OUR HISTORY
A hostel since 1995,
a home for over a century
Our hostel is located within Domus Civica,
a historical building established in Venice in 1921 by the Ente Autonomo Case Popolari: interestingly, it was originally created as a low-cost hostel for employees working in Venice and retirees without means or housing.
In 1943, during World War II, Domus Civica was requisitioned by the German Military Transport Command and became the headquarters of the German command in Venice. At the end of the conflict, the Ministry of Post-War Assistance transformed it into a reception center for Giulian and Dalmatian refugees.
In 1947, Patriarch Piazza entrusted the management of Domus Civica to the International Catholic Association for the Service of Young Women (ACISJF), which initially made it a residence for girls in difficulty, and then increasingly began to accommodate students who were starting to populate Venetian universities in those years. Thanks to the efforts of Rosa Zenoni Politeo, a Venetian benefactor and the first President of the house, over the years the house was purchased and registered to ACISJF.
In 1991, management passed from the nuns to lay staff, and in 2011 it joined the ACRU network. In 1995, alongside the historic female residence, the summer hostel activity was inaugurated to welcome tourists and visitors to Venice and introduce them to our reality of social commitment.
THE SOCIAL PROJECT
Those who pass through here
help us stay
Domus Civica is a female residence for young students that is and wants to remain accessible to all. For this reason, during the summer months, when the universities close and the residence empties, we transform into a tourist hostel: to support the housing project and keep the rates low all year for the university students. Staying at the hostel means supporting the Student House, allowing us to plan for the future.
