Etymologically the word hostel comes from the Latin “hospitālis”. The word hostel is used to name the establishment or establishment that, usually is of a lower category than a hotel, where people, also called guests, stay or lodge, and thus providing them with a set of basic services that they must pay for. A hostel, also known as a hostel, is a place that provides shelter or accommodation to travelers or backpackers, and that commonly encourages outdoor activities and even cultural exchange between young people from different countries.
As for the history of hostels, it was Richard Schirrmann, a German professor and lover of the outdoors, who originated the hospitality movement, at the beginning of the 20th century between 1908 and 1912. This man used to travel through the countryside, in a mining town in the area, with their students to be in contact with nature; and attracted by the contact with it and the benefits that it brought, the idea arose of founding a hostel to motivate and encourage other young people to travel and support integration with travelers from different parts of the world. This is how Schirrmann opened the world's first hostel; which began to function in a rebuilt castle in Altena, Germany. Years later, this character founded the German Association of Youth Hostels, which today is known as Hostelling International, and later this movement spread throughout Europe and the rest of the world between the 30s and 50s.
e oday the vast majority of these hostels may include private rooms with bathrooms, and better value than a hotel, keeping all the benefits of integration that offers a hostel as excursions and activities organized by the hostel, playrooms, living or rooms with TV, DVD, shared kitchens where you can taste foods from different parts of the world, libraries etc.
