Having an eco-friendly kitchen will showcase your sustainable credentials to guests and cut costs
One of the reasons that travellers choose to stay in a vacation rental is the provision of self-service facilities. Top of the list of these is likely to be the kitchen. Guests enjoy the home-from-home feel of being able to store and cook food. They also appreciate the convenience of being able to do some laundry if a washing machine is provided.
From a sustainability point of view, we know that travellers are already making conscious choices at home. Consequently, there will be certain eco features that they will expect to see in a vacation rental kitchen.
Check out this article to see the sort of things you could be doing to create an eco-friendly kitchen in your property.
1. Choose energy efficient appliances and lighting
Appliances like fridges and washing machines are likely to be your largest consumers of electricity. And, subsequently, big contributors to your carbon footprint.
Consequently, it makes sense to choose energy efficient appliances when they need replacing or when you are setting up a new vacation rental. This approach will save you money and carbon emissions. Not to forget that your guests will notice too, particularly if your fridge is obviously old, very noisy and the door seal is worn.
DID YOU KNOW? – Offering an energy efficient fridge can get you up to 0.36% on the Sustonica criteria! Check out our standard.
Why is it part of the criteria? This is likely to be the most energy intensive appliance in your vacation rental. A Class A fridge is likely to consume less than half of a Class F one.
Lighting is very important in a kitchen and you can install lights which are both effective and energy efficient.
DID YOU KNOW? – Having 80% LED lightbulbs can get you up to 0.36% on the Sustonica criteria! Check out our standard.
Why is it part of the criteria? Replacing light bulbs with LED ones can offer savings of up to 50% in consumption on lighting.
2. Make recycling easy
Recycling is probably the area that consumers are most active in terms of being environmental. However, when people are on holiday, they often have a different mindset. They may not act as they do at home. On the other hand, there is a growing number of eco-conscious travellers who do expect to be able to adopt the same behaviours as they do in their daily lives.
By setting up clear recycling instructions and making it easy for your guests to separate their waste can appeal to all types of guest. At Sustonica we like to bring a bit of humour into what can be mundane tasks. As such, we have created some colourful labels for your recycling bins which will appeal to children as well as adults. These days it is often children who are telling their parents or carers what to do to be eco-friendly!
DID YOU KNOW? – Offering at least 4 recycling bins can get you up to 2.75% on the Sustonica criteria! Check out our standard.
Why is it part of the criteria? Recycling glass, paper, plastic and organic waste means that these items do not end up in landfill and may be recycled for future use.
3. Green cleaning products show you care
When you supply green cleaning products for your guests to use, they will realise that you are serious about giving them an eco-friendly kitchen. Start by providing eco washing-up liquid and dishwasher tablets as well as hand soap. The liquids can be presented in attractive reusable dispensers, meaning you benefit from the economies of buying in bulk.
DID YOU KNOW? – Offering green cleaning products can get you up to 3.50% on the Sustonica criteria! Check out our standard.
Why is it part of the criteria? Green cleaning products are naturally derived, non-toxic, and biodegradable, meaning they have less impact on the environment.
DID YOU KNOW? – Having refillable dispensers or biodegradable plastic toiletries can get you up to 3.00% on the Sustonica criteria! Check out our standard.
Why is it part of the criteria? Up to 95% of the plastic used in a hotel bathroom ends up in landfill where they sit for hundreds of years.
Another nice touch is to use cleaning aids like washing-up brushes and scourers made from sustainable materials like bamboo. You can also provide glass jars for storage or plant-derived food wraps instead of plastic. This attention to sustainable procurement will further demonstrate your commitment to an eco-friendly kitchen.
4. A welcome pack of local produce
Greeting your guests with a welcome pack on arrival always goes down well. It is also the perfect opportunity to showcase local produce. Introduce your guests to the culinary heritage of your destination by including food and drink that is typical of the local area. A bottle of wine from a small family winery chilling in the fridge will be a welcome surprise when your guests arrive.
Food is such an important part of travel that gifts of food are always well received. Furthermore, it allows you to showcase local producers as part of giving back to the community. You could also consider partnering with local food and drinks producers to offer experiences to your guests such as cookery lessons or tastings.
5. Provide your guests with healthy, clean water
Another innovative way to create an eco-friendly kitchen is to provide a water filter or a list of water filter stations near your property. In this way, travellers will not need to keep buying water in plastic bottles and throwing them away. Some hosts even provide branded non-plastic reusable water bottles for guests to use during their stay and take home. This approach provides a useful gift for guests as well as reminding them of your rental when they are back home!
DID YOU KNOW? – Getting rid of plastic water bottles in your property can get you up to 3.00% on the Sustonica criteria! Check out our standard.
Why is it part of the criteria? Plastic is one of the number one environmental concerns for consumers. For property owners and managers, providing complimentary water can be costly and disposing of plastic water bottles is time-consuming.
6. Help your guests shop sustainably
As we have already mentioned, food is an integral part of travelling and visiting different places. Undoubtedly, if guests are staying in a vacation rental, they will want to do some food shopping and try out some local specialities. Buying from local producers and small independent grocery stores will be a memorable pleasure for guests and a chance for them to interact with local people. This human connection is one of the joys of travel.
This local approach is also likely to reduce packaging waste as independent food retailers tend to have fresh produce sold loose and not wrapped in excessive plastic. You can even go one step further by providing reusable shopping bags for your guests so that they can avoid using supermarket plastic bags.
DID YOU KNOW? – Offering reusable shopping bags, baskets or trollies in your property can get you up to 3.00% on the Sustonica criteria! Check out our standard.
Why is it part of the criteria? Avoiding plastic shopping bags cuts down plastic waste which could end up in our seas and oceans. Plus lots of guests will be used to shopping in this way at home in many countries there are charges on plastic bags in supermarkets.
7. Supply recycled paper products
A final tip is to make sure you provide recycled paper products such as kitchen roll and napkins. Guests can get through a lot of these and these recycled versions are just as effective.
DID YOU KNOW? – Having recycled paper products can get you up to 2.75% on the Sustonica criteria! Check out our standard.
Why is it part of the criteria? While paper products generally have a small carbon footprint, collectively they are contributing to deforestation, global warming, and an ever increasing waste problem.
An eco-friendly kitchen is the perfect room to showcase your sustainable credentials and to display your Sustainability Chart which can get you up to 2.19% on the Sustonica criteria!
