Why you should book your next school trip with YHA
History
The hostelling movement was born way back in 1909, when the very first ‘jugendherberge’ – or ‘youth hostel’ – opened its doors in the German countryside. The brains behind the idea? A schoolteacher by the name of Richard Schirrmann.
Schirrmann taught in smoggy Gelsenkirchen in the Ruhr district of northern Germany, a heavily polluted industrial town – so he decided to introduce his pupils to the ‘classroom of the outdoors’ by taking them on walks in the countryside.
In August 1909, Schirrmann took his students on an eight-day walking tour from Altena to Aachen. On the first night the class was hosted by a hospitable farmer who gave them blankets, plums and fresh milk, and on the second night, a village schoolteacher sheltered the kids from a storm in an empty classroom.
As the rain thumped down outside, Schirrmann thought to himself: ‘What if school classrooms in good walking country could be turned into jugendherbergen during the holidays?’ And with that, the youth hostel movement was up and running.
YHA came to Australia in 1939 and our organisation is still going strong decades later, with several properties around the country ready to provide your group with safe, affordable and quality accommodation.
Vision
More than a century since Schirrmann came up with that very first ‘jugendherberge’, education still lies at the core of what YHA does. Properties have sprung up in the city as well as the bush over the years, but the organisation has never lost sight of Schirrmann’s original philosophy of education and friendship.
YHA is a membership-based, for-purpose association, meaning we re-invest earnings back into our network of properties to give our guests the best possible experience. We’re driven to provide your group with an experience of travel to help them develop a love of seeing the world… and learn plenty along the way, too.
Today
YHA offers a great range of low-cost group accommodation all across the country, with secure, comfortable and affordable properties around Australia. Whatever the purpose of your school trip – from curriculum-based excursions to extra-curricular activities like sport, music and drama – our properties are well equipped to welcome your group.
Here's a few properties that are waiting to welcome your group:
Sydney Harbour YHA (pictured below) offers The Big Dig Archaeology Education Centre on site with a range of curriculum education programs curated by Sydney Learning Adventures.
Fremantle Prison YHA is situated within WA’s only UNESCO World Heritage listed building, Fremantle Prison.
Blue Mountains YHA (pictured below) in Katoomba is located right on the doorstep of breathtaking national parks.
Your group can also enjoy a whole YHA to themselves with the Rent-A-YHA scheme – several of our properties are available for exclusive use to give your group a little more privacy.
