Youth hostels make travelling affordable for people all over the world – but how are hostels and the backpackers in them changing? This week on Leaders of Travel, I speak to the head of Hostelling International.
This week we’re talking about young travellers – or ‘millennials’, as some people like to call them. Myself, I am probably not so young these days but I definitely spent many years travelling the backpacker trails and even now I probably do more youth-y things than other travellers my age.
And, of course, the backbone of the backpacker industry are youth hostels. They make travel affordable because you can get a bed for a few dollars a night in some countries, like in Asia, or even in European capitals, the price is something that is accessible.
Hostels are changing a lot and I’ve seen it myself over the years. From large dirty dormitories, to trendy boutique houses – backpacking and hostelling has never been cooler.
Hostelling International is the global organisation that brings together a lot of these hostels from all over the world. You’ve probably heard of HI if you’ve ever done any backpacking yourself. It doesn’t own any hostels but it’s the overarching membership company.
It’s new CEO is Darren Barker, an Englishman who is looking to the future and dealing with the changes in the youth market.
He’s my guest this week, to have a chat about what young people want.
I hope you’ve enjoyed the episode and, as always, you can let me know what you think on social media or on the blog – time travel turtle dot com.
And please, if you get a chance, do jump in itunes and leave a review there – I would love to hear your thoughts.
Next episode, I’ll be talking about the happy mountain kingdom of Bhutan with the country’s spokesman. There’s lots to learn and it’s a fascinating place, so I look forward to you joining me again for that.
Until then, my name is Michael Turtle from the travel blog Time Travel Turtle, and you’ve been listening to Leaders of Travel.
For more information, you can check out the official website of Hostelling International
It will be very interesting to see how hostels change and fit the next generation of young people. Thanks for posting!
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