This summer, don't leave home without your environmentalism — when planning a vacation, make reservations at one of New England's eco-friendly lodging establishments, where you can enjoy the natural beauty of the region while doing your small part to ensure that it stays this lovely for quite some time.
When it comes to going green, our hotels, motels, inns, and B&Bs increasingly have more to offer than just the thriving ecosystems around them. Some focus on providing a truly local experience, serving fresh, locally procured meals at their house-run dining rooms (and thereby cutting the carbon emissions that would come from shipping food over long distances). Others home in on energy efficiency, using compact-fluorescent light bulbs, Energy Star–certified appliances, or solar power. Still others have unique eco-friendly promotions that make sense given their location or target customer base. Simple changes can make surprising impacts — for example, many hotels now use off-white linens to eliminate the need for chlorine bleach, which can pollute water systems when it swirls down the drain.
In making these changes, the hospitality industry is supported not just by the ever-growing public interest in all things environmental, but also by several government- and corporate-run programs that encourage the lodging industry to reduce its carbon footprint. Several New England states — Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont — have formal green-certification processes that encourage hotels and inns to take certain steps toward sustainability. Connecticut is on its way to implementing such a program. And in Massachusetts, the state tourism agency, the hospitality trade association, and the Boston Green Tourism initiative have teamed up to green up the Bay State's accommodations.
So what does all this mean for us, the simple lodgers, those who would have our vacations and save the Earth too? For the most part, we don't even notice the changes, and if we do, the eco-ambiance translates into nicer accommodations, better meals, and a cleaner conscience. Even better, eco-friendly adjustments don't necessarily translate into summer-campy accommodations (although those are certainly available, if that's your thing). Green lodging choices range from basic to luxurious — they're just a day trip away, but that saving-the-Earth feeling you get will make you want to stay longer.
Connecticut
— 5 Energy Star establishments
— The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection is working to implement a program like Maine’s
The Nutmeg State has little in the way of on-the-books eco-encouragement, although Kim Trella of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection says the state hopes to launch a program modeled after Maine's in October. Five establishments are already compliant with the federal Energy Star qualifications, which means they are among the top 25 percent of commercial and industrial facilities in the country for energy conservation and efficiency.
Of those, the posh SAYBROOK POINT INN AND SPA earns particular accolades for its energy-efficient lighting, heating, and water-conservation technologies, which include a "heat exchanger" to raise water temperatures while saving heating oil. This 80-room resort (rates start at $279 per night) is located on the Connecticut River; its 250-slip marina has been recognized for its pollution-mitigation practices.
Also worth noting is the WALLINGFORD VICTORIAN, a B&B in southern Connecticut where rooms run between $129 and $169 per night. The inn promotes public transportation with a special offer that takes advantage of its proximity to New York City — if New Yorkers leave their cars at home and take the train from the city to the Wallingford station (located about five blocks from the inn), they get 10 percent off a two-night stay; Wallingford is also Amtrak accessible (with a regional connection) from Boston and Providence.
Saybrook Point Inn & Spa | 2 Bridge St, Old Saybrook, Connecticut | 800.243.0212 | saybrook.com
Wallingford Victorian Bed and Breakfast | 245 North Main St, Wallingford, Connecticut | 203.269.4492 | bedandbreakfastwallingford.com
Maine
— 80 "Environmental Leaders" in the Maine Department of Environmental Protection's Green Lodging Certification Program.
Since it launched in 2005, Maine's eco-lodging program has saved 11 million gallons of water, reduced solid waste by 550,000 pounds, and eliminated 8 million pounds of greenhouse gases, says Peter Cooke of the state's Department of Environmental Protection. Eighty businesses participate, and some of them do so in truly unique ways. Take the BERRY MANOR INN, the LIMEROCK INN, and the CAPTAIN LINDSEY HOUSE INN, all located in Rockland. The beautifully appointed rooms start around $159 per night; each of the historic inns offers its own unique characteristics. Operating as a consortium, the B&Bs implemented many green changes, including installing solar lighting and launching a public-education campaign by offering each guest his or her own compact fluorescent light bulb.
When the Cape Elizabeth INN BY THE SEA re-opened this season, its rooms and spa may have gotten a bit swankier, but its commitment to the environment remained the same. They still have dual-flush toilets (which use more or less water depending on what you're flushing down) and nesting boxes for indigenous birds; they still offset their carbon-dioxide emissions through Carbonfund’s reforestation projects and heat entirely with biofuel; and they still offer tours of their native-plant-filled gardens and eco-courses for guests and their children. And yes, the room rates (which hover at $350 and up) still reflect this amount of care and effort.
