Have you ever asked yourself the same question? Is it organic food, green electricity, or the use of ecological building materials that make a hotel sustainable? Or rather fair wages and social commitment? The number of criteria that count towards the sustainability quality seal is enormous. It’s not easy to keep track of everything.

Sustainable tourism – keeping an eye on the big picture

One thing is clear! Sustainable action does not just mean working to protect living creatures and ecosystems. Sustainable action also means acting in a socially responsible manner, being mindful of the needs of others, and taking cultural and regional conditions into account. This applies equally to tourism. Pay hotel employees fairly, hire local suppliers, and structure one’s own offerings so that they fit in with the people and special features in the region. For hoteliers, this is just as important as the purely ecological aspect of sustainability, for example, alternative energy production. A resource-saving organic hotel that employs foreign seasonal workers at dumping wages or a spa temple advertising sustainability that has its food and care products flown in from all over the world – that doesn’t work, that’s not authentic.

Only with a holistic focus on sustainable action and regional authenticity hotels succeed in real sustainability. And it is not a matter of working through a predefined catalog of criteria from A-Z, but of setting one’s own priorities and living up to one’s own vision of sustainability. 

With strategy and conviction to a sustainable hotel

And what does that mean in specific terms? On the way to sustainability, it is first necessary to define one’s own concept of sustainability. With what are we building? At what points do we change our offer to sustainable products? What energy do we use? These are just a few of the many questions that need to be answered. To find the most concrete answers to these questions, operators need a long-term strategic plan, employees who are involved in the decision-making processes, and a large dose of conviction and passion. Only in this triad can they succeed in combining and sustainably implementing important topics such as architecture, materials, regionality, energy management, water, waste, food, and social commitment, both within the hotel and externally.

As diverse as the possibilities are for making tourism sustainable, the passions and focuses of our Green Pearls® hotels are equally diverse. The following initiatives show you how personal convictions and enthusiasm are transformed into great projects.

The ROMANTIC Boutique Hotel & Spa, Lithuania

Vision: Cultural Heritage  

Step into the history of Lithuania! Into the 4-star ROMANTIC Hotel, right in the center of the town of Panevėžys in the north of Lithuania. To the boutique hotel with integrated spa within the historic walls of a renovated former mill. The first mechanical mill in the country.

Dalia Remeikaitė and her daughter Dovilė Šipelienė took over the former mill building in 2001 and lovingly and sustainably renovated it in just one year. The energetic mother-daughter duo is deeply convinced that environmental protection and modern lifestyle are perfectly compatible. The result proves them right. The ROMANTIC is a place that skillfully combines the historic charm of the building with modern elements and has become a lovingly designed place of longing in the heart of Panevėžys. In the in-house ETNO SPA, all treatments are based on traditional, Baltic healing methods, and only regional products are used, which are ecologically certified.

Tongsai Bay, Koh Samui, Thailand

Vision: Biodiversity 

Paradise-like, untouched and unique. This is the impression made by the sloping terrain of Tongsai Bay, the first luxury eco-resort on the island of Koh Samui. On this special place, the vision of biodiversity is part of the program: the green resort, built in 1987, has been committed to the conservation of natural resources since the very beginning. The resort was therefore built around nature and not a single tree in the original area was felled.

Founder Khun Akorn Hoontrakul’s vision of leaving nature as untouched as possible is paying off: Today, more than 60 species of birds alone can be admired on the huge grounds. And it’s not just the birds that have chosen to stay; many of the employees have been there from the beginning, too. This is based on Hoontrakul’s idea of treating not only nature with respect and care but also its employees. 

Relais del Maro, Liguria, Italy

Vision: Sustainable Tradition

Vibrant Italian life at its best! In the buildings of the Albergo Diffuso Relais del Maro, you can immerse yourself in the warm and welcoming world of the small Ligurian village. The hotel, with its 14 rooms, spreads over several lovingly restored buildings, all part of the history of the hotelier’s family Scamlambrin. Family members have lived and worked here. With the reconstruction of the houses into an Albergo Diffuso, they wanted to take into account the history, tradition, and culture. From the beginning, the family emphasized the importance of a sustainable and energetic renovation of the houses.

OCÉANO Hotel Health Spa, Tenerife, Spain

Vision: Sustainable health

Here you can recharge your batteries, regain your focus, and enjoy sustainable wellness. Located directly on the water and with an enchanting view of the Teide volcano, the  OCÉANO Health Spa Hotel is a perfect retreat on the popular Canary Island – and has been for over 50 years! With countless wellness, fitness, sports, and excursion options, special health programs and the new Center of Healthy Motion, it offers recreation and regeneration seekers a diverse range. The Health & Spa Hotel was sustainably renovated in 2019 and received an additional layer of thermal insulation as well as particularly energy-saving technology in the course of the renovation work, for which only natural and environmentally friendly building materials are used. At the new water dispensing stations, you can pump water as needed with reusable bottles, which significantly reduces the use of plastic bottles. But your visit to the hotel restaurant will also be sustainable – and not just because of the good taste. The food is cooked and prepared with fresh ingredients from local suppliers, mostly from organic farming. 

Naturhotel Outside, Tyrol, Austria

Vision: Nature as a place of power

Relaxation, kindness, and enjoyment in harmony with nature. Are you looking for an extraordinary and welcoming place in the middle of the impressive and unspoiled nature of the East Tyrolean Alps? Then you will find your favorite place in the Naturhotel Outside. The hotelier family Ganzer spoils you with everything that comes fresh from nature and emphasizes living environmental protection. 

“In its quiet untouchedness, nature is a source of strength without equal, and we want to actively contribute to its preservation.” – Nature Hotel Outside

For their mindful and resource-conserving use of energy and materials, their social commitment, and their absolute focus on local suppliers, the hotel has already received several awards, including the Austrian Environmental Seal.

Culinary art at the highest level awaits you in the hotel’s own gourmet restaurant INSIDE, which is known far beyond the region. All dishes are regional, seasonal, and rooted in the region. Verena Ganzer, who has been head chef at INSIDE for three years, uses only high-quality ingredients; vegetables, cheese, fish, meat, and fruit come from sustainable farming in the region. Natural – and simply delicious!

Read more: MINDFUL VACATION IN GREEN PEARLS® PARTNER HOTELS IN INDONESIA AND NEPAL

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