Eco-Friendly Hotels and Accommodations
When it comes to eco-tourism, green accommodations are a huge issue. With so many travelers needing accommodations, a huge source of urbanization in remote areas is due to hotels, hostels, cabins, houses and lodges going up in the area.
Additionally, a large number of city dwellers at any one time are tourists as well. With travel on the rise from previous years, people need hotels, hostels and houses more then ever before. As a result, environmentalists stress that it is important for as much new construction as possible to be environmentally friendly. This is especially true if a new building is going up in a remote village or in an environmentally delicate setting. As environmentalists try to curb the damage that mass tourism inflicts on the world, using eco-accommodations when you travel and by supporting green lodging businesses, you can help a great deal. There are also are numerous ways in which to make an existing building greener. All of these initiatives to make accommodations as green as possible, helps eco-tourism’s cause. Besides, what better way to see the world then by impacting and changing it as little as possible!
Read a little bit more about how hotels and houses can become more environmentally friendly and then check out some of the world’s best and award-winning eco-friendly accommodations.
What is a green hotel or home?
Green accommodations are any housing facility that incorporates technology, construction, design, materials and maintenance to minimize their impact on the environment. Staying in a green home or hotel means you are being environmentally friendly by choosing a place that has committed itself to green initiatives. The ways in which accommodations can be considered green are essentially limitless. For example, when a green hotel is being constructed there are many elements of eco-tourism to be taken into account. In order for a hotel or accommodation to be considered green they have to take some environmentally conscious action in energy management, waste management, lighting efficiency, water conservation, cleaning and maintenance, air quality, kitchen, laundry, design, materials and of course – construction.
The more environmentally conscious decisions that space dedicates to eco-tourism, the greener the accommodation. As you can probably imagine the number of hotels that are considered green ranges extensively. It is your choice as a traveler to decide how to prioritize your green accommodation choices. Because eco-tourism is still largely under regulated, doing research is a responsibility that falls on the traveler.
You’ve probably seen and heard a lot more in recent years about green buildings. As eco-tourism becomes more mainstream there is pressure on big cities and small cities alike to make changes toward greener accommodations. Check out our section on some of the best eco-lodges and hotels in the world.
