Sun Seekers Ditch Green Thoughts

Holidaymakers have traditionally left their cares at home ? and a new survey suggests this now includes care for the environment.

The survey ? by the leading boutique and a luxury hotels booking website found that while many people think hotels should do more to protect the environment, only a tiny percentage actively seek out a green hotel.

Nearly twelve-hundred travellers were asked how hotels could do more to reduce their carbon footprint and the most popular were:

• Make better use of solar power (41%)
• Waste less food (32%)
• Stop giving away free shampoo and shower gel (14%)
• Turn the heating/air conditioning down (7%)
  

Of the big up-scale hotels, the Hilton and Marriott groups scored highest in the green stakes. But even if a chain of hotels were to base its reputation on an environmentally friendly policy, 84% of people asked said they would not be willing to pay a fee to join the club.

The Managing Director of Luxique.com, Alex Brey, commented: ?We commissioned this survey to test the potential for an environmentally friendly hotel booking service.?

?The results clearly show that, despite paying lip service to green issues, holidaymakers leave all thoughts of this nature on the tarmac. We were really surprised.?