BOOKING.COM has launched a Travel Sustainable badge for accommodation implementing sustainable practices that “meet the requisite impact threshold for their destination”.
According to Booking.com, the badge is the “first of its kind” in the hospitality industry and is applicable to all kinds of properties globally including hotels, resorts, apartments, holiday homes and even tree houses.
The company’s aim in launching the badge is to “create a universal and transparent measure for sustainable property information across the industry.”
This first version of the badge leverages the attributes validated by the Travalyst Independent Advisory Group (Booking.com is a founder partner in the global sustainable travel coalition Travalyst.)
The digital travel platform has collaborated with industry experts to identify a set of practices for a property to consider in five key areas: waste, energy and greenhouse gases, water, supporting local communities and protecting nature.
It also worked with sustainability consultancy Sustainalize to develop a methodology that assesses these practices’ relative weight in the model.
“This framework approach and measurement methodology have been officially developed within the Travalyst coalition and approved by the Travalyst Independent Advisory Group, and continue to be developed with further consultation and advice from the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC),” said Booking.com.
Properties that meet the required threshold for impact will receive the first version of the badge. Also included are accommodation with existing certifications and labels, such as those approved by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), Green Tourism and the EU Ecolabel.
In Singapore, PARKROYAL COLLECTION Pickering and Capella Singapore have received the badge.
During the first phase of the launch the badge and an overview of individual property sustainability efforts are visible to travellers on property pages across its app and website.
As the rollout continues the Travel Sustainable icon will appear on property listings on the search results page, along with a Travel Sustainable filter to help travellers identify more sustainable options during their search.
The company said over the next few months the list of measurable sustainability practices will evolve and expand to become “increasingly locally relevant in terms of measurement, while maintaining a necessary level of global consistency.”
As more practices are added the company plans to align this sustainability initiative with other Booking Holdings brands, as well as with Travalyst coalition partners to ensure consistency across multiple platforms.
“With our Travel Sustainable badge and
programme we are recognising the sustainability efforts of a broader range of
properties around the world in a credible and transparent way for consumers,”
said Marianne Gybels, director of sustainability at Booking.com.
She added that with properties displaying the practices they have in place, travellers will find it easier to “make a more informed and, hopefully, more sustainable choice for their next trip, no matter where they want to go.”
• Featured image credit: PARKROYAL
COLLECTION Pickering, Singapore
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