8 Tips on How To Find an Eco-Friendly Hotel

I have written about responsible travelling and what it means to every one involved. Not only to the environment but the animals, local community and the cultures as well. As travellers, we see a lot of the world and meet many different cultures and people. That’s what (partially) makes travelling so much fun. This is how you choose and eco-friendly hotel that’s just right for your needs and wishes!

It can be overwhelming if you want to travel responsibly but you don’t know how to choose an eco-friendly hotel. Not all websites give information about the very simple, but important sustainable factors the hotel has. If you know what to look for when you choose an eco-friendly hotel, it becomes much easier to book one and less stressful as well. Because even though we all love travelling, it is a little stressful sometimes. Not today with these 8 tips on how to choose an eco-friendly hotel!

Choose a central location

This is a very simple one but does have a lot of impact on the environment. The emissions from cars are one of the worst ones in the world. It helps a lot if we can limit this while travelling. Look for hotels that are centrally located in the city so you can do a lot of the exploring by foot. The public transportation is also a good alternative if you don’t want to or can’t walk everything during your trip.

Choose an eco-friendly hotel by looking at carbon-neutral hotels

A carbon-neutral hotel focusses on the zero emissions movement. This aims to offset carbon emissions which helps hotels work towards a sustainable future. You can go all the way and look for specific hotels who are carbon-neutral. If it’s a bit too much – look for hotels that have low energy light bulbs or hotels that have a recycling program.

Look for mentions of fresh/local ingredients on the hotel website

This shows that the hotel either grows their vegetables next to the hotel or import from local farmers instead of importing the ingredients from other countries. It doesn’t only save the emissions from the import process but it also supports the local community by buying their products. It will help the region to develop more and supports the families

Call the hotel for more information if you can’t find the exact information on their website

Not all hotels have the best description of how they manage the hotel. If you decided to choose an eco-friendly hotel, found a hotel you like but can’t find the exact information: call the hotel. Ask where their water comes from, what sort-of energy they use, if they have a light saving program and if they have a program to reuse towels. If the mentions of local ingredients isn’t on their website – it’s worth a try to ask this as well. Hotels who work responsibly like the Marriott Hotels usually have fresh and local ingredients but don’t always mention it on their website.

Go back to basic and go on an adventurous camping experience

If you want to have a guided camping tour, look for the hotels that offer this as a package. These can be expensive due to the experiences but you can always find something cheaper if you keep searching! Hotels that share a lot about nature and local communities are good ones to pick for your adventurous camping experiences. You can always choose to go out and camp on your own as well. Just make sure to do this in a responsible way, know where you are allowed to camp and don’t leave any trash behind!

Learn if and how they give back to the environment or local community

When a hotel supports the environment and local community, it’s important to know what they actually do to make a difference. Actions speak louder than words which is why I recommend you to do research on the hotel and see what they do to give back to the local community. Are they hiring locals to work in their hotel? Do they help developing the region by providing resources? It doesn’t have to be big, every small piece of help can lead to big positive impacts.

Search on their website for a green label

When choose an eco-friendly hotel, the green label like the Travelife certificate are key-indicators to look at. The Travelife certificate is an international management and certificating program for tour operators and accommodations who are working sustainably. There are more labels just like this and it is shown on the hotels website! Look for the “about” section on the website or look into the sustainable options if they display them on the website.

Stay at a hotel who welcomes car-free travellers

I just mentioned to choose a central location, but that’s not possible during every trip we make. We might stay in a secluded area of somewhere in the middle of nowhere surrounded by nature. Most of the hotels who welcome car-free travellers are offering alternative ways of transportation like shuttle services, public transport packages and bicycles!

Some tips may seen straightforward and easy to use, others are a little more difficult to get to know. As I always say, look for the ones you find most important. It is your trip, your holiday but it is good to think about how we can travel more sustainable. Like I just said, every small difference can lead to big, positive impacts which is why it’s absolutely fine if you decide to use only one of these tips. I’m hoping these tips gave you more confidence to choose an eco-friendly hotel and made it less scary and time-consuming. When you know what to look for, it’s so much easier to find it.