From the founding of the first association networks to today's emergence of commercial operators with expertise in this segment, the youth hostel and hostel market has already gone through the first stages of development. But the story is only just beginning. A look at: the hostel supply in Europe’s major cities, the size of the national association networks, commercialization strategies and business challenges, and the first global listing of the leading hostel chains. Hospitality ON studied this flourishing market that offers growth perspectives and a youthful appeal.
From Youth Hostels to Hostels
The youth hostel movement began in 1907 when the teacher Richard Schirrmann transformed his classrooms into dormitories to host young people during their holidays. The idea was to provide students with a place to sleep for a small price and be able to travel. As he explains in a text that has become the founding charter of the F.U.A.J. (Fédération Unie des Auberges de Jeunesse), as he believes that travel is an essential tool for young people so they may discover the landscapes and peoples of different cultures:
"Each forest, each plain, each river, each mountain, each village and each city is a page you’re your homeland. You must grow familiar with them, and not through reading. […] Travel outside your country’s borders, find neighboring peoples and learn to know and have esteem for countries and their peoples with their foreign languages.”
110 years after their invention, youth hostels have spread worldwide and voluntary networks were created in order to harmonize communications with customers. In its annual report for 2015, Hostelling International had more than 3,900 youth hostels for 290,000 beds in 88 countries and realized 34.7 million nights. The non-profit organization works closely with UNESCO and considers itself the only one with such an international network. While upholding its will to continue to expand worldwide, the president of HI points out that the organization’s mission takes its inspiration from that of Richard Schirrmann: “Youth hostels offer much more than a simple guest room. They offer ideal accommodations to enjoy local hospitality, to meet travelers from around the world and develop friendships with them, to have fun and also have enriching conversations, to live immersed in a new culture and to better understand and appreciate people and the environment.”
Les hostels sont quant...
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