Podcast: „The invention of the youth hostel“

Picture: Richard Schirrmann, founder of the German Youth Hostel Association

Today, there are more than 400 youth hostels in Germany. Some of them are located by the sea, some in the mountains, others by a lake or in the centre of the city. There are ultra-modern youth hostels and some that are located in a real knight's castle. But how did this actually come about?

Podcast at Deutschlandfunk Nova

The podcast series „One hour of history“ from Deutschlandfunk Nova has focussed on the origins and history of the youth hostel. The episode „The Invention of the Youth Hostel“ explains in an interesting and entertaining way how it came about that the teacher Richard Schirrmann founded the first youth hostel in 1914. Several experts have their say and talk about the German Youth Movement and the leisure behaviour of young people at the beginning of the 20th century. Oliver Peters, Managing Director of the German Youth Hostel Association, also talks about the transformation of youth hostels into modern accommodation. Listen in, it's worth it!