About us

Haderslev Youth Hostel, part of the Danhostel chain, is an independently run institution, which has employed Pia and Peter Jørgensen to manage the day to day running of the hostel.
Pia and Peter have worked for many years in the youth hostel sector.

“We do our best to ensure that our guests are happy and are more than glad to help if guests have any special needs or requests.

We pride ourselves on giving our guests the highest standards of service, so that they really enjoy their stay in our hostel. We are also, of course, always ready to suggest excursions and events in our lovely town that we are sure will be popular with guests.”

A little bit on the history of our location
Historical sources relating to the grounds upon which Haderslev Youth Hostel lies go back to around the 1660s, but even before that time the land was occupied. At one time, there was a farm estate here in the middle of what was then the old village of Erslev. Around 1742, the estate was part of royal lands held by copyhold – in other words recorded in transcripts of manorial court rolls. Thus, the land in this area has been worked as agricultural land for generations.

From 1911 to 1976, there was a children’s home here, Erslev Børnehjem, which was run by the North Slesvig Orphanage Institute “Nordslesvigsk Asyl”.

With senior schools inspector Knud Ehlers to the forefront in the campaign for a hostel, Haderslev got its first youth hostel in 1937, which was based at the Duke Hans school. Previous headmaster August Hansen’s private rooms were used to house the school.

From 1946 onwards, the youth hostel was temporarily accommodated at 2 Lembckevej. At that time, 36 guests could be accommodated overnight.

In 1976, Erslev Børnehjem (the orphanage) was done away with and Haderslev Youth Hostel got the chance to move to its present location, which provided the perfect basis for the establishment of a modern youth hostel. The hostel was named “Erslevhus” (Erslev House).

Despite the fact that the building underwent a thoroughgoing renovation at the time of the takeover, an expansion of accommodation in the loft area became necessary as early as the following year in order to satisfy the demand for beds.

From then on, expansion and improvements have been carried out on an ongoing basis. In 1980, for example, a new wing was added on the 1st floor in the main building, and in 2001 Erslevhus again underwent modernisation with, amongst other things, the addition of a second bath and toilet in the rooms of the main building. Chalets and a camping area were also put in place at that time.

Today, Haderslev Youth Hostel is a modern hostel, which can accommodate 120 guests overnight and offers a great range of facilities and holiday options – though still remaining true to the atmosphere and character of both the location itself and the town`s own history.