External Articles

This Alabama hotel houses bees to harvest its own honey | al.com

First opening in the 1940, the Admiral hotel reintroduced itself to downtown Mobile as a part of the Hilton Curio brand of boutique hotels in 2015. Shedding its existence as a Radisson property and stepping into a new chapter meant embracing a connection to the past and making strides toward the future.

Under the leadership of General Manager Joe Langford, the new Admiral dons a retro art-deco attitude with touches of nautical style, inspired by namesake Confederate naval hero, Admiral Raphael Semmes.

One idea credited to Langford, the idea to harvest honey in-house, may not have any historical significance in a space with many links to the past. But one thing it does have, is legs. And wings, for that matter.

The booking platform launched with savings available for hotels in the United States, Mexico, and the Caribbean | cntraveler.com

The story behind Kind Traveler, a new platform that reveals exclusive hotel deals and discounts when you donate to charity, is a story most travelers are familiar with. During a trip to Belize in 2012, founders Jessica Blotter and Sean Krejci—both entrepreneurs who had experience working with startups—came face-to-face with the kind of poverty that often exists in travel hotspots: Sure, we may be staying in the most luxurious hotels, but in locales like Phuket, the Riviera Maya, and many Caribbean islands, accommodations can often be anomalies within the town or country’s greater economic landscape.

Floating hotel to open in London as part of social enterprise project | theguardian.com

From September, Newham’s Royal Docks will be the base for The Good Hotel, a 144-room property offering training to unemployed people, and a chance to find long-term work.A floating hotel that aims to help long-term unemployed people get back into work is to open in London this autumn. The Good Hotel will take up a berth in Newham’s Royal Docks in September, after being transported across the North Sea from its current base in Amsterdam with the help of tug boats and a submerged barge.

Hotels build buzz for eco-efforts with rooftop beehives | theworldlink.com

At the Clift Hotel in San Francisco, there are more than 370 rooms inside and hundreds of thousands of bees buzzing above in rooftop hives outside.

Pause Current Time 0:00 / Duration Time 0:00 Loaded: 0%Progress: 0%0:00 Fullscreen 00:00 Unmute Yes, honeybees.

Aware of the well-publicized environmental threats to honeybees that have reduced numbers worldwide, seven San Francisco hotels have built hives on their rooftops. The sustainability effort also benefits the hotels as the bees produce honey for cocktails, food and spa treatments. It's the latest in a series of environmental programs at hotels that includes low-flow toilets and aggressive recycling programs.

Searching for Hospitality’s “Holy Grail” – Sustainability | argophilia.com

We hear so much about how tourism, hospitality, and especially hotels will ride the wave of Big Data into a revenue sunset. But underneath the hyperbole, there is a certain reality, the realization that sustainable businesses simply must emerge. It is also true that companies that provide the most stunning technological advancements in this field, cannot thrive unless their clients do. In this report we’ll examine how a hotel technology vacuum is filled, and how long term business strategies are formed from the ground up. - See more at: http://www.argophilia.com/news/searching-hospitalitys-holy-grail-sustainable- business/216376/#sthash.kVwCeHEe.dpuf

At Energy-Minded U.S. Hotels, They’ll Turn the Lights Off for You | nytimes.com

At the Palazzo Navona, a boutique hotel named for the famous piazza here, guests must place a room key into a slot on the wall to activate the lights and temperature control system in their rooms. The Palazzo’s use of the key card device is not unusual in Europe or in other parts of the world, like Asia. Even in countries like Norway where electricity is relatively inexpensive, many hotels use them to reduce energy costs.

How to Travel the Earth And Protect It, Too | nytimes.com

So you want to see the world without messing it up? There’s no easy way to do that. Simply going on a trip makes you something of a carbon hog, unless you’re planning to walk, bicycle or sail to your destination. That said, there are ways to make your trip as harmonious with the earth as possible. To give you guidance, we have bypassed the thicket of greenwashing prevalent in travel marketing, and instead asked experts at leading environmental groups how they approach travel. Based on their advice, we’ve put together a guide to traveling while keeping your footprint light.

The Link Between Wellness and Sustainability in Hospitality | 4hoteliers.com

Wellness and sustainability have very different definitions, but are often tied together in hospitality industry literature. In a foundational survey on wellness and its definition, conducted by Canyon Ranch, respondents most frequently associated the words hope, joy, and energy with wellness. These are words that are often used to describe travel and vacation experiences, especially vacations taken at resort properties.

Green practices to hit your sustainability goals | hotelmanagement.com

Sustainability has been on the minds of hoteliers for as long as it has affected hotel guests, but it wasn’t until the late 2000s that the switch to sustainable business practices was profitable enough for the idea to “tip” in the eyes of operators.

Ronald Lewis, associate brand manager at The Dial Corporation, a producer of personal care and cleaning products for hotels, said that hotels are more interested in sustainable products than ever before, with the majority of attention being paid to recyclable materials in the hotel guestroom and strategies to reduce water useage and the overall carbon footprint.

Icehotel to go year round with solar powered property | breakingtravelnews.com

Sweden’s Icehotel has revealed plans for a permanent sub-zero ice experience – including bar, art gallery and suites for overnight stays – available 365 days of the year.

Like every winter for the past 26 years, construction of the forth-coming Icehotel is about to take off in Jukkasjärvi, Swedish Lapland.

The ice from the Torne River is transformed to art sculptures and architecture that is set to attract thousands of visitors before it melts away in spring.

But this winter might be the end of an era.

Trending: Selfish sustainability | hotelsmag.com

We have covered financing opportunities with ESG investors for sustainable development projects. As well as transparency in reporting. We continue our series on sustainability trends in hospitality with a focus on creating a sustainable development according to what your organization values. But, I’ll be honest. I have been in plenty of meetings where someone wants to develop a sustainable building to avoid being wasteful or inefficient, but doesn’t see the connection of that lofty goal to better business performance.

6 Super Eco-Friendly Hotels That Will Blow Your Mind | abcnews.go.com

There was a time when the phrase "eco-friendly hotel" conjured up images of a lodge in the rainforest, complete void of electricity. Those days are way behind us. Now, green hotels are among the most chic -- and even tech- friendly -- around, thanks to innovations in design and technology, and the increasingly popular demand for sustainable options. To envision what the future might look like, we took a tour of hotels that are pushing the limits of what's possible. Here are six that totally blew our minds by being stunning, not just visually speaking but in the eco-friendly department as well.

How to build a competitive strategy | hotelnewsnow.com

With an economic soft landing predicted for 2017 many hospitality businesses will need to have a foundation built on sound strategy for continued success. Developing a business strategy is admirable, but executing it is the key.

Based on this, I thought I would try to simplify the essence of strategy for today’s hospitality leaders. One simple strategy is to differentiate our operations via intangible assets. As an example, customer relationship management or new and innovative products and services can provide differentiation from our competitors.

Before 'hyper-local,' it was 'international' | hotelsmag.com

Locally sourced food is all the rage: A hotel restaurant touting its “farm-to-table” cred might feature greens harvested from its own garden or beef that until recently was grazing in the vicinity.

Fully exposed: The transparency trend in sustainability | hotelsmag.com

The worldwide business community is looking at ways to connect the dots between COP21 (Conference of the Parties 21) and its 1.5 degree climate change commitment, and the hospitality industry is in a unique position to be global ambassadors to sustainable business.

New York Hotels Make a Green Pledge | NYtimes.com

Seventeen notable New York City hotels have committed to getting greener.

Marquee properties like the Waldorf Astoria New York, Grand Hyatt New York, Loews Regency New York and the Peninsula New York recently joined the NYC Carbon Challenge, a program Michael R. Bloomberg started as mayor in 2007 with the city’s universities to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Hospitals, commercial office buildings and multifamily residences were eventually added, and in late December, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the initiative would expand to include hotels.

Aligning Expenses To Green Goals | Hotelsmag.com

Its resolution time again. Even without a formal New Year’s resolution tacked to your mirror, the beginning of a new year feels like a fresh start. I like to think of the COP21 (Conference of the Parties 21) as a giant global resolution – one in which we all need to participate and the consequences are a bit more serious than skinny jeans.

Sea forts in UK latest idea for quirky stays | hotelnewsnow.com

A novel scheme to turn a series of isolated sea defenses off England's coast into alternative accommodations is the latest fantastic idea to give historical buildings new purpose and worth. Flying home to one of London’s airports from my end-of-year holidays, my plane was held above the neighboring county of Kent, my birthplace. As we banked to turn back up the River Thames, one of the last things I saw out of the window—I’m an ardent window- seat chooser—was a series of strange-looking square objects on triangulated stilts in the North Sea off the coast of Kent.

Hotel Trends For 2016 | Telegraph.co.uk

From concept hotels to flexible check-outs, Jade Conroy considers the new innovations to expect this year. Michelin stars and hotels have long been an apposite pairing (Paris and London hold constellations), but in 2016, many hotels are saying goodbye to cloches and cheese carts and turning the idea of a resident hotel restaurant on its head.

Eco-Tourism Doesn't Mean Rustic As Luxury Asian Resorts Go Green | CNBC.com

The high-profile COP21 climate talks in Paris has put a fresh focus on green energy, governments, businesses and individuals reflecting the consumption of finite resources. If you're Bill Gates, this means you can drop $2 billion on incentivizing the 1 Percent to invest in clean energy. But if you're a regular person, what can you do? It turns out, you can use this festive vacation season to play a part in caring for the environment.