How to spot for a Green Hotel?

Hi Readers,



Following up from the previous blog post, here are some useful tips on how you can judge whether a hotel is green or not.

#1: Check for Green Labels

Starting from the most straight forward method, try to spot for Green Labels on the hotel's official website or publications. These Green Labels are often awarded by independent third party organization and thus, have already evaluated the hotels subjectively, saving you the trouble. Some examples of Green Labels include: Green Key, Green Globe and EarthCheck, which is a partner of greenty.com.

Source: Google images

#2: Look out for green practices

In some cases in which hotels might not display their Green Labels distinctly and publicly, it is best if you look out for environmentally friendly policies that are implented by the hotel. Here are some examples:

Recycling bins

These bins are usually placed at the hotel lobbies and facilities sites like the swimming pool. Do try to spot them the next time you visit a hotel!

No-smoking policy

To ensure high air quality for all its guests, some hotels would impose a no-smoking policy on its premises.

Linen reuse option

Do not be surprised or offended if you happen to see such signs in your room. Some hotels place such signs in their guest rooms to encourage guests to indicate whether they would like their linens and towels to be washed daily. The primary purpose of such practices is to conserve water through reduced laundry.

Bulk Soap and amenities

These bulk dispensers play a huge part in saving the environment by reducing the amount of individual packaging materials required. Many of you might not also realise the wastage of soaps and shampoos involved if these products were distributed in individual packaging; unused products would have to be eventually thrown away after every guests' stay.

Organic food

Organic food may generally refer to food that are produced without using chemical fertilizers and pesticides, which are mainly harmful to the natural environment due to contamination of ground water. Some hotels have actually taken steps to grow their own vegetables and fruits in an eco garden, to ensure that ingredients used in the hotel's restaurants are fresh and thus provide healthy benefits for its guests.

#3 Incorporation of hotel design and eco-friendliness

Feel free to contact the management of the hotel to enquire on the degree in which eco-friendly designs have been integrated into the construction of the property.

Some hotels have attempted to do so by using green roofs which acts as a natural heat insulator and reduces room temperature within the building.

Nowadays, it is also a common practice for hotels to install equipment that generates alternative sources of energy and water such as solar panels to create heat and water treatment systems that treat collected rain water.

#4 Involvement with staff and the local community

There is no point in designing the hotel to be environmentally friendly if the staff does not execute the green policies. Thus, it is the hotel's responsibility to train its staff on being green as they are the ones who will be managing the operations of the hotel. The employees of the hotel can also uphold the "green values" by encouraging guests to conserve water and energy.

Being green could also mean giving back to the local community of the area that the hotel is situated at. The hotel can do this by supporting local food produce, as well as highlighting the local art and culture to its guests. It can also help the needy through charity drives.

Lastly, hotels may opt to be involved in conservation projects, to protect the natural surroundings of the place. This is especially so for hotels and resorts that have beaches or tropical jungles located in proximity to its premises. Examples of conservation projects include beach clean ups and restoring of homes for the fauna and flora.

Hopefully, this post helps to clarify any confusion of what a Green Hotel really is.

Here's the links of hotels that greenty.com has rated this week; do feel free to browse through them as we continue to introduce and rate more green hotels daily.

Reserva Ecologica Pachijal
Napo Wildlife Center
Piedra Blanca Ecolodge
La Selva Jungle Lodge
Hotel Patio Andaluz
Kapawi Ecolodge
Sonaisali Island Resort
Maritim Hotel Berlin
Creativhotel Luise
Maritim Hotel Dresden
Fairmont Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten
Radisson Blu Hotel Berlin
The Regent Berlin
Maritim Hotel Frankfurt
25hours Hotel Frankfurt By Levi's
Barcelo Cologne City Center
Maritim Hotel Köln
Steigenberger Parkhotel Düsseldorf
Novotel Hong Kong Century
Novotel Hong Kong Citygate
Novotel Shanghai Atlantis
Hotel Alexandra
Sankt Helene Holiday Resort
Maritim Bonn
InterContinental Berchtesgaden Resort
InterContinental Berlin
InterContinental Düsseldorf
InterContinental Frankfurt
InterContinental Hamburg
Flamboyant Hotel & Villas
Le Parc aux Orchidees
Eco Hotel Uxlabil Atitlan
Novotel Hyderabad Airport
Udayana Lodge
Novotel Bali Nusa Dua Hotel & Residences
Novotel Bandung
Novotel Bogor Golf Resort and Convention Center
Novotel Lombok
Novotel Semarang
Novotel Solo
Novotel Yogyakarta
Locanda della Valle Nuova
Novotel Milano Malpensa Airport
Novotel Milano Nord Ca Granda
Novotel Venezia Mestre Castellana
Viva Wyndham Maya
Viva Wyndham Azteca
Hotel en Ixtapa
Barcelo Huatulco Beach
Barcelo Tucancun Beach
La Puertecita Boutique Hotel
Novotel Mexico Santa Fe
Scandic Sanadome
Novotel Hamilton Tainui
Novotel Queenstown Lakeside
Hotel Novotel Auckland Ellerslie
Novotel Capital Wellington
Novotel Rotorua Lakeside

Choose a Green Hotel this Summer

As the summer holidays are approaching, you may be wondering how you are going to spend it this year. Planning for a summer vacation trip? You may want to consider searching for an eco-friendly accommodation provider to add meaning to your vacation. In case you might be thinking, what is then, considered as a green hotel or resort?

Basically, they are accommodation providers that incorporate environmental friendly policies into their operations for better sustainability. Nowadays, the definition of being a supporter of sustainability has included contributing back to the society as well. Hotels that are located at an urban setting has also taken up the challenge of being eco-friendly, through simple measures like serving organic food and providing amenities in bulk instead of individual packaging. Such hotels busted past perceptions of green accommodation being just those which are located in the jungles and other natural settings.

Due to the rising number of hotels claiming to be “green”, travelers need to look out for official green certificates or labels, which are awarded by independent organizations. Greenty is one reliable website that helps you to do so, highlighting the green measures that each hotel is undertaking. Feel free to browse through our database of over 3,000 hotels that are rated subjectively by a team of green travel experts, through an assessment grid of 21 green criteria. Hopefully, you will be able to find one that meets your needs this summer.

By the way, here are some of the links to the hotels we have rated this week; enjoy the read!

Sandals Whitehouse
Sandals Montego Bay
Sandals Negril Beach Resort & Spa
Sandals Royal Caribbean
Sandals Grande Ocho Rios
Chukka Caribbean Adventures
Couples Swept Away
Couples Sans Souci
Couples Negril
Royal Plantation Spa& Golf Resort
Beaches Boscobel Resort & Golf Club
Hedonism II
The Ritz Carlton Golf & Spa Resort Rose Hall
Mövenpick Resort & Residence Aqaba
Mövenpick Resort & Spa Dead Sea
Mövenpick Resort & Spa Tala Bay Aqaba
Scandic Neringa Hotel
The Fairmont Mayakoba
Villa del Faro
El Retono Ecolodge
Posada Yum Kin
Boca de Iguanas Beach Resort
Playa Viva


Have a nice day!

Sarah Alexandra Mayer

Green Holiday claims confuse travellers

Holidaymakers believe they have been "greenwashed" by hotel and travel groups claiming to be environmentally friendly.
A survey conducted by the world's largest online travel guide Greenty.com early this year found that 62 percent of travelers believed that hotels overestimate their green credentials and only 30% say that hoteliers provide travellers with a fair green assessment of their property.
Tourism and travel environmental sustainability expert Stewart Moore from EC3 Global and EarthCheck says the time has come to demystify the sustainability credentials of hotel and travel groups.
"There have been a rising number of green claims from hoteliers and tourism products in the past three years. Many of these claims verge on the edge of greenwash. Consumers need a certified method of knowing which hotels or tourism services are actively pursuing green policies throughout their operations," said Mr Moore.
EarthCheck has partnered with Greenty.com to demystify the sustainability credentials of hotel and travel groups. EC3 Global manages the EarthCheck certification and benchmarking program, used by more than 1,300 organizations in over 70 countries, for sustainable travel using the latest science and technology.
Through the new partnership, Greenty.com is now able to highlight hotels that have been audited by EarthCheck. Founder of greenty.com Serge Fabre said it is important for consumers to know that a qualified third-party professional has validated the effectiveness of sustainable practices at the hotel or tourism business.
"Our research showed that 60 percent of travelers considered eco-actions from tourism operators as a key element of their booking decision and 31 percent are willing to pay more to say in a green hotel," said Mr Fabre.
"Today, everything and anything is green. 'Green' is a hip word and there are so many green travel labels, some reliable and some not, making the search for a green accommodation very difficult, if not misleading. "It's so important for environmental sustainability claims to be demystified. That's why we have partnered with EarthCheck, so consumers are assured that the tourism operator has been scientifically eco-assessed and their claims are true."

Further media information:
Susan Sullivan, susan@infrontcommunications.com.au - + 61 412 365 122
Stewart Moore, CEO of EarthCheck and EC3Global – stewart.moore@ec3global.com - + 61 7 3238 1900
Sarah Mayer, Manager, Greenty.com – contact@greenty.com

About Greenty.com
Greenty.com is the most comprehensive online green travel guide. Greenty.com is not a travel agency: its goal is to simplify the search for green travel. Greenty.com has rated more than 3.000 hotels worldwide through its independent team of green travel experts using an assessment grid of 21 green criteria. Besides, the Greenty community of eco-consumers contributes reviews to help enhance the search experience. www.greenty.com
An exclusive 15% discounted membership is offered to all of the EarthCheck members who decides to register their eco hotel with Greenty.com . For more information please send an email to   contact@greenty.com

About EC3 Global
EC3 Global is the world's largest certifier of sustainable travel and tourism operators. With more than 1200 clients in over 70 countries, the company's EarthCheck Program responds directly to the major
environmental problems facing the planet, including climate change, waste reduction and non-renewable resource management. It provides benchmarking, certification and performance improvement systems that result in average first year savings of 30 per cent for energy and waste stream, and 20 per cent savings for water consumption. www.earthcheck.org

B&B, with a pinch of Nature please.

Living in the urban jungle is fast-paced, full of stress and even toxic for some. More often than not,
city folk veer to the seclusion of quaint little towns and villages dotting the rural areas to take a
glimpse of good old pastoral lifestyle. Nowadays, vacationing in these bed and breakfast joints are
making waves instead of the mainstream hotel and resort stay most of us would want to have. So
much so that in the US, practically all states, whether in the outskirts of megalopolises to high up in
the mountains, have bed and breakfast accommodations that are truly sought after.

Most of these B&B’s have a lot of things in common from one another – it is reminiscent of the
yesteryears of personal lodging, has excellent homemade food prepared, secluded and exclusive to
almost only 10 or so guests for every stay, and fabulous views of manicured gardens and landscapes.
Whether nearby a ski resort area or in the northeast US where a maritime feel is evoked in every
stay, these B&Bs provide a fabulous backdrop for any vacation, more so for urban folk awaiting to
detoxify themselves from the stresses of city living.

Though these bed and breakfast accommodations have been small-run businesses and are very
much personal to the guests, they still live up to the eco-philosophy that is running on the minds
of hoteliers around the world. Great examples are found in Greenty’s wide selection of bed and
breakfast lodging. Carriage House B&B in Lynchburg, Virginia is a classic example of early American
lifestyle complete with spacious foyers and brick exterior facades. Madeleine Inn in Santa Fe, New
Mexico has been set strategically in the middle of ski vacation areas, city establishments and the
pristine New Mexico landscape – giving guests a sampling of all local sights and sounds. High up
in the mountain area of Leavenworth comes Sleeping Lady Mountain Retreat, offering variety of
green activities such as nature and music retreats for those visiting from urban areas. Lastly, if guests
want a feel of pastoral living on a fully-functioning ranch, then First Farm Inn situated on Northern
Kentucky is the best place to groom, tack up and befriend barn animals some thirty minutes outside
of Cincinnati.

Bed and breakfast accommodation may be some of the best places to recharge, relax and
rejuvenate, and it has so much more at store to promote wellness as well as the protection of our
environment.

EarthCheck awarded by WWF ...

EC3 Global, from Australia, just won the WWF Sustainable Small Business award, for their work in encouraging the tourism industry to take action to get greener.


EarthCheck's certification and benchmarking gives the hospitality industry a science-based approach to increase efficiencies, maximise guest experience and minimise their environmental footprint.


More details about EC3's award at http://www.earthcheck.org/news/ec3-global-wins-wwf-award.aspx