Travelers who choose to stay in a vacation home instead of a hotel may have to spend more time searching for sustainable accommodations, but ultimately they will have more control over their environmental impact. Below are steps short-term renters can take to shrink their carbon footprint.
Search for sustainable rentals
Sustonica validates short-term rentals based on sustainability standards, including water conservation and waste minimization. But it doesn’t work as a search engine. Instead, travelers will find its logo on certified listings on platforms like Airbnb and Booking.com.
Airbnb’s rental categories can help travelers find off-grid options by highlighting more than 9,000 listings that rely on renewable energy or have no electricity, and Earth Homes, a set of accommodations built with organic materials like mud or soil .
Booking.com, which lists vacation homes as well as hotels, allows travelers to search listings with sustainability certifications from more than 65 organizations that make third-party assessments of practices ranging from sourcing renewable energy to recycling.
The company said more than 16,500 properties, a mix of hotels and rental housing, have separate third-party sustainability certification.
Vacation rental platform Vrbo doesn’t have an eco-friendly search filter, citing a lack of industry consensus on what makes a rental more sustainable. Properties listed by its sister company Expedia may say they are “eco-certified,” and users can search using that filter. But read the results carefully. Some listings have no information about their sustainable features.
Wherever you search, double-check the listings, said Bob Garner, the founder of EnviroRental, a service that works with short-term rental owners on sustainability practices. Do the bathroom photos show shampoo in large, communal dispensers? Does the description mention recycling? If the host has a separate website, look for press links or blog posts related to sustainability.
Talk to the host
According to Airbnb, more than 80 percent of its hosts say they incorporate at least one sustainable feature, such as composting, minimizing single-use plastics and providing guidance on using public transportation. The platform maintains a guide for hosts on sustainable tourism practices, with tips on things like creating a handbook to direct travelers to local shops, restaurants and markets.
“When you think you’ve found the right property, ask a few questions,” Mr Garner said. “If they can’t answer them, then there’s a red flag.”
Just the act of asking about eco-friendly features can have a lasting effect.
“If they think you care, you’re more likely to move the needle,” said Diane Daniel, the founder of Vacation Donations, a nonprofit that encourages short-term renters to donate leftover food in the Tampa, Fla., area.
Consider a pedestrian or public transit friendly location
Even if you can’t find solar-powered accommodation, you can choose a location that allows you to commute with minimal emissions.
Connect your “environmental awareness with the idea of ​​being a good traveler,” said Beth Santos, the CEO of Wanderful, a global women’s travel community, and author of “Wander Woman: How to Reclaim Your Space, Find Your Voice, and Travel the World, Solo.”
She advises travelers to live like a local, including using public transportation, visiting neighborhoods beyond city centers, and supporting small businesses. Take a “zero day” or just an unscheduled day to walk around the neighborhood to find nearby shops as well as transportation options.
Energy saving
Save energy by turning the air conditioning on or off when you’re out, turning off the lights when you leave, and turning off the faucet while you brush your teeth.
“This could be an area where you say, ‘I don’t care, I’m on vacation,'” Ms. Daniel said. But travelers should remain vigilant, he said. “Short-term rentals are the easiest places to set up your footprint because it’s really up to you.”
Plan meals, reduce waste
Tenants are usually able to cook meals. To avoid food waste, plan meals and shop for them as you go — and as plans change — instead of buying everything at once. Bring essentials like salt and pepper and ask the host if the kitchen is stocked with other items like cooking oil and coffee.
“Buying late in the week as you need things is a really nice experience if you’re in a location where they’ve got some nice treats and interesting farm shops,” Mr Garner said.
Ms. Santos of Wanderful recommends packing a collapsible food container. “You can throw it in your luggage, take the leftovers home and have a place to reheat them,” he said.
Donate leftover food
Take as much food as you can that is left over in your house and look for food pantries that accept donations for what you can’t take.
“Perishables are very difficult unless you’re near a pantry that takes them and is open when you check out,” said Ms. Daniel of Vacation Donations.
Don’t assume the cleaner wants your food. In short, Ms. Daniel recommends knocking on neighbors’ doors if you live in an apartment building or searching Facebook for local groups looking for food donations.
Consider ‘community offsets’
Carbon offset programs invest in activities such as growing trees that reduce carbon by an amount equal to the emissions produced by a trip. But it’s a controversial practice that has led to inflated, if not false, carbon mitigation claims.
Instead, consider donating your time to a local cause in the area where you rent.
“Community offsets or volunteer work are opportunities to spend two hours on a holiday morning helping with whatever volunteer work there is in that area, from picking up trash to feeding the homeless,” said Vanessa de Souza Lage, the co-founder. and managing director of Sustonica.
