YHA Australia

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YHA Ltd

Abbreviation	YHA Australia
Formation	28 May 2002[1]
Legal status	Corporation, members' liability limited by guarantee.[2]
Purpose	Provision of accommodation, travel and associated services
Location	Head office, 11 Rawson Place, Sydney, Australia
Region served	Australia
Affiliations	Hostelling International
Website	YHA Australia

YHA Ltd, trading as YHA Australia, is a not-for-profit of members trading corporation^[3] providing hostel and other accommodation, travel and associated service in Australia. It is a member organisation of Hostelling International.

YHA Ltd became a management and director controlled corporation with managers and directors now controlling the selection of successive directors^[4] and directors being able to appoint a least one-third of their number without election^[5] Directors may profit from payments^[6] but ordinary members are not entitled to a share of profits or assets. Profits are not necessarily spent or re-invested in the network of hostels or the provision of accommodation and services to members.^[7]

The founder of the youth hostel movement, Richard Schirrmann, took youths away from the conditions of factories and cities to experience the countryside on foot and by bicycle and, in winter, on skis and skates, finding accommodation in barns, houses, school buildings and later designated hostels in the countryside.^[8] In the 1960s, YHA NSW recognised eight principles including "2) Every encouragement should be given to those who travel by their own effort whether they travel by foot, bicycle, canoe, horse or row or sail", "3) Hostellers should be encouraged to enjoy the bush" and "4) Rural industries ... could be visited".^[8]

In recent decades, the Australian organisation changed focus and closed many hostels in rural areas and concentrated on providing travel accommodation in major tourist destinations, particularly large accommodation in metropolitan areas and coastal cities and towns where accommodation was already readily supplied. While still using the name YHA (Youth Hostels Association), the organisation no longer has a focus on providing accommodation for youths and now provides accommodation regardless of age. At the same time, the types of accommodation provided has changed from hostel to include hotel-style rooms and suites and self-contained accommodation.^[8] Having accumulated large debts on city and prime tourist location properties, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic decline in travel revenue, the organisation was forced to sell more hostels, many well below their account book value, with nineteen hostels closed.^[9][10]