Origins of social tourism

Tourism as in its present form only appeared in the 19th century. At that time, it was accessible to a high society elite only since the laws ruling labour did not include holidays for employees, who had to go to work every day, including Sundays.  Therefore, possibilities for most of the population to go on holidays were very limited.
 
The actions of social tourism started in 1936, when the International Labour Organization (ILO) agreed on the Holiday with Pay Convention (Convention no. 52). The substance of this convention has also been mentioned in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, where it is said that “everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay”.
 
We can consequently say that social tourism was born out of an ethical demand. This demand was claimed by activists, who justified their legitimacy with a specific right, i.e. the right to tourism, as a natural extension to the right to work, to rest and to holidays with pay.
 
Nevertheless, some historians believe that social tourism was born a few decades earlier, with the development of holiday camps for underprivileged children (the educational interest of those camps was later discovered, and the scope of action widened to every child, and not only the underprivileged) and the creation of youth hostels at the beginning of the 20th century. The idea of camp sites and bed and breakfast also appeared at the end of the 19th century. At that time, most of the tourist infrastructures belonged to the private sector, either organizations willing to improve access to tourism for a wider range of population, or for-profit companies.
 
It was only after World War II ended that social policies about tourism appeared in some countries, in particular thanks to the aid to buildings (subsidy for building, renovating and updating equipments and infrastructures) and the aid to people (measures taken to help people go on holidays). Numerous associations were created as well, under the auspices of trade unions, family movements, works councils, etc., which all had one common objective: to develop and expand social tourism.
 
On top of those different associations, which were often operating on a national level, at the end of the war were also created federations, on a national or international level, bringing together organizations striving for the same goal. It was the case of the International Camping and Caravaning Federation and the International Youth Hostel Federation.
 
In that context, the International Bureau of Social Tourism (BITS) was created a few years later, in 1963. Its main funder, Arthur Haulot, ensured for many years the promotion and development of social tourism at an international level.