We have stayed at a number of hotels this summer both in Canada and in the United States. Most hotel visitors these days are used to being ask you to please only leave dirty towels on the bathroom floor. There is much more that you can do however to have a greener stay. Turn off the lights and the air conditioning when you leave the room. Keep the blinds closed to keep the room cooler. If you are staying for more than one night, put the do not disturb sign on your door so housekeeping doesn’t come and clean your sheets every day. Ultimately these small actions will save the hotel money which in turn will save you money as the hotel won’t have to increase their room fees.
Do you have any other green hotel stay ideas?
Check out our 365 Green Tips Series!
Or, you could stay at a green hotel, like kimpton hotel company which has small, green, progressive hotels across the USA.
Full disclosure – I work for Kimpton. So although you can take my recommendation with a grain of salt, the facts about our “greenness” are indisputable – such as, many of our buildings are LEED certified, all of our hotels recycle, many use only eco-friendly dry cleaners, we have power saving thermostats in many rooms, and many of our hotels offer free bikes for guests so they can get around town without taxis or buses.
Minus the shameless plug, a great idea to be green while traveling is search out green-centric companies, and patronize them.
Thanks for the heads up on Kimpton. Here in Canada I know the Delta hotel chain is working really hard toward green initiatives.
Thanks to all Eco resorts that are protecting the environment, as well as promoting the use of natural soaps and natural resources, it’s our responsability to take care of what’s left in our planet.
Setting the example is not the best way to make this happen, it’s the only way.
Congratulations !!