Hostelling International Canada (HI Canada) is an organization providing
youth hostel accommodation in Canada. It is a member of the
Hostelling International federation.
History
The Youth Hostelling movement was started in 1909 by
Richard Schirrmann, a German schoolteacher. The movement was disrupted by
World War I and did not reach other countries until the 1930s. Following the launch of youth hostel associations in several European countries between 1930 and 1932, the idea spread across the
Atlantic Ocean. Canada was slightly ahead of the United States, and the Canadian Youth Hostels Association was founded in 1933 (the American Youth Hostels Inc was not formed until 1934).
Canada's (and North America's) first hostel was opened in 1933 at
Bragg Creek near
Calgary
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...
, Alberta, by
Mary Belle Barclay.
The national office was located in Calgary from 1933 to 1941. It was moved to
Toronto in 1941, then
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
,
Vancouver, and in 1971, it relocated back to Ottawa, where it remains as of 2015. In 1976, the name was changed to the Canadian Hostelling Association.
Present day
As of 2019, the association has 53 hostels, with locations in nine
provinces, but none in the territories.
In 2009, over 270,000 overnight stays were recorded in Canadian hostels.
Archives
The
Glenbow Museum in Calgary holds the Canadian Hostelling Association archives, including a substantial number of sorted and catalogued records up to the mid-1980s, photographic records from the 1890s through the 2000s, and unprocessed records from the 1960s through the 2000s.
References
External links
*
Auberge internationale de QuébecCanadian Hostelling Association archives, Glenbow Museum
Hostelling International member associations
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