Oaxaca and Merida, Mexico
Elderhostel, Inc. is a not-for-profit educational organization that provides short-term, non-credit, residential learning
opportunities for people fifty-five and older-soon to be fifty years and older. It combines the best of educational traditions in a program designed for older adults. Elderhostel is founded on the philosophy that the later years should be a time of new beginnings, opportunities and challenges. The programs offer you a way to keep on learning and growing with people of similar interests.
Elderhostel provides an environment for intellectual exchange and discovery. Prior formal education or knowledge of the
subjects is not required to enjoy Elderhostel programs; an open, inquisitive, mature mind is all that's needed. Courses are designed to be stimulating with no homework assignments, exams, grades, or credits. The classroom environment is informal.
Because we believe that learning is a lifelong, enjoyable, and social endeavor, Elderhostel offers a warm atmosphere where the individual is important and making new friends is easy. Typical of an Elderhostel program is the camaraderie and congenial
social environment hostelers enjoy in a group of peers. Participants from all walks of life share living quarters, meals, classes,
and activities with their fellow hostelers, often forming lasting friendships as a result of their experiences together.
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(Excerpts are from The Story Of Elderhostel By Eugene S. Mills, University Press Of New England, 1993.)
Elderhostel, Inc. was founded in 1975 by Marty Knowlton, a social activist and former educator, and by David Bianco, a university administrator. In his mid-50s, Knowlton embarked on a four-year walking tour of Europe, living in youth hostels as
he traveled through France, Germany, and Scandinavia. He became very well acquainted with the youth hostel programs and folk schools of Scandinavia and was "impressed by the way in which the availability of a network of modest accommodations encouraged and nurtured an adventuresome hosteling spirit in European youth." At the same time, he was equally taken with institutions called folk schools, which he encountered during his visits to communities in Scandinavia. There, he saw older
adults handing down age-old traditions -- folk arts, music, lore and dance -- to younger generations.
Back in the States, Knowlton met with long-time friend Bianco, then the director of residential life at the University of New Hampshire, and recounted his experiences abroad. The two had previously collaborated on other projects with the mission of improving the state of higher education in the U.S. In a lively discussion with Bianco about his experiences abroad,
Marty recounts:
I was telling him some of the experiences I'd had in Europe with older people, some of which David found rather exciting.
And in a burst of enthusiasm, he said to me: "This campus ought not to be having a youth hostel, it ought to be having an elder hostel!" And there was the name. It was one of those occasions, a serendipitous occasion. The name came first, and we put
the program under it.
This discussion led to the creation of Elderhostel, Inc., a learning program exclusively for older adults that would be consistent with the European tradition of hosteling, based on the idea of residential programs, with simple, inexpensive lodgings combined with stimulating courses on just about every subject imaginable. The first Elderhostel program was held the following summer (1975) at New England College in Henniker, New Hampshire with six "pioneers." By the end of the summer, word of mouth
had filled the programs to capacity and generated the first wait list!
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Elderhostel, Inc. began in 1975 with 220 students on five college campuses in New Hampshire.
By 1980, there were Elderhostel programs in all 50 states and in many Canadian provinces. More than 20,000 people participated.
In 1981, Elderhostel, Inc. offered its first international programs -- in Great Britain and Scandinavia. Besides traditional
colleges and universities, a variety of educational and cultural institutions were now a part of the Elderhostel network.
In 1988, Elderhostel, Inc. founded the Institute Network as a voluntary association of independent Institutes for Learning in Retirement.
In 1992, Elderhostel, Inc. introduced Service Programs, in which hostelers can provide volunteer service to worthy causes around the world, in cooperation with well-established volunteer organizations.
In September 1998, Elderhostel, Inc. opened a toll-free telephone number and fax number for hostelers to access our Registration Services Department in Lowell, MA. Hostelers were provided with the option of registering for programs via Elderhostel, Inc.'s website in the fall of 1998 (U.S. programs) and winter of 1999 (International programs). Elderhostel Inc. served approximately 290,000 older learners in 1998 and served over 350,000 in the year 1999.
In November 1999, Elderhostel began taking enrollments from the website, www.elderhostel.org.
In December of 2000, Elderhostel moved its headquarters to a building it owns and operates in downtown Boston and to another office in Lafayette, Massachusetts in 2003.
Now, 2005, Elderhostel, Inc. is a leading organization of educational programs for older adults offering programs not only for those over fifty years of age, but intergenerational programs and service programs. Today, Elderhostel annually serves
hundreds of thousands of older adult students who travel to residential programs throughout the U.S. and the world. Our
Service Programs provide opportunities to learn while volunteering in the public interest; and we support a network of independent community-based Institutes for Learning in Retirement. Elderhostel today is the pre-eminent provider of high
quality, affordable educational opportunities for older adults
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Since 1975, Elderhostel programs have expanded to encompass an extraordinary range of subjects and locations in every
state of the U.S., the provinces of Canada, more than 90 countries around the world, and aboard vessels that traverse rivers
and seas.
Elderhostel programs in the U.S. & Canada follow the traditional model of five or six nights at a single study site with liberal
arts courses on different subjects. Some programs focus on a particular subject or activity during the week, such as Spirituality, French Impressionism, New Harmony’s Utopia or exploring an area via bicycle, kayak, raft, and on foot.
Classes may be held at colleges, universities, museums and other cultural institutions, at historic sites, and national parks - just about any setting where group learning can take place.
Instructors may be faculty of educational institutions, local experts, or specialists in area studies.
Tuition in the U.S. averages $525 per person, slightly higher in Alaska and Hawaii, and $660 (Canadian funds) in Canada.
The program cost includes courses, field trips and excursions, extracurricular activities, meals and accommodations, and inter-program travel. Participants are responsible for their own transportation to and from the site.
Group size for these traditional single-site programs varies from 12 to 50, with the average between 25 and 30 hostelers.
Most sites offer accommodations with private bathrooms whether at comfortable hotels, conference centers or
college/university residence halls.
Intergenerational programs are times for hostelers and their grandchildren learn and explore together. Bonding across the generations is also a major element of these programs.
Performance programs are where groups of hostelers gather to learn and perform choral or instrumental music.
Train treks, especially in the western states, where hostelers learn about people and cultures as they take educational journeys
via train through fascinating landscapes.
Day Programs are times for hostelers to take short courses (one or two days) on topics of significance for the local community such as the work of cultural, educational, and governmental institutions; economic history and the lives of steelworkers; ethnic studies; heroes and heroines.
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Elderhostel began offering international programs in 1981 on the campuses of British universities and folks schools in Scandinavia. Today, we offer programs in Africa, the Americas, Asia, the Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, and the Pacific - more than 90 countries around the world.
International programs are organized around one general theme and usually involve an itinerary of multiple study sites, which
may be in the same country or several countries. The majority of programs address subjects broadly related to history, culture, and society.
As with U.S. & Canada programs, classes may be held at educational and cultural institutions, historic sites, nature parks, etc.,
as appropriate to the program. Instructors may be faculty of educational institutions, local experts, or other specialists. Course-related field trips, excursions to area attractions, extracurricular activities, and free time to explore on their own allow hostelers
to become "students in residence" and not just tourists.
Most international programs range from 10 to 21 days long. Group sizes are typically between 15 and 45 hostelers. Program costs vary with distance and duration, and include academic instruction, course-related field trips, excursions, extracurricular activities, meals and accommodations, inter-program travel and transfers, gratuities, and taxes. Round-trip international airfare included in the program cost is through regularly scheduled airlines from virtually every major American airport.
A typical 12-night Great Britain program with round-trip airfare from New York costs approximately $2,500, while a 28-night Australia program with round-trip airfare from Los Angeles is approximately $5,000.
Accommodations for international programs are in comfortable hotels, characteristic local inns, and selected university
residence halls. Most accommodations offer private bathrooms as well as single-supplement options.
Specialized International offerings include: Active/Outdoor programs such as Bicycling, Golfing, Skiing, Trekking, and
Walking & Hiking; Arts programs including art and architecture, fine arts, and performance arts; Birding, City Highlights, Festivals & Holidays, Cultural Immersion (Homestays), Field Studies, Food & Wine, Houses & Gardens, Intergenerational Programs, Language Study, Marine Studies, Adventures Afloat, Summer Academy and Train Treks.
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Elderhostel service programs engage hostelers in short-term volunteer projects with not-for-profit organizations in the United States and around the world. Approximately one-third of the time is spent on educational components that inform and enhance the project work. The projects are varied and offer opportunities to assist efforts in historic preservation, archaeology,
museum work, conservation work, marine and wildlife research, teaching English, camps for special children, tutoring,
community development, sustainable agriculture, and construction of affordable housing. Participation requires no special skills but an interest in learning, exploring and sharing in a community setting.
Service Programs are between one to four weeks in length. The number of participants in an Elderhostel Service Program
ranges from 10 to 30. Participant fees cover project costs and lectures as well as room and board. Airfare is included for most international service programs. Accommodations vary according to the location and project.
Tuition for service programs is comparable to regular U.S. & Canada and international programs. A share of the program
charge is allocated as a donation to the service organization to help with operational expenses. Since Elderhostel and our partnering service organizations are public charities exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, expenses
are generally tax-deductible.
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The Elderhostel Institute Network is a voluntary association of Institutes for Learning in Retirement (ILRs) whose purpose is to strengthen and support the effectiveness of ILRs, encourage the establishment of new ILRs, and disseminate information about ILRs.
The Elderhostel Institute Network operates as a division of Elderhostel, Inc., which shares with ILRs a mission to provide high quality educational opportunities for older adults.
Adventures Afloat offer hostelers more than 60 widely varied shipboard study programs worldwide. Each program utilizes the kind of vessel best suited to its environment - whether coastal waters, rivers, or oceans and seas. Moving among islands, inlets, canals, coastal towns, and port cities, hostelers discover the history, culture, and people who bring these settings to life.
In North America, lectures and shore excursions develop programs of human and natural history studies as hostelers sail along major rivers, the Great Lakes, the Atlantic, Gulf and Pacific Coasts. Internationally, programs range from slow moving barges
on French waterways with a strong focus on regional history and culture to shipboard expeditions, where hostelers explore remote areas such as Antarctica studying natural science, marine science and more.
Vessels range from 18-berth barges to a 1750-berth ocean going liner with sailing yachts, research vessels and sternwheelers
in between. Programs of 6 to 28 days duration are primarily exclusive charters for Elderhostel but may also be cruises shared with commercial passengers.
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Intergenerational programs serve to link Elderhostel participants with their youthful counterparts under the age of 25 through shared educational experiences. Intergenerational programs were created in the mid-eighties by some imaginative program coordinators who wanted to bridge the gap between younger and older generations. Since their inception several years ago, Intergenerational programs have proven to be immensely popular among Elderhostelers.
Most Intergenerational programs pair hostelers with their own grandchildren or other young family members or friends.
A smaller number of programs group hostelers with young people from local schools or college students at the host institution. Usually, individual Intergenerational programs require that the youngsters be of a specific age and have a limit of one youngster per adult.
Intergenerational programs have the same academic standards as traditional Elderhostel programs. All programs require educational programming. Typically, learning activities are "hands on" projects and field trips that allow adults and children to work and learn together. Adults and children learn from and about each other. Examples of Intergenerational learning activities include sailing, art projects, specimen collection for a plant science class, star-gazing, and visiting local forests, mountains, and rivers to learn about the history and geology of a particular region.
In International Intergenerational Programs, adults and children travel together experiencing the culture, natural wonders and often the family life of the local country. Most programs are held during the summer months when children are on vacation
from school.
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The new Global Initiative provides opportunities for people of other nations to experience "adventures in lifelong learning"
through Elderhostel programs. This project began in the latter part of 1998 and is funded through the private donation of an Elderhosteler who believes Elderhostel deserves to be a truly global phenomenon. Extensive research was conducted to determine which countries have the best potential for attracting participants. The first to become involved were Denmark, Finland, Germany, and The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Through colleagues in the Elderhostel network, the effort has already been expanded to include Australia and New Zealand, Austria, Ireland, and Japan.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale offers programs locally and to Oaxaca, Mexico and Mèrida, Mexico. If you are interested in finding out more about Elderhostel call Dr. Mizan Miah, Director, or Paul D’Angelo, Assistant Director, at the School of Social Work at SIUC-618-453-2243 or e-mail us at henry5@siu.edu.
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