Courtesy Groupe Germain
By Kristine Hansen
An eco-friendly lifestyle is the newest marketing mantra for urban hotels. Bicycle rentals, rooftop beehives, organic linens, Fair Trade coffee, and chemical-free toiletries are just some of the amenities properties pitch at travelers who don't mind often spending a little extra green be green. By bunking in an urban setting you can ditch the car (cutting down on your carbon footprint) and experience a vibrant neighborhood simply by staying in it.
Photo Caption: The bar at ALT Hotel, Montreal.
What: theWit Hotel
Why it's Green: One of downtown Chicago's newest hotels (it opened during the spring of 2009 in the Loop Business District and Theatre District), locals flock here for skyline views at the 27th-floor rooftop bar, ROOF; and modern, hearty Italian meals at cibo matto (such as poached lobster or Niman Ranch-raised beef, and housemade gelato flavors that include pistachio buttercrunch). In addition to locally procured meats, the hotel also utilizes energy-efficient lighting throughout the entire hotel, has a green roof made up of drought-resistant plants; and there are water-conservation showerheads, toilets, and faucets in each of the 298 rooms.
Details: from $299 per night; www.thewithotel.com
Photo Caption: theWit Hotel, Chicago.
What: The Good Hotel
Why it's Green: Taking on a more holistic approach to being "green," this 117-room hotel (constructed with many recycled materials in 2008) in San Francisco's SOMA neighborhood helps guests sign up to volunteer for a number of local causes through One Brick, borrow a bicycle (at no cost) to explore the city, or utilize the free book-exchange program in each room. Each room's bed frame is made of reclaimed wood, its bedding made of 75% recycled soda bottles. Shrink your carbon footprint even further by checking out the on-site wine-tavern/restaurant that opens this summer serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Hankering for a souvenir from your stay? Pick up a sustainable T-shirt in the lobby before you head to the airport.
Details: from $99; www.thegoodhotel.com
Photo Caption: Double room at The Good Hotel, San Francisco.
What: 70 Park Avenue
Why it's Green: In Manhattan's Murray Hill neighborhood, a few blocks south of bustling Grand Central Station and the Empire State Building, is a haven for environmental travelers. This recently renovated hotel even stocks 205-room hotel even stocks green goodies in their honor bars, including FRED natural spring water from Brooklyn. Pull up in a hybrid car and you receive $20 off your parking via the Green Road Warrior package. Some cocktails, like Agave Nectar Margarita, at Silverleaf Tavern are prepared with fresh, locally grown ingredients. Each room in the Green Seal-certified hotel is cleaned with non-toxic products and features energy-efficient lighting and air conditioning. You can also opt to send $10 of your daily room rate to Trust for Public Land, a national non-profit organization that conserves land for public use. (A Parks for People fundraising program also allows you to donate a portion of your room rate.)
Details: from $199; www.70parkavenuehotel.com
Photo Caption: Room detail from 70 Park Avenue, New York.
What: The Q Hotel & Spa
Why it's Green: Open since 2007, the 120-room The Q Hotel & Spa is in the heart of Kansas City: five blocks from Country Club Plaza (the city's 15-block entertainment district) and within three miles of many museums, such as the National World War 1 Museum and the Jazz Museum. All unused Aveda (plant-based bath and body products) toiletries are donated to a community organization, organic wine served at the lobby bar, Fair Trade-certified coffee poured in the lobby coffee bar and leftover food gifted to a local organic farmer for his compost. There's no need to bring a car as the hotel offers free shuttle service in either a Toyota Prius or a van (for groups) -- or borrow one of the bikes (bicycle-route maps provided). Free yoga classes for guests too, which is a budget alternative to rejuvenating at the hotel's spa.(
Details: from $138; www.theqhotel.com
Photo Caption: Guest room at The Q Hotel + Spa.
What: The Fairmont Royal York
Why it's Green: Glitz does not always equate with green -- but it sure does at the 1,365-room Fairmont Royal York, with a 4,000-square-foot rooftop garden containing 17 raised wooden beds that produce fruits, peppers, tomatoes and herbs (for guests' meals). In 2008 an apiary, managed by the chef and local beekeepers alike, was added and now the six hives produce an average of 480 pounds of honey each season. Located in the heart of Toronto, within walking distance to CN Tower, St. Lawrence Market and the Harbourfront, the hotel incorporated a split-circuit lighting system on its roof to save thousands of migrating birds often killed flying through Toronto each year when they crash into high-rise buildings. All of the hotel's food waste is turned into fertilizer by a local recycling company, and gently used soft goods and furniture is redistributed to charitable organizations to address transitional-housing needs.
Details: from $225; www.fairmont.com/royalyork
Photo Caption: Rooftop herb garden at the Fairmont Royal York, Toronto.
What: El Patio 77
Why it's Green: Fresh off a top-to-bottom renovation in 2009, this 19th-century house turned boutique hotel -- with just eight rooms -- offers a peaceful, eco-friendly retreat from bustling Mexico City. Water is recycled from the roof and from guests' showers, and solar panels are used for the water-heater system. Furniture has been recycled -- from flea markets and friends -- and restored to give them a second life. It's located in the colonial neighborhood of San Rafael, near three museums (including the Museum of Popular Art), a great local market and a few theatres, and convenient to the subway. Two courtyards at the hotel are the perfect spot to take a siesta or enjoy morning coffee (with an organic breakfast). An on-site gallery offers immediate access to local art. Staff can arrange a number of specialized experiences that immerse you in local culture, like a tacos tour, guide through mystical floating gardens or a trek just outside of Mexico City to participate in a reforestation project.
Details: from $70; www.elpatio77.com
Photo Caption: El Patio 77, Mexico City.
What: The Lenox Hotel
Why it's Green: Open since 1990, The Lenox Hotel in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood -- convenient to most everything you would want to see and do -- was the first hotel in the country to offer climate-neutral rooms certified by the Climate Neutral Network. Each year its eco-vibe intensifies. Eco Chic weekend packages introduce guests to eco-friendly measures that make a lot of sense, from waterless urinals to hybrid Lexus SUV car service as well as no-VOC paints and an essential-oil air freshener free of chemicals. A plaque in each room describes the nitty gritty of these environmental actions in terms of eco facts and a dedicated Eco Channel shows environmental movies. City Table, the on-site eatery, serves meals that rely upon regional, organic ingredients, such as house-made burrata cheese, Chatham cod and Maine crab.
Details: from $350; www.lenoxhotel.com
Photo Caption: Exterior of the Lenox Hotel, Boston.
An eco-friendly lifestyle is the newest marketing mantra for urban hotels. Bicycle rentals, rooftop beehives, organic linens, Fair Trade coffee, and chemical-free toiletries are just some of the amenities properties pitch at travelers who don't mind often spending a little extra green be green. By bunking in an urban setting you can ditch the car (cutting down on your carbon footprint) and experience a vibrant neighborhood simply by staying in it.
Photo Caption: The bar at ALT Hotel, Montreal.
Why it's Green: One of downtown Chicago's newest hotels (it opened during the spring of 2009 in the Loop Business District and Theatre District), locals flock here for skyline views at the 27th-floor rooftop bar, ROOF; and modern, hearty Italian meals at cibo matto (such as poached lobster or Niman Ranch-raised beef, and housemade gelato flavors that include pistachio buttercrunch). In addition to locally procured meats, the hotel also utilizes energy-efficient lighting throughout the entire hotel, has a green roof made up of drought-resistant plants; and there are water-conservation showerheads, toilets, and faucets in each of the 298 rooms.
Details: from $299 per night; www.thewithotel.com
Photo Caption: theWit Hotel, Chicago.
Why it's Green: Taking on a more holistic approach to being "green," this 117-room hotel (constructed with many recycled materials in 2008) in San Francisco's SOMA neighborhood helps guests sign up to volunteer for a number of local causes through One Brick, borrow a bicycle (at no cost) to explore the city, or utilize the free book-exchange program in each room. Each room's bed frame is made of reclaimed wood, its bedding made of 75% recycled soda bottles. Shrink your carbon footprint even further by checking out the on-site wine-tavern/restaurant that opens this summer serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Hankering for a souvenir from your stay? Pick up a sustainable T-shirt in the lobby before you head to the airport.
Details: from $99; www.thegoodhotel.com
Photo Caption: Double room at The Good Hotel, San Francisco.
Why it's Green: In Manhattan's Murray Hill neighborhood, a few blocks south of bustling Grand Central Station and the Empire State Building, is a haven for environmental travelers. This recently renovated hotel even stocks 205-room hotel even stocks green goodies in their honor bars, including FRED natural spring water from Brooklyn. Pull up in a hybrid car and you receive $20 off your parking via the Green Road Warrior package. Some cocktails, like Agave Nectar Margarita, at Silverleaf Tavern are prepared with fresh, locally grown ingredients. Each room in the Green Seal-certified hotel is cleaned with non-toxic products and features energy-efficient lighting and air conditioning. You can also opt to send $10 of your daily room rate to Trust for Public Land, a national non-profit organization that conserves land for public use. (A Parks for People fundraising program also allows you to donate a portion of your room rate.)
Details: from $199; www.70parkavenuehotel.com
Photo Caption: Room detail from 70 Park Avenue, New York.
Why it's Green: Open since 2007, the 120-room The Q Hotel & Spa is in the heart of Kansas City: five blocks from Country Club Plaza (the city's 15-block entertainment district) and within three miles of many museums, such as the National World War 1 Museum and the Jazz Museum. All unused Aveda (plant-based bath and body products) toiletries are donated to a community organization, organic wine served at the lobby bar, Fair Trade-certified coffee poured in the lobby coffee bar and leftover food gifted to a local organic farmer for his compost. There's no need to bring a car as the hotel offers free shuttle service in either a Toyota Prius or a van (for groups) -- or borrow one of the bikes (bicycle-route maps provided). Free yoga classes for guests too, which is a budget alternative to rejuvenating at the hotel's spa.(
Details: from $138; www.theqhotel.com
Photo Caption: Guest room at The Q Hotel + Spa.
Why it's Green: Glitz does not always equate with green -- but it sure does at the 1,365-room Fairmont Royal York, with a 4,000-square-foot rooftop garden containing 17 raised wooden beds that produce fruits, peppers, tomatoes and herbs (for guests' meals). In 2008 an apiary, managed by the chef and local beekeepers alike, was added and now the six hives produce an average of 480 pounds of honey each season. Located in the heart of Toronto, within walking distance to CN Tower, St. Lawrence Market and the Harbourfront, the hotel incorporated a split-circuit lighting system on its roof to save thousands of migrating birds often killed flying through Toronto each year when they crash into high-rise buildings. All of the hotel's food waste is turned into fertilizer by a local recycling company, and gently used soft goods and furniture is redistributed to charitable organizations to address transitional-housing needs.
Details: from $225; www.fairmont.com/royalyork
Photo Caption: Rooftop herb garden at the Fairmont Royal York, Toronto.
Why it's Green: Fresh off a top-to-bottom renovation in 2009, this 19th-century house turned boutique hotel -- with just eight rooms -- offers a peaceful, eco-friendly retreat from bustling Mexico City. Water is recycled from the roof and from guests' showers, and solar panels are used for the water-heater system. Furniture has been recycled -- from flea markets and friends -- and restored to give them a second life. It's located in the colonial neighborhood of San Rafael, near three museums (including the Museum of Popular Art), a great local market and a few theatres, and convenient to the subway. Two courtyards at the hotel are the perfect spot to take a siesta or enjoy morning coffee (with an organic breakfast). An on-site gallery offers immediate access to local art. Staff can arrange a number of specialized experiences that immerse you in local culture, like a tacos tour, guide through mystical floating gardens or a trek just outside of Mexico City to participate in a reforestation project.
Details: from $70; www.elpatio77.com
Photo Caption: El Patio 77, Mexico City.
Why it's Green: Open since 1990, The Lenox Hotel in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood -- convenient to most everything you would want to see and do -- was the first hotel in the country to offer climate-neutral rooms certified by the Climate Neutral Network. Each year its eco-vibe intensifies. Eco Chic weekend packages introduce guests to eco-friendly measures that make a lot of sense, from waterless urinals to hybrid Lexus SUV car service as well as no-VOC paints and an essential-oil air freshener free of chemicals. A plaque in each room describes the nitty gritty of these environmental actions in terms of eco facts and a dedicated Eco Channel shows environmental movies. City Table, the on-site eatery, serves meals that rely upon regional, organic ingredients, such as house-made burrata cheese, Chatham cod and Maine crab.
Details: from $350; www.lenoxhotel.com
Photo Caption: Exterior of the Lenox Hotel, Boston.