European Hostel Cooperation Newsletter – JULY 2008
Welcome to the July 2008 edition of the European Hostel Cooperation Newsletter. As always we have a bunch of good stuff for you, including news from the EHC of the exciting relaunch of GOMIO.COM, and more from the hostel scene, as well as other travel and tourism titbits that we thought were of interest. As always, if you have suggestions, or something that you would like to see in a future edition of the newsletter, please do not hesitate to drop us a line at info@gomio.com.
EHC and Hostel News
New Look GOMIO.COM!
If you have clicked on GOMIO.COM in the last few days you will have realised that we have given the site an overall. As well as a brand new design we have worked on making the whole site faster, more efficient and more user friendly for both you and your guests.
There are three ways for visitors to GOMIO.COM to find hostels. Firstly they can use the search box. Second, they can explore through “hostels” the different continent, country and city lists. And finally they can use the Google maps. Please check that your hostel is correctly located, and if not send us an email with your exact location (ideally geodata - you can find them here:) and we will make the adjustment. This is the only thing you need to do with regards the relaunched GOMIO.COM…everything else remains the same as before.
GOMIO.COM – City of the Month
One new feature that comes with the relaunch is “City of the Month”. Each month we will select a different city to be featured on our homepage…the first is the wonderful city of Naples in Italy. But what does “City of the Month”mean? Firstly, we will purchase GoogleAds for Naples and its hostels, to promote the destination and increase visitors and bookings. Alongside this it will help promote the destination for low budget travellers, and bring attention to the hostels and other travel companies in the city. If you would be interested in your city being a future “City of the Month” on GOMIO.COM, please get in contact with us at info@gomio.com.
GOMIO.COM is on Facebook
We just created our new page and a profile on Facebook. Our profile name is GOMIO Hostels and we are happy to welcome everyone as a friend. The GOMIO.COM page informs you about new events and is specially made for our customers, but of course also for you.
One thing that we would really appreciate is that if you could let your guests know that they should become a fan of the page, because from time to time their will be a surprise waiting for our Facebook Page Fans. For those of you who have no idea what we are talking about, Facebook is a social networking site, and you can find out more at www.facebook.com. You can find the GOMIO.COM profile page at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/GOMIOCOM/14359262458
Hostel Management.com
A website that we have mentioned before in the European Hostel Cooperation Newsletter, but that we think is well worth a look and so we will mention it again! Hostelmanagement.com is “a free industry resource for people who manage backpacker hostels … It is also a source of information for people who are thinking about opening a travellers hostel. The goals of HostelManagement.com are to promote hostelling from the side of the hostels, and to improve the quality of hostels by providing information and resources for managers and owners.”
There is an interesting news section for all kinds of hostel related news from throughout the industry, as well as a forum for discussion and debate, as well as networking, information sharing and other useful activities. To check it out, take a look at www.hostelmanagement.com.
Hostel Blogs
Does your hostel have its own blog? Blogs have boomed in the last five years, and provide an excellent way for hostels to keep guests up to date with their latest news and offers, as well as build links between hostels and their guests, and allow virtual conversations to take place both before and after people visit.
A new website called Hostelblogs.com allows hostels to syndicate their blogs and read news from other hostels. To get your blog listed for free, send your blog URL to contact@hostelblogs.com. According to the good folks behind the website, Hostelblogs.com is “a fun, experimental site,” so why not check it out. More info and, naturally, hostel blogs, at www.hostelblogs.com.
Other News
Backpackers: Big Spenders?
It would appear that way, judging by some research that was announced in the last month. According to Lonely Planet, backpackers are happy to “splurge” on their travels in order to make sure they get as much as they can out of their travels, and that tastes are moving upmarket as more “flashpackers” take to the road.
You can read more on this story at:
Opodo - Link
Moneynews.co.uk: Link
But don’t call them “backpackers”
It seems as if the new generation of high rolling flashpacking wanderers has had an effect down under when it comes to marketing. The image of backpackers as penny-pinching and broke has caused a lot of companies in Australia to change how they market their services, and instead of using the “B” word, they prefer to target their offers at “young budget travellers”.
In an article on About.com, Julian Ledger from the Backpacker Tourism Industry Advisory Board states that: “We are seeing that what we once perceived to be simply backpackers are nowadays not necessarily financially stretched - or even carrying a pack.”. You can read more on this story at: http://studenttravel.about.com/b/2006/05/30/dont-call-me-backpacker-mate.htm
Fair Trade Travel
An article in the Deutsche Welle international site explores the idea of a European “fair trade” label for travel companies and organisations, as part on a movement to promote and encourage ethical tourism. The article states that: “some say the time is ripe for a wider analysis of fair trade in the tourism industry. Travelers worried about the ecological and sociological impact of their spending habits have fuelled a trend toward responsible tourism.”
The article goes on to discuss how such a ethical tourism label could be applied, as well as some of the problems of such a scheme – not least the expense that it might incur for small operators. You can read more at: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3419817,00.html
New Budget Airline Routes
Another newsletter, and more new routes for the ever expanding network of no frill budget airline flights. Despite environmental concerns, it is safe to say that these airlines have revolutionised low budget travel in Europe, and the arrival of routes have been instrumental in putting destinations on the tourism map. Some of the new routes announced in June include Ryanair from Birmingham to Derry, Katowice, Krakow and Kaunas; Easyjet from Milan to Sofia, Copenhagen and Brindisi; and Wizz Air from Warsaw to Rome. To keep on top of developments in the budget airline world, take a look at
www.flycheapo.com which has an excellent news section, as well as a search engine for all the different airlines.
Contact Us
That’s about it for the July edition of the EHC Newsletter, but remember: we love to hear from you, and if you want to get in touch with us at the EHC for any reason at all, here’s how to do it:
European Hostel Cooperation
Schwedter Str. 227
10435 Berlin
Germany
Telephone: +49 30 2462 8500
Fax: +40 30 2462 8501
Email: info@gomio.com.