Enjoy Your Green Stay
Â
An eco-suite at the Hotel Triton in San Francisco includes organic linens and used wood. An eco-suite at the Hotel Triton in San Francisco includes organic linens and used wood.
Remember when all a hotel had to do to show its concern for the environment was to ask its guests to reuse their towels?
Hotels now are rolling out all sorts of green programs, in part because their business guests in particular are demanding it, and in part because the hotels are finding that going green saves money.
“Environmental issues are one of the hottest issues within the travel industry right now,†said Bill Connors, the executive director of the National Business Travel Association. The association is addressing the topic of eco-friendly elements in hotel design and operations for the first time at its annual convention in July.
Mr. Connors’s view is borne out by the rise in hotels registering to be certified under the United States Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program, a commercial-building rating system. “I think it’s a really noticeable trend,†said Max Zahniser, a program manager.
There are currently two certified hotels in the United States — a Marriott in Maryland and a Hilton in Washington — and several more are on the way. “At least three-quarters of the projects that have registered are in the last year or two,†Mr. Zahniser said.
This is good news to Josh Rachlis, an advertising copywriter based in Toronto who travels throughout the United States for up to two weeks at a time. “When I’m at a hotel, I always look to see if they use compact fluorescent bulbs, and I try to use as few towels as possible,†he said. “Ideally, I’d be looking for a green roof, and if a hotel had recycling facilities, that would be great. I’d be more than happy to take my business there.â€
Mr. Rachlis is far from alone in seeking out hotels with earth-friendly practices. In a 2005 survey, Kimpton Hotels and Restaurants found that 16 percent of guests choose their properties because of the company’s environmental practices. The chain’s housekeepers use nontoxic cleaning agents, there are in-room recycling bins and the hotels plan to switch all light bulbs to compact fluorescents within the next 12 to 18 months.
“I get a lot of unsolicited letters from guests and I’m a little surprised by how many mention our green programs,†said Michael Depatie, the president and chief executive of the Kimpton Hotel and Restaurant Group. “We’ve been doing this for a while, but it seems like it’s suddenly at a tipping point.â€
Other hotel officials also say evidence of eco-friendliness is driving demand. At the Crowne Plaza Hotel Atlanta-Perimeter Northwest, Hugh Anderson, the general manager, said bookings had soared for a boardroom renovated two years ago with bamboo flooring.
“It’s highly requested and is booked constantly, which is unusual,†Mr. Anderson said. “It’s something that’s important to the traveler. They certainly have positive thoughts about using a facility that’s environmentally friendly.â€
Some hotels have used energy-saving measures for years. “Fairmont’s been doing it since before eco-chic was a word, and the one thing I’ve found about our environmental program is that a lot of our guests are unaware of it,†said Michelle White, director of environmental affairs for Fairmont Hotels and Resorts. All front-desk computers at Fairmont’s North American properties run on wind power bought from a sustainable energy cooperative, and several of its golf courses are irrigated with recycled water.
At the boutique hotel Greenhouse 26, set to open next year in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, the elevator will capture energy generated when it stops, in much the same way a hybrid car recycles energy released when the brakes engage. In addition, heating and cooling will be conducted via an energy-saving geothermal system, and water from sinks and showers will be recycled for use in toilets.
Hospitality executives and consultants point to the marketing potential of a green designation.
“It’s a great branding claim, and it helps them differentiate themselves,†said Danny Seo, who described himself as an environmental lifestyle expert. He said he had worked with Kimpton on the chain’s green promotions.
Bjorn Hanson, head lodging consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers, noted that 30 hotel brands had been started in the United States in the last 30 months. “The challenge is to find distinctions, and some have clearly targeted a green orientation,†he said. Environmental friendliness is a high priority particularly for younger consumers, who make up a growing percentage of business travelers, he said.
Kirsten Cluthe, an events marketing specialist whose job frequently takes her on the road, said her peers were concerned about the environment. “A lot of people that are my age are first-time parents now, and they’re concerned about what kind of a world their kids are going to grow up in.†Ms. Cluthe said she makes a point of asking about the sustainability policies of hotels where she stays on business trips.
Another reason behind the green push is economics. There are financial benefits to installing light bulbs that use less energy or bathroom fixtures that limit water flow. “In many cases, environmentally friendly is also business friendly,†Mr. Hanson said. With the cost of fuel inching steadily upward, some hotels are finding that conservation measures, once viewed as expensive, are now considered smart investments.
An example comes from the Westin Convention Center Pittsburgh. Four years ago, it installed a key card system to regulate the use of power in guest rooms. Common in hotels overseas, the units are activated when guests enter their key cards into a wall slot, which then turns on the lights, electrical outlets and climate controls. The general manager, Joe Kane, says the $120,000 cost was recouped after only 15 months.
Mr. Connors, from the National Business Travel Association, said the group’s hotel committee is planning to add environmental questions to the standard request form used by the association’s thousands of members when selecting preferred properties.
By some accounts, this is already happening. “We’re starting to see requests for green information in requests for proposal and that’s driving bookings,†Ms. White of Fairmont said. “We’re seeing corporate accounts coming to us with questionnaires and surveys.†She said she now filled out one or two every week.
Gregory Papajohn, a spokesman for American Express Business Travel, agreed. “Big picture, there is interest in ecologically sensitive corporate travel programs,†he said. “We’re seeing an increase in requests for ecological views and credentials and capabilities.â€
Mr. Anderson of the Crowne Plaza in Atlanta said that with global warming at the back of everyone’s mind, “It’s just an awareness thing,†adding, “It’s the environment we live in.â€
No Comments
No comments yet.
Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI
Leave a comment
