Sleep among the trees in Sweden's newest novelty hotel

Financial Times reports on the new hotel in Sweden where guests sleep among the trees.

Located in Harads in northern Swedish Lapland, the Treehotel has uniquely designed rooms like a mirror cube (picture) that are placed among treetops in the forested location. The design elements are meant to assimilate with nature as much as possible. According to the architects special features like infrared coating on the cube room's mirror prevent birds from hitting it.

In providing novelty in a natural environment, the Treehotel is a successor to the wildly successful Icehotel, built from snow and ice every winter 160 miles north of [Treehotel's location] near Kiruna. It is also part of the “landscape hotel” trend – stylishly designed luxury hotels placed in the middle of nowhere, not so much for their proximity to hiking or other outdoor activities as for the views from their (usually) floor-to-ceiling windows.

Read the full story: A luxury hotel in Sweden's treetops

Photo from Treehotel

Gulf hotels offer oil-free or your money back

USA Today reports that several Gulf Coast hotels are now offering oil-free beaches guarantees.

This is in the wake of the BP oil spill which is still currently spewing oil into the Gulf of Mexico and affecting some beaches bordering the area.

"It's frustrating to get the word out that the beaches are fine," says Park Brady, CEO of ResortQuest International, one of the largest operators of vacation rental companies on the coast.

ResortQuest, which typically charges a 15% deposit and full payment shortly before arrival, is issuing full refunds if customers can't use the beach. "It eased a lot of fears," Brady says.

Read the full story: Gulf Coast hotels roll out oil-free beach guarantees

Photo by Michael Spooneybarger / AP

Georgia's eco-island where bats control mosquitoes

Mother Nature Network's Destination of the Week is Little St. Simmons Island, Georgia.

This private island off-grid resort only allows 32 overnight guests.

As one of only two Green Globe 21 Benchmarked properties in the U.S., LSSI’s commitment to low-impact lodging exceeds standard leave-your-bath-towel-on-the-floor-if-you-want-it-laundered practices:

- Three of the guest houses, Tom House, Cedar House and River Lodge, feature geothermal HVAC systems.

- Rain barrels are a common site throughout the island.

- The recycling/composting program is comprehensive.

- You won’t find a single plastic water bottle on the entire island since guests are provided with their own Camelback reusable bottles.

- To keep a somewhat notorious bug population at bay, the island has instituted an eco-friendly, larvicide-based mosquito control program. However, if you’re skittish around bats take heed: There are bat houses in place to help keep the mosquito population in check.

Read the full story: Little St. Simmons Island, Georgia

Photo by Matt Hickman

The Global Conservation Award goes to... Emirates

Terra Curve reports on the Global Conservation Award win by the Emirates Hotels & Resorts.

The Tourism for Tomorrow Awards are the World Travel & Tourism Council’s highest-profile global accolade, recognizing best practices in sustainable tourism development, conservation and biodiversity protection.

Within the Emirates Group, the Emirates Hotels & Resorts (EH&R) portfolio encompasses three major conservation projects spread across three continents: Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa in Dubai; Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa in Australia; and the forthcoming Cap Ternay Resort & Spa in the Seychelles.

Read the full story: Emirates wins big for conservation

Here's a look at the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve at the Al Maha along with other Dubai conservation efforts:

Take these 7 environmentally friendly safaris

Tree Hugger reports on seven safaris with an environmental focus.

Kenya: Eco-Resorts' 11-day,10-night tour of Kenya singles out the country's ecotourism hotspots by booking stays at properties owned by residents of the communities you'll pass through

Rwanda: Rwanda Eco-Tours' Inside Nyungwe tour is a six-day trip takes you into Nyungwe Forest National Park, home to more than a dozen different primate species.

South Africa: The Earth Organization's safaris are practically a mini-course in conservation under the direction of Lawrence Anthony, best known for saving the animals in residence at the Baghdad Zoo at the beginning of the Iraq War.

Read the full story: 7 eco safaris around the globe

Photo from Rwanda Tourism

Pump soap, reduce wasteful plastic shampoo bottles

MSNBC reports that some luxury hotels are getting rid of wasteful and unenvironmental mini-plastic soap and shampoo bottles and replacing them with refillable pumps.

Pat Maher, the green consultant for the American Hotel and Lodging Association, predicts amenities dispensers will be the norm within five years. “Right now, half a million of those little shampoo bottles end up in landfills every day. Hotels that say they’re eco-friendly establishments and doing all those things they do with the greening of their hotels ... will start getting complaints if people stay at their hotels and they don’t have soap dispensers.”

Maher says properties currently testing or installing bathroom amenities dispensers include the Kimpton, Ritz Carlton and Choice Hotels as well as Starwood’s extended-stay Element Hotels.

Read the full story: Hotels dispensing with bathroom clutter

Photo by RSA

Massachusetts tourism promotes green

Terra Curve reports the new green tourism promotion in Massachusetts.

MA Green is a new program from the Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism created to encourage sustainable hospitality practices in the state.

Launched in early 2010, the site aims to help prospective visitors find information on green-certified hotels in Massachusetts; utilizing certification programs like the Green Key Eco-Rating Program.

MA GREEN is comes equipped with a dual mission: First, serve the industry by providing resources and guidance to help travel businesses adopt environmentally sound practices; second, provide information to consumers seeking to stay at green hotels in their travels to the Bay State.

Read the full story: Promoting green travel online: MA gets it right

Illustration from MA Green

How green is that "green" hotel

San Jose Mercury News questions how green so-called "green" hotels are.

Ironically an environmental studies professor at last December's Copenhagen climate conference was trying to reuse his towels at his hotel only to get new towels every day.

It's a conundrum that many travelers face nowadays: They arrive in a hotel that boasts about its environmental credentials, only to see little evidence of them during their stay. When torn between offering conservation benefits and what they consider good service, hotels usually jettison conservation.

Read the full story: 'Green' hotels dilemma: conservation vs. service

Photo from AP Photo / Eric Risberg

Meet Hitesh Mehta: ecotourism pioneer

Peter Greenberg Worldwide interviews Hitesh Mehta (pic left), an eco-tourism pioneer:

"Fifteen years ago, I felt strongly that I needed to take all my interests—architecture, landscape architecture and conservation—and combine them into one. I noticed the striking disconnect between architecture and the landscape on which the safari lodges were built: ugly, modern buildings that were anything but timeless.

In 1995, I wrote what is considered the first research paper on ecolodges in the world. I decided that my calling was to go deeper than simply helping to control the aesthetic features of my residential house projects. As such, my focus in landscape architecture moved to pristine and fragile natural areas where tourism was uncontrolled, and had large social and environmental impacts and required a new planning paradigm to protect the sanctity of those places."

Read the full story: An interview with an eco-tourism pioneer

Photo from Peter Greenberg Worldwide

Earth Day = green travel

Smarter Travel reports on green travel for Earth Day.

Tips to be greener include:

• use less paper napkins
• walk instead of drive
• reuse hotel towels
• use reusable water bottles
• visit a farmer's market
• take shorter showers
• stay in an eco-friendly hotel

This month, resorts are offering a variety of eco-programs and deals. Opt for Santa Fe's Eldorado Hotel & Spa and save 15 percent with a "go green save your green" deal. The San Marco Island Marriott Beach Resort offers free eco-education activities until April 24. (Dolphin Monday, anyone?) In California, Loews Coronado Bay Resort invites families to explore a state beach with an environmental educator and then help with a beach cleanup. The Hyatt Regency Monterey lets you buy a tree sapling with proceeds to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Or book in April with Planeterra and receive a 10 percent discount on all volunteer travel.

Read the full story: Traveling green on Earth Day

Photo from hotelplanner.com

Maine woods eco-lodge

The Washington Post reports on a Maine eco-lodge reached only in the winter by skis. Diane Daniel writes about her trip.

We were looking for a silent, snowy and achingly beautiful winter weekend. Five hours north of Boston, in the western Maine woods, we found it.

Even better, we spent two nights in off-the-grid full-service comfort deep in those woods, thanks to one of the most ambitious environmental projects in the state: the Maine Huts & Trails system, a nascent network of year-round hiking, biking and skiing trails connecting alternative-powered, eco-friendly huts where guests can spend the night.

Read the full story: Deep in the Maine woods

Photo from Maine Huts & Trails

All Starwood resorts to celebrate Earth Hour

Terra Curve reports that hotel brand Starwood will celebrate this month's Earth Hour at all properties.

This year, in more than 90,000 hotel rooms, guests staying in participating Starwood properties will be encouraged to turn off the lights. Additionally, as they did last year, participating Starwood hotels will take the steps of turning off exterior signage lighting; last year, the darkened hotels offered striking visual imagery that provided an apt symbol of Earth Hour. Properties will also participate by dimming or turning off non-essential interior lighting, using candlelight in appropriate public areas such as restaurants and bars, and using in-room voicemail messages and in-room television messages to inform guests about Earth Hour observances.

Read the full story: Starwood gets in on the Earth Hour festivities

Photo from Starwood

Arizona hotel offers "EcoRooms"

Terra Curve reports on the eco-upgrade at Arizona hotel Kings Ransom Sedona.

After the success of offering environmentally-friendly rooms at the Kings other property, the hotel chain now has 95 at this property.

The EcoRooms offer natural soaps, lotions and shampoos along with energy-efficient lighting, low-flow shower heads, use nontoxic cleaning products and reuse linen.

"Our housekeeping staff is also enthusiastic as we now use earth-friendly cleaning products which they love," said Amy Bertorelli, president of the Kings Ransom Sedona Hotel. "We believe it is vitally important for individuals and businesses to be mindful of our planet’s health and contribute to sustaining that health by implementing green practices daily."

Read the full story: Sedona hotel comes equipped with eco-ammenities

Photo from Terra Curve.com

Eco Inn in Berkshires

The New York Times reports on eco-hotel Topia Inn located in Massachusetts' Berkshires.

The guest policy is:

No Smoking.

No chemical fragrances/bug repellant.

Leave your shoes at the front door or cover them with the inn’s neoprene booties, so as not to track in pesticide residue and other pollutants.

Leave all grooming products at home, so as not to interfere with the chemical-free organic mattresses and bedding. Complimentary organic bath and body products provided.

Read the full story: An inn is an oasis to environmental fronts

Photo by Nathaniel Brooks for The New York Times

A visit to eco-city Freiburg, Germany

The Los Angeles Times visits the green city of Freiburg, Germany.

Renewable energy and public transportation are actively encouraged in this city of 220,000 nestled in the Southwest corner of the country.

The Best Western Premier Hotel Victoria, built in 1875, was even part of the green movement, billing itself as a "zero emissions" hotel. It uses no more power than it generates, thanks to its solar roof, an investment in a windmill and an eco-power supplier.

Read the full story: Freiburg: A very eco-friendly German city

Photo from Wikimedia

Ten global eco-lodges

ABC News reports on their top 10 eco-hotels around the world.

Among the environmentally-friendly lodges is the Ecocamp in Argentina's Patagonia region (pic left). The domed camp is made from reclaimed and recycled materials.

Other spots include the Three Camel Lodge in Mongolia, Sarinbuana Eco Lodge in Indonesia, and Kigelia Camp Ruaha in Tanzania.

Read the full story: Top 10 eco-vacation hot spots

Picture from ABCNews.com

New Mexico eco-lodge set in rugged wilderness

The Daily Green reports on New Mexico's Bear Mountain Lodge; an eco-resort set amongst rugged natural beauty.

Eco-features include line-drying linens (picture left) and furniture made from forest-thinning projects.

See the slide show here: New Mexico eco tourism

American hotel chains jumping on green bandwagon

Budget Travel via CNN reports on some American hotel chains that have incorporated more eco-friendly practices in their business plans.

Big chains such as Motel 6, Hyatt, and Marriott are conserving energy, water, and recycling.

Read the full story: Have a green stay

Mexico Eco-lodges

The San Francisco Chronicle reviews six, new and more affordable, eco-friendly hotels in Mexico.

All the eco-resorts are under $200 per night.

The Genesis Ek Balam in the Yucatan is $44-$54 a night, uses natural ventilation (no A/C) and recycled materials in its design, and also helps save native animals and birds.

Read the full story: Six affordable eco-lodge escapes

Malaysian island's World Heritage status in jeopardy

USA Today reports on the planned high-rise hotel development on Malaysian Island Penang which threatens its UNESCO World Heritage label.

The capital Georgetown is a protected World Heritage site; a status that does not permit the town to build buildings over a certain height.

The city approved four new high-rise hotels violating the height limit and putting the protected status in jeopardy.

Read the full story: Development at Malaysian World Heritage site raises concerns