Booking.com
has launched the industry-first Travel Sustainable badge, a credible,
globally relevant sustainability measure that will enable more
sustainable travel decisions by Singapore travellers.
According to Booking.com’s
2021 Sustainable Travel Report, more than 78% of Singaporean travellers
pledge to seek out accommodation that has reputable third-party
sustainability accreditation.
However, barriers still remain with 59% of travellers believing there
is a lack of sustainable travel options available in 2021. 48% indicate
that they don’t know how to find sustainable travel options.
The
badge addresses this pain point and aims to provide a transparent,
consistent and easy-to-understand way to identify a wider range of more
sustainable stays, regardless of the destination.
The
badge is available to any kind of property that has implemented a
combination of sustainable practices that meet the requisite impact
threshold for their destination. It is applicable to a wide range of
property types – from apartments, B&Bs and holiday homes to hotels
and resorts, even treehouses. It also recognises a wide range of
practices across the sustainability spectrum and is adaptable to local
realities and considerations.
Building off existing standards for sustainable accommodation and in collaboration with industry experts, Booking.com
has identified the most impactful practices for a property to consider
in five key areas: waste, energy and greenhouse gases, water, supporting
local communities and protecting nature.
This is further broken down into 32 specific sustainability measures
or practices that properties can implement, including eliminating
single-use plastic toiletries, switching to LED light fixtures, running
on 100% renewable energy sources or investing a certain percentage of
profits into local community and conservation projects.
Properties that meet the required threshold for impact receive the
first version of the Travel Sustainable badge, including those with a
broad range of existing certifications and labels, e.g. those officially
approved by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), Green
Tourism and the EU Ecolabel.
To enhance assurance and credibility, Booking.com
worked with sustainability consultancy Sustainalize to develop a robust
methodology that assesses these practices’ relative weight in the model
and creates an overall score for the property’s sustainability
practices.