Travel Reading: The History of Youth Hostel
On October 20th, 1932 in Amsterdam in presence by land agencies from Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Poland, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Great Britain, Ireland, France, and Belgium, the International Youth Hostel Federation (IYHF) was created.
The federation has its seat today in Welwyn Garden City near London. Richard Schirrmann was selected as the president. Conference language was German.
On the following conference in 1933 also Isabel and Monroe Smith from the USA participated. Within one year they could open thirty youth hostels in the United States. Also in 1933 the national socialists arrived in Germany at power.
All political and religious youth combinations were dissolved and replaced by a system of obligatorily university-formed youth organization, under the line of the “realm youth guidance”. Richard Schirrmann must withdraw as a chairman of the German youth hostel factory.
He let himself impress by the idealistic elements of the new movement and became honorary president of the realm federation for German youth hostels. A decision which he should bitterly repent later.
In 1936 for political reasons it had come to the break with the international youth hostel federation. In 1947 after the end of the world war, 247 youth hostels with 1,158,500 overnight stays were counted again in Germany.
>From 1949-1990 also in the GDR were an extensive network of youth hostels developed. Initially still led as federations, these later had become to state led institutions of the youth. The existing federations were dissolved. In 1960 were the most youth hostels in the Federal Republic. More than 720 houses realized 11,300,312 overnight stays.
In 1990 after the end of the GDR also in the new Lands of the Federal Republic youth hostel federations were created. In November these federations joined the German youth hostel association.
Youth hostels today
World-wide there are more than 4,000 youth hostels in 65 countries, whereby more than 600 alone in Germany.
The youth hostels in Germany offer to their guests far more than an inexpensive overnight stay. Beside small cosy old buildings or the experience in castles and residences you also find many houses in scenic delightful environments as well as in large cities. For more details go to http://www.smart-travel-germany.com/hostels-germany.html
This true story was published in German language by the German Youth Hostel Association, and translated by Marcus Hochstadt.
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