Earth Day is just past, but on its way out, a lot of hotels have been left in a state of green. In plain English, that means that a whole bunch of hotels just used this oppurtunity to show how eco-friendly they were and announced a wave of measures, from new green hotels to green packages for guests.

Ap report, via LA Times, says that Starwood is launching a “green hotel brand” called Element, with the first property opening in July in Lexington, Mass., and 20 more hotels scheduled to open in the next year. The hotels are built with technology that saves water and cuts electric use, including heat-reflecting roofing materials, energy-efficient appliances and 16-foot windows to allow natural light into common areas. Laundry bags will be reusable, hybrid cars will get preferred parking, and garbage cans in the rooms will make it easy for guests to recycle.

The Orlando Sentinel reports that the Loews Hotels at Universal Orlando Resort became the latest in a string of local hotel properties to “go green.” In honor of Earth Day, the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel and Loews Royal Pacific Resort became certified members of the Florida Green Lodging program. Universal even had a green character on hand – Shrek – to help make the announcement.

Well, maybe…Christopher Elliot, CNN, has a long piece on how not be ‘greenwashed’ and how to spot the hotel industry’s ‘eco-lies’.  And he says that aforementioned Universal Orlando Resort effort to project a green image is hogwash. Here’s an excerpt.

Don’t believe everything you read. After seeing a recent announcement that Universal Studios in Orlando had gone “green” with an initiative called “Green is Universal,” you might be forgiven for thinking the only theme park a socially responsible traveler could visit was Universal Studios. Among the initiatives: Universal would recycle more, use energy-efficient lights and switch to alternative fuels on its service vehicles. But as I reviewed these steps, which are meant to turn it into “the greenest resort possible” I found myself chuckling at Universal’s creativity. I mean why wouldn’t a theme park want to recycle and use alternative fuels? Do they mean to tell me they weren’t doing this before they announced this program?

Besides, if Universal wanted to be the greenest resort possible, it would level Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure to the ground and plant trees. I’m happy the park cares about the environment, but show me a resort that doesn’t recycle or use fluorescent lights. Brian Mullis, president of Sustainable Travel International, suggests that press releases are not necessarily the best place for environmental initiatives, anyway. “First and foremost,” he told me, “their commitment to sustainability should be obvious.” - Greenwashed! How to spot the travel industry’s eco-lies, Christopher Elliot, CNN

I’m sure Universal appreciates Christopher Elliot’s suggestion that they raze the Studios to the ground and plant trees instead. Come to think of it, might make for a much better holiday too. Just  set up a camping zone amongst the trees and enjoy a Universal Resort holiday for free…A 100% green vacation, literally.

Then there’s this article in MySA.com, which expands on this subject of hotels just pretending to be green, and how travelers can make sure that a hotel is actually green. In other words, a set of standards for green hotels, without going to the extent of frequenting only LEED certified hotels, which would somewhat crimp your choices, since there are only 6 hotels in the entire nation so far. You can read more about that here.

And lastly, here’s a pop quiz from Lovetripper.com - What does a hotel being green have to do with a honeymoon? I mean, the article is titled ‘How to book a green honeymoon’. It’s not ‘How to book a green hotel’. So the question is, is there something special that ‘only’ newlyweds need to know about green hotels? I’m lost. Guess you are too. I should quit while this blog post still makes some sense, so I suggest you just read up on the links and make the decision to select a green hotel based on your own best judgment.

Posted on April 23rd, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Hotels