethe-Institut, Alliance Française, Confucius Institute YCT). Several subjects at each educational stage are taught in Spanish and English. English language lessons are provided at Secondary and Baccalaureate levels, with groups organized by achievement, and Cambridge exams offered at various levels. The school is authorized as a Cambridge ESOL Exam Preparation Centre, offering official Cambridge English tests.

Bilingual Teaching
The school has a Spanish-English bilingual program with two languages of instruction. Spanish-English bilingual education commences in Preschool Education. French and German are taught from the 2nd year of Primary Education, and Mandarin Chinese is taught from the 3rd year of Primary Education.

Immersion Programs
The English language immersion is offered through the Sulis Manor Residential & Activity Centre in Bath, England, with programmes including: Summer Courses at Residence or with Host Family (ages 11-17) 3-4 weeks; English Immersion and Leadership Skills (ages 11-12) 10-14 days; Study Programme at a British school (ages 11-16) 4-6 months; Short Study Programme (ages 13-16) 3 weeks. The Sulis Manor centre collaborates with Saint Gregory School in Bath.
Admissions

Admissions
The admission process aims to meet the specific needs of the future student by assessing their personal and academic profiles. An Information Request Form is available to learn more about the admissions process. Colegio Arenas: Llano de Los Tarahales, 76, 35013 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Gran Canaria, Spain. Tel: +34 928 41 59 96. Colegio Arenas Atlántico: Paseo San Patricio, 20, 35413 (Trasmontaña), Arucas, Gran Canaria, Spain. Tel: +34 928 62 91 40. Main Office: Calle Archivero Joaquín Blanco Montesdeoca 16-18. Tel: +34 928 48 29 71 ext 1. Uniformes: +34 928 48 29 71 ext 3.
School Events
The school has not added events
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