“Green” hotels are sprouting up all over, using their green-ness, eco-friendliness, and assorted varieties of organic shade grown coffees as a new way to lure visitors. Their sincerity to be kind to the Earth is often as thin as the newspaper slid under the door each morning. Fairmont Hotels and Resorts, on the other hand, is not one to follow trends, but to make conscientious changes. I found their efforts to be more than sincere.
Fairmont is no “enviro-poseur.” Its “Green Teams” have been at work since 1990, when its Canadian resorts began the "Green Partnership," a chain-wide commitment to minimize environmental impact. Since the inception, the program has stretched to all of the hotel's locations worldwide, focusing on waste reduction, resource conservation, habitat and species protection and community connections.
Here are some amazing things I learned. Did you know that, on average, a typical hotel guest produces more than 2 lbs. of waste each day? Or, how about the fact that a single hotel room soaks up 218 gallons of water every day? Fairmont has written the book on sustainable practices in the lodging industry…literally. Their Green Partnership handbook is used today by hospitality companies around the world, who are trying to implement sustainable practices.
But with all of this “greening,” what has remained consistent is luxury of all the hotels and resorts. Most of the changes are not even visible to the guests. So, when you are brushing your teeth, know that the bathroom has been cleaned with biodegradable non-toxic cleaning products, the lights are shining via compact florescent bulbs and the toilets are low-flow. You can even choose to reuse those wet towels you left on the floor, if you wish. And, not all the changes are inside the hotels. The Fairmont's golf courses participate in the "Greening our Greens” program. Through this, the resorts have been able to minimize pesticide use and encourage local wildlife to roam freely on the greens. Just imagine lining up your putt as an elk struts on by!
Fairmont’s philosophy and mission is that luxury and eco-consciousness can co-exist beautifully. And co-exist they do in each and every one of its hotels and resorts all over the world. So play golf at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess, wine taste at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn, ski at the Fairmont Banff Springs, go on safari at the Fairmont Mt. Kenya Safari Club or lay on the beach at the Fairmont Kea Lani Maui. Or, just stay at a Fairmont hotel in any major city. Fairmont is doing its part for the environment in a huge way and we should too. Let’s see…supporting the environment by staying in a five star luxury hotel…hmmm…tough, but someone’s got to do it!