If you yearn to travel like the turtle in your own home on wheels, why wait? Here’s how to make your RV travels greener: * There are probably a dozen or more campgrounds within 50 to 100 miles of your home. Discover them all and in all seasons. * Plan trips carefully. Take advantage of the cheapest fuel stops and the shortest route from A to B. Bring everything you’ll need including firewood or ice.
Our actions, energy and thoughts, as well as our physical well-being, are all profoundly influenced by our surroundings. Feng shui is a core component of the EcoChi system and a design method that involves purposefully arranging a space so that it has an uplifting and life-enhancing effect on the people who occupy that environment. So how can our hotel room truly feel like a home away from home?
Follow these simple tips and in 5 minutes design a healthier, more restful and enjoyable indoor experience when traveling:
When choosing a room look for windows that open, and be sure to air out the room before you go to sleep.
Green Travel: Beyond Sleeping in a Treehouse
For many people, green travel is synonymous with sleeping in a treehouse or camping in the jungle. The reality, though, is that you don’t need to sacrifice comfort to go green – even on a budget. One of the great ideas is house swapping, where you can save a lot and get a great place to stay when you rent someone else’s house. More and more lodging properties of all types of sizes, in all kinds of settings, are working hard to “go green,” knowing it’s good for the environment, their brands, and ultimately, their bottom lines.
Guests keeping an eye out for green measures when they book accommodations can look for measures like these:
- Energy conservation measures – See if the property is trying to keep energy loss to a minimum. High levels of insulation and energy-efficient double-paned windows can be great steps.
- In-room energy efficiency – Green properties can offer energy-efficient light bulbs, low-flow showers and toilets, towel and reuse programs, and recycling.
- Use of alternative energy – Box Canyon Lodge is unusual in that it can use the geothermal water of the area’s natural hot springs to heat guest rooms, heat the city water used for bathing in guest rooms, and heat the water used in the laundry (reducing natural gas consumption by 70 percent.since 2007). Not all properties can do this, but many can use some alternative energy sources or engage in the purchase of carbon credits.
- Innovative use of paper vs. plastic – Green hotels might opt for amenity dispensers, foregoing small plastic toiletry bottles. Paper bottles – resulting in more than 90 percent less waste than plastic – are other options.
- Behind-the-scenes operations – Interested guests can pay attention to, or ask about, a property’s use of energy-efficient appliances and green cleaning products.
- Local suppliers – Hotels that make a point of trying to utilize available local suppliers, from everything from fresh produce to office supplies, are making a green commitment.
Travelers looking to be both green and budget-conscious will find that it is indeed possible to achieve both. Lodging properties that can implement just a few of these – or other – green measures can truly start to make a difference in the environment. A great booking option that GreenXC relies on for deals on hostels and cheap lodging is here.
By: Karen Avery
Karen Avery is owner and general manager of Box Canyon Lodge and Hot Springs in Ouray, Colo., in the state’s southwestern San Juan mountains. Recognized as one of the “Best of the West” by Sunset magazine, Box Canyon Lodge and Hot Springs has earned a four-key rating from Green Key, the national eco-rating program, and has earned Green America’s “Green Business” seal of approval.
