News
2011
Europe’s greener skies. Starting January 1, a new law will charge a greenhouse gas emissions tax on all air travel to and from European Union airports. The plan, which was passed by the European parliament two years ago, was recently given the green light…read more
iPhone app for Netherlands green travel. Let your iPhone be your guide to traveling green in Holland. A new iPhone app rates 4,200 sustainable tourism choices in Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam and 16 other cities…read more
Galapagos cruise earns double green certification. Ecoventura, a family-owned company of eco-friendly expedition vessels in the Galapagos, has earned Rainforest Alliance verification in recognition of its commitment to conserving the environment…read more
Green hotel in Cancun? No problema! ‘Tis the season to hit the beach, where the sun is warm and the drinks are cold. Cancun, Mexico, is such a place, and now at last you can stay green…read more
Website for certified green tourism in Latin America, Caribbean. To help travelers cut through confusing “green” claims, the Rainforest Alliance has launched an online database of sustainable tourism businesses in Latin America and the Caribbean...read more
Macao: world’s biggest casino to be certified green. The Venetian Macao is the largest single hotel building in Asia, sixth-largest building in the world and largest casino in the world. Now it’s becoming EarthCheck certified to reduce its environmental footprint…read more
Green Destination Orlando launches. With more than 50 million visitors each year, Orlando is one of the world’s most popular vacation and business travel destinations. Green Destination Orlando wants to make Orlando the “leading green destination in the world” by creating…read more
Alaska Air to fly 75 commercial flights on fry oil. A new era in American aviation begins this week, as Alaska Airlines flies the first of 75 commercial passenger flights in the United States powered by biofuel. These flights signal that sustainable biofuels can…read more
Maldives: SLOWLIFE sustainable tourism. Hollywood A-listers, top business CEOs, a head of state and senior environmental campaigners came together in the Maldives last week to share ideas on how to make tourism a benefit rather than a threat…read more
Fiji resort named ‘Australasia’s leading green hotel.’ World Travel Awards has picked Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort as most eco-friendly in Australasia for 2011. In the selection process, 213,000 travel professionals vote…read more
4 airlines named to Dow Jones Sustainability Index. Delta, Air France-KLM, All Nippon and Qantas are recognized as “Sustainability Leaders”…read more
Calif.’s Coachella Valley: 1st Green Seal resort. Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa in Rancho Mirage, Calif., becomes the only Green Seal-certified hotel in the popular desert destination…read more
1st sustainable seafood restaurant on SF’s Fisherman’s Wharf. One of America’s most-visited seaside tourist attractions finally boasts a sustainable seafood restaurant…read more
Conde Nast Traveler’s 2011 ‘World Savers.’ Conde Nast Traveler honors Lufthansa, Six Senses resorts, Accor hotels, tour operator Abercrombie & Kent and others for leadership in…read more
Happy 40th, Chez Panisse! This week is the 40th anniversary of Alice Waters‘ Chez Panisse, the iconic Berkeley, Calif. temple of green cuisine. A host of celebratory and educational events will…read more
Canary Islands green vacation homes ‘need’ tourists. If you stay at this village of unique eco-homes, you’ll be helping to determine which green design works best…read more
World’s greenest luxury hotels. All ITC luxury hotels in India have been awarded LEED Platinum certification. Does this make it the greenest luxury hotel chain in the world?…read more
What turns guests on about a green hotel? The single most important eco-friendly thing guests want from a hotel is a green certification. So says a new study of…read more
Finnair to make longest commercial biofuel flight. A regularly scheduled flight between Amsterdam and Helsinki next week will be fueled by recycled vegetable oil…read more
Historic Portland hotel earns Green Seal Silver. The Heathman, a luxury Portland hotel dating to 1927, has received one of the highest environmental honors…read more
Southwest Airlines celebrates with 40 green projects. The airline marks its 40th anniversary by sending student conservationists to help cities across the U.S….read more
3 U.S. hotels win as green ‘earthkeepers.’ Hotels in Washington, D.C., Stone Mountain and San Francisco get top honors from the American Hotel & Lodging Association…read more
First transatlantic biofuel flight is powered by camelina. Using Lindbergh’s historic route, the aircraft flew on a “dedicated energy crop” that does not compete in the food chain…read more
NYC hotel is first to partner with a farm. Harvesting crops in Manhattan is tough. So Element New York Times Square West is having a Vermont farm deliver…read more
New Jersey gets its first LEED-certified hotel. Element Ewing Hopewell, a new eco-chic boutique hotel, has earned the coveted certification from the U.S. Green Building Council…read more
Nearly two-thirds of U.S. restaurants do recycling. A new survey shows that 60% of consumers prefer restaurants that recycle, and more than half will pay more…read more
Colorado’s biggest hotel gets 4 Green Key rating. Sheraton Denver Downtown has won a 4 Green Key Rating through the Green Key Eco-Rating program, recognizing the hotel for…read more
Canada’s biggest indie hotel chain launches ‘Delta Greens.’ Want to know how Delta Hotels and Resorts’ new environmental sustainability program is going? You can track it online…read more
Syracuse hotel is 3rd in U.S. to seek LEED Platinum. America’s newest environmentally sustainable lodging is a 58-room boutique hotel originally built in 1921…read more
Rainforest Alliance salutes Mexico’s Mayakoba. This luxury Riviera Maya resort development is cited for its sustainable tourism…read more
Mövenpicks in Jordan get Green Globe certified. Five upscale Mövenpick hotels and resorts are the first in the kingdom to be declared eco-friendly by Green Globe…read more
Starwood Hotels & Resorts will Clean the World. The hospitality giant is recycling guest room soaps to stop the spread of preventable diseases around the world…read more
Céline Cousteau partners with Contiki Holidays. The granddaughter of Jacques Cousteau will help educate staff and travelers of the Toronto-based youth travel company about environmental…read more
San Francisco’s new ‘sustainable’ air terminal. T2, home base for Virgin America, aims to become the first LEED Gold-certified terminal in the country and offers Slow Food…read more
Here’s to Earth Day: 9 eco-friendly Caribbean resorts. To celebrate Earth Day (April 22), travel site cheapcaribbean.com has compiled a list of its eco-friendly luxury resorts … read more
Aviation fuel from nonedible plant soars. Several airlines have successfully tested biofuel made from the little known, non-edible plant Jatropha, which grows on land otherwise unusable for farming…read more
Sensual green in the Maldives. Six Senses Laamu, the only resort on the virtually uncharted Laamu Atoll deep in the Indian Ocean, is open for business. True to its philosophy of environmental protection…read more
Pan Pacific Seattle: model of CSR. Molly Phillips, manager of corporate social responsiblity (CSR) for the 160-room luxury property, has established a program called PanEarth…read more
Four hoteliers are world’s most ethical. The Ethisphere Institute lists three U.S.-based hoteliers and one Belgian company on its annual World’s Most Ethical Companies. Kimpton Hotels, Marriott International…read more
Honolulu’s Halekulani intros ‘GMO-free cuisine.’ The iconic property on Honolulu‘s Waikiki beach, is the first U.S. luxury hotel offering “GMO-free cuisine”…read more
Eurail: best sustainable travel. For the second year running, the group that manages and markets the Eurail Pass has been named the year’s best Sustainable Travel Provider…read more
Marriott: “green” is a competitive advantage. In the dog-eat-dog world of major hotel chains, genuine commitment to environmental sustainability is a win-win…read more
Trip Advisor: green travel really taking off. Trip Advisor says eco-friendliness will be important for travelers and the U.S. hospitality industry alike in 2011. In the travel website’s annual survey of …read more
Marriott leads global hotel chains in sustainability. Climate Counts’ latest ranking of major hotel companies once again puts Marriott well ahead of Hyatt, Hilton, Starwood, Wyndham and Carlson in 22 areas, including…read more
The future of travel: green value. The number of baby boomers, Gen-Xers and millennials seeking authentic green experiences in their search for deeper meaning in their vacations continues to grow…read more
Green hotel in Greece? No problem. Just launched: a website devoted to green hotels and green travel in Greece, said to be the first network of its kind in that country. It ranks lodgings…read more
2010
Let your iPhone be your tour guide: GPS-guided walking tours. An iPhone travel app that turns your phone into a private walking tour guide using GPS…read more
Six Senses Eco Symposium nets green gains. Highlights of the just-concluded summit was a commitment by British Airways to only use fish from sustainable sources in its in-flight meals and…read more
Is Marriott the least greenhouse gassy of them all? In its first-ever Sustainability Report, hotel giant Marriott says in the past 2 years alone its greenhouse emissions and energy use have each fallen by…read more
Sweden’s Treehotel adds 2 more eco-suites. One of the world’s most unique eco lodgings, in a forest in Swedish Lapland, now offers a total of 6 amazing, upmarket tree houses…read more
Eco-friendly Taj Hotels reflag. Taj Hotels has rebranded 16 of its hotels to its new upper-upscale Vivanta by Taj. The brand will grow organically to more than 30 hotels in India with…read more
Fighting poverty and disease, a bar of hotel soap at a time. A Dallas-based nonprofit called Soap Hope wants to use hotel soap to improve local communities…read more
San Francisco’s “green aquarium” boosts shark research. The Aquarium of the Bay, a certified green business, now has a massive Sevengill Shark swimming in…read more
Sustainable TV? Look for a new global focus on the Discovery Travel Network series that highlights green. EarthCheck, a leader in eco travel and tourism certification and management, is teaming with…read more
Pittsburgh’s newest luxury hotel LEED Gold certified. Fairmont Pittsburgh has scored a double first: first hotel in that city and first in the entire Fairmont collection of hotels to get…read more
Going green in Malta with new Crystal cruise. This fall, the luxury cruise line offers passengers the chance to plant trees in the island’s only national park, donate food at a local charity and learn eco-conscious…read more
San Francisco to install 5,000 electric car chargers. The electric car has found a welcoming home in the San Francisco Bay Area. The agency that protects air quality has approved $5 million to build a regional…read more
Being green is not just for eco-lodges anymore. Travelocity will add hundreds of luxury Hilton properties to its green hotel directory. All have been validated by…read more
Gulf oil disaster spills over to tourism on clean beaches. Though there seems to be progress in stopping the leak in the Gulf, misperceptions about oil on beaches may take far longer…read on
Vancouver to be N. America’s greenest destination? This Canadian Pacific city wants to be the greenest city in the world. It’s already well on its way to being North America’s greenest destination. Vancouver already requires…read more
World Responsible Tourism Day 2010. Wednesday, November 10th is an international day of action to help protect the world environment…read more
Green hospitality going mainstream. Latest to jump on the Big Green Wave: Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International and National Geographic Traveler have created…read more
Marriott breaks new ground with green hotel prototype. It’s part of Marriott’s plan to have 300 LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) hotels by 2015…read more
‘Greener Skies’ flight lowers emissions by 35%. Alaska Airlines tested new technology that allows more direct, continuous approaches while landing…read more
Shanghai landmark hotel goes green. China’s most iconic hotel is reopening … and going green. Shanghai’s Peace Hotel, now a Fairmont, first opened in 1929…read more
Marriott offers voluntourism in New Orleans. The fury of Katrina is 5 years past, but neighborhoods of New Orleans still need all the help they can get. Marriott has a way for visitors to lend a hand…read more
Beijing hotel freshens the air. Can a single Beijing hotel make the city’s air cleaner? Maybe not, but at least the guests of…read more
Napa’s Bardessono 3rd in world to go LEED Platinum. Greenest hotel in America? This luxury hotel in California’s Napa Valley has received the highest possible level…read more
Airbus unveils green plane of the future. Air passengers are getting a glimpse into the future of green flight. More than a flight of pure fantasy…read more
New award for innovation in sustainable travel. The International Ecotourism Society, celebrating its 20th year, has launched this new award to honor…read more
Travelocity finds green hotels rate higher. Its customers are giving better rankings to the travel booking giant’s eco-friendly offerings…read more
Green travel advice from U.K.-based Holiday Extras. Online articles range from the greenest time of day to fly to the hottest eco-tourism destinations…read more
&Beyond launches carbon-research project. Eco-friendly safari company’s 5-year research into the spekboom “super plant” with enormous carbon-storing capabilities…read more
Most CO2-efficient flight from L.A. to N.Y.? Plus many more shocking stats on world carbon emissions…read more
China goes Green Globe. China’s largest hotel trade association signs on with a leading green hotel certifier…read more
Air Canada enhances its carbon offset options. The leading Canadian airline is partnering with not-for-profit Zerofootprint…read more
Is Virgin America the most eco-friendly airline? Yes by far, says Smarter Travel, when it comes to U.S. carriers…read more
Wyndham partners with Plastic Free Ocean and paddleboarder Tom Jones. To raise awareness of marine pollution, extreme athlete Tom Jones is currently on a quest to standup paddleboard from Key West to New York City in 90 days…read more
United Nations backs global partnership for sustainable tourism. It’s a global initiative to make tourism worldwide environmentally, socially and economically sustainable…read more
Green product keeps hotel bed bugs at bay. They’re baaaaaack! Even high-end hotels see new infestations of these tiny, biting critters, but here’s how to fight back…read more
New iPhone App for green travelers. Whether it’s your next trip overseas or just a ride downtown, here’s a hip and simple way to make informed green travel choices…read more
Visit America’s Least Wasteful Cities. Find out how the city you’re planning to visit ranks, and why…read more
Greening in Hawaii. Great green travel tips for the Aloha State from the former travel editor of the San Francisco Chronicle…read more
LEED Silver certification for the W San Francisco. Hotel history is made by this 1st LEED certification of an existing building belonging to a major hotel brand…read more
Green Travel Hub donates 100% on Earth Day. On April 22, all revenue from travel bookings go to a Florida foodbank…read more
Treehugger’s Best of Green: Travel and Nature. Applauding exciting new ways the scientific and travel communities are exploring sustainability and all our natural world has to offer…read more
Marriott protects the Amazon. Tauck Romano Innovative Philanthropy (TRIP) has joined Marriott International’s ongoing effort to leverage sustainable tourism, conservation and training in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest…read more
Hey, green taxi! Nearly 6 out of every 10 taxicabs in San Francisco are now hybrids or run on natural gas. The city passed a law 2 years ago that gave taxi companies 4 years to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 20% from 1990 levels…read more
Take your eco laptop. On your next travels, go with the most eco-friendly laptop yet…read more
We’re honored. GTG gets recognized by Travel Blog Sites and TravelPod… read more
Carlson Commits to EarthCheck Program in Asia Pacific. Carlson Hotels, one of the world’s leading hotel companies, and EC3 Global, a certifier of sustainable travel and tourism operators, announced a partnership through which Carlson Hotels will establish EarthCheck Program certification for the majority of Carlson hotels in Asia Pacific this year…read more
Google maps for pedaling there. Google has added 12 thousand+ miles of trails and other biking directions to its maps, covering over 150 U.S. cities. And more are being added. Green attractions, too…read more
Fairmont goes dark. On March 27, all 60 of Fairmont’s landmark hotels and resorts around the world will participate in the global message to raise energy conservation and climate change awareness by turning off their lights for 1 hour…read more
GAP Adventures DIY contest. Sustainable tour company invites you to create your dream itinerary, then go on it, plus other prizes. Contest winner to be determined by online polling and travel expert judges… read more
Go green by country. Who’s the greenest of them all? The 2010 Environmental Performance Index ranks 163 nations… read more
Choose the greener cruise. Cruises are more popular than ever, but these floating hotels can be giant health- and eco-hazards. Friends of the Earth grades the greenest ships and gives a “B” to the best… read more
Green travelers say “do better”. While green travel has become the fastest growing niche in travel, travelers still believe the industry “needs work” before a true leader in sustainability can emerge… read more
Going green pays. Hotels that become Green Globe certified see their revenues spike upward… read more
Singapore Airlines launches green flight. A host of efficiency-enhancing practices to reduce emissions and save fuel are being implemented on this scheduled passenger flight from Los Angeles to Singapore via Tokyo… read more
Car sharing: it’s speeding uphill. Membership is way up in North America and growing fast in Europe, too. It’s a greener travel option that takes cars off the road and reduces overall emissions… read more
2009
Luxury hotels in Asia wanna be green. In China and India, upscale lodgings are pursuing green international standards or the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification… read more
Breakthough in hydrogen-fueled air flight. Boeing has successully tested the world’s 1st manned aircraft powered by hydrogen fuel cells… watch the video
