Green travel ideas from two environmentally conscious travelers

Syracuse, New York is about to get a new hotel that is not only LEED green but also stands on holy and historic ground and is planning on doing some very nice things.

The hotel is the $6.7 million, 58 room Skyler Hotel, built on the site of a former Jewish Synagogue in Syracuse, NY.

The hotel is aiming for LEED gold with heat pumps to tap into the earth’s crust for the hotel’s heating and cooling needs, a rainwater harvesting mechanism as part of a system designed to conserve water, and a keycard that automatically shuts down the power to a room when the guest goes out.

But sustainable design, construction and operations that live up to USGBC standards are just one part of the holistic approach being taken by The Woodbine Group  - the hotel’s owner and operator.

They also aim to preserve the historic nature and unique character of the hotel as a former temple in a building which dates back to 1922.

The best part is that the Skyler Hotel is not just all talk and aesthetics. Owner Norman Swanson has pledged all revenues from the hotel’s loft room to a children’s hospital for 10 years. 

Guests will pay $175 per night for the loft room which also has a tree house, and the hotel expects that they’ll end up paying $250,000 to the Golisano Children’s Hospital over the next ten years.

Anywhich way you look at it, it is all a pretty impressive agenda for a new hotel.

Related posts:-
Sustainable Travel in New York
Park51 & Other LEED Certified Houses of Worship

Don’t let any mental pictures of LA’s summer smog cloud your thinking about the city’s commitment to environmentally friendly hotel options. In fact, LA is making many good green choices, and the eco-friendly Hotel Palomar is only one example. The Palomar has a program in place called EarthCare which puts to use over 40 eco-friendly practices in and around the hotel. For example, their website lists:

*  In-room recycling bins
* Energy efficient lighting
* Water efficient fixtures
* Toiletries made from natural ingredients by earth-friendly manufacturers
* Organic food and beverage options in our mini bars
* The restaurant adjacent to our hotel follows the Monterey Bay Seafood Watch’s sustainable seafood guidelines
* We are a 100% non-smoking hotel

I found it particularly interesting that this hotel works with an environmentally friendly restaurant - overfishing our oceans is a large problem, and it’s inspiring to see a hotel and a restaurant working together on this front.

These efforts resulted in the hotel being awarded the Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership award by the California Environmental Protection Agency.

The hotel itself is beautiful and classy - don’t neglect to check out the artwork before you leave; it provides an interesting reflection on the area’s Hollywood scene.

Photo: Todd Jones Photography

As re-reported by Bnet.com, Oklahoma has unveiled a series - seven, to be exact - of sustainable travel programs designed to meet the growing needs of consumers interested in sustainable and eco-friendly lodging and travel options. I found this article to be interesting on a number of fronts, including this statistic:

“…U.S. Travel Association research shows that 51 percent of consumers would continue to patronize sustainable travel service suppliers regardless of an economic downturn, and 48 percent said continued support of sustainable travel is a necessity.”

51% is an astonishingly high number to me, and it’s encouraging.

The article highlights the potential partnership between Oklahoma’s Colcord Hotel and Clean the World,   non-profit which provides third-world countries with “gently used” hygiene products like soap and shampoo from hotels around the world.

It appears as though a major push to increase recycling will be the first component of these sustainable travel programs. This is a good first step, and it will be interesting to see what the next steps will be. We’ll have to wait for feedback from the programs to determine how these efforts are being received and what new efforts will be made in the future.

Photo: Serge Melki

Good Karma or coincidence? Just in time to celebrate 09-09-09, the Nines Hotel, which occupies the top 9 floors of the historic Meier & Frank Building in downtown Portland, Ore., has been awarded Silver LEED Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.

The Nines, a member of the Luxury Collection of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, and developed and managed by Sage Hospitality - is one of only 5 hotel properties in the world to rank Silver.

As part of the $137m renovation, the hotel has implemented efficient plumbing systems - including dual flush toilets - that save upwards of 500,000 gallons of water annually.

Furthermore, the Nines receives 100% of its energy from renewable sources such as wind power and carbon offsets.

A vital part of the revitalization of downtown Portland, The Nines - located next to Portland’s Pioneer Square and the MAX light Rail, offers 331 luxurious guest rooms and suites.

The hotel boasts of an extensive art collection - built by Art Consultant Paige Powell, long time friend of Andy Warhol - featuring rotating installations by local artists.

Upon arrival at the hotel lobby, guests enter a soaring, seven-story atrium featuring a glass skylight that provides natural light throughout the interior.

There’s also a stylish modern steakhouse, a private floor-to-ceiling library curated by Powell’s Books, an exclusive Club Floor, state-of-the-art fitness facilities and 14,000 square feet of eco-friendly meeting and event space.

Photos courtesy Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.

Info: 525 SW Morrison Portland, Oregon 97204; (877) 229-9995; www.thenines.com/ 

Traveling with a pooch? As someone who does often, I was interested to see that Loews hotels, already known for their green policies and commitment to the environment, are now offering a “Grrreen Dog” package.

Rates start at $119/night, but the actual rate depends on the hotel you choose.

What might this include? Well, you get a specially crafted room service meal for your pet which contains ingredients that all come from local farms. Vet-approved, of course, so your night in the hotel room with them won’t be a bad one.  You also get a 100% organic cotton bandanna made by Doggie Go Green as well as a Zogoflex Huck dog toy, which is apparently not only indestructible, but it floats and bounces, too. This seems to be a very hand toy to have in a hotel room when you leave your pet alone; coming back to a chewed up bed or sofa would be a touch stressful.

Cute? Yes. But on a more serious and significant note, this program is just another way that this hotel chain is demonstrating their commitment to making every part of their guests services more environmentally friendly. It would be easy to provide low-grade dog food and toys made out of non-biodegradable materials. But, Loews went the extra mile, and I like that.

You can book this package until December 19, 2009.

I’ve seen an angle in the media playing out over and over again in the past few months. Companies’ internal research departments, independent polling agencies, industry-wide panels, and consumers themselves are all citing the same “struggle”: customers like to think they’re environmentally conscious, but when the rubber hits the road, they’re not willing to pay more. The studies are coming out in the paper industry, home construction and remodeling, and, of course, travel–in a study we cited a few weeks back.

I see these stories and the attitude they engender as a real threat to progress. Reading this news produces the very sort of throw-up-your-hands, “why bother because nobody else does” response in consumers that reinforces the status quo.

As I see it, there are two ways to combat this bluster:

1) walk the walk
2) talk the talk

I talked about point #1 a bit a few weeks ago when I addressed this same issue. We need to make decisions that are consistent with our values. The government is taking an increasingly laid-back attitude in regulating companies on environmental issues, so consumers have to dial up the pressure and hold companies to account. You can do this in your everyday lives by making decisions that those companies feel on their bottom line: buy carbon offsets (I’ll have more on that later), rent hybrids, purchase cleaning products from a company that uses non-toxic ingredients, etc.

You get the point. I don’t need to beat that drum any more.

But almost as important as “walking the walk” is “talking the talk”–letting companies and their customer representatives know that you’re judging them based on their environmental performance. On a trip, try having the following conversations:

At the Rental Car Agency:
“I’m sorry, sir, we’re all out of compact cars, so we’re going to upgrade you to a gas-guzzling tank.”
“Actually, that’s not acceptable. I refuse to drive a truck that gets 5 miles per gallon. Either you find me a car that gets 30 miles per gallon or I’m going to walk over to the competitor’s office.”
“Well, we could downgrade you to a subcompact car.”
“That would be fine, but I really wish you had a hybrid for me to rent. If you’re always selling out of your Priuses, maybe you should consider getting more for your fleet.”

At the Hotel:
“What seems to be the matter, sir?”
“Well, the room is comfortable and the service has been great, but I’m concerned about the fact that this hotel isn’t serious about its environmental program.”
“Sir, well, I’m sure you saw that brochure in your room about everything that this hotel is doing to minimize it’s environmental impact.”
“Yes, I see that if I hang my towels back up, you don’t wash them. I appreciate that. Except that you’re wasting TONS of electricity by not switching over to compact fluourescent lightbulbs, and I haven’t been able to find a recycling bin anywhere in the hallway. Plus, you drop the USA Today at my door every morning when I have no intention of reading it.”
“I’m sorry, sir. Is there anything I can do to make your experience more pleasant.”
“Well, you could go back and get your manager, so I can explain all of this to her.”

On the Phone with the Golf Course:
“I’d like to get a tee time for this afternoon, but before I book anything, I’d like to know more about your environmental practices.”
“What? You must be joking…”
“No, I’m serious. Do you use any pesticides on the course? If so, which ones? And what kind of water use does the course require? Have you done anything to conserve water in recent years? Also, have you given any thought to wildlife habitats?”
“Sir, I don’t see what this has to do with…”
“With booking a tee time? Well, if you can answer these questions, I’ll book a tee time. If not, I’ll find another course to play at. Thanks.”

OK, so I realize that some of these conversations might be kind of confrontational, so if that’s not your style, try something a bit more subtle. For instance, when you get to the golf course to play your round, ask the pro what kind of environmental practices they use. Even if you don’t threaten to leave, you’ll learn something about the environmental impact of golf, and you’ll plant the notion in the pro’s head that some golfers DO care about the environment.

I suggest that we all speak up and talk about the environment on our next vacation. If enough of us communicate that the environment matters to us, then it will start to matter a whole lot more to the hotels, airlines, rental agencies, and other service providers we’re doing business with.