Environmentally friendly or eco-friendly are sustainability terms referring to goods and services that claim reduced, minimal, or no harm done to ecosystems or the environment. In recent years, terms like “going green” and “eco-friendly” are words you hear a lot on talk shows, commercials and product packaging. So it comes as no surprise that a good number of your potential vacationers care about the environment. Taking the initiative to market your vacation rentals to them will pay out big rewards.
Travelers who live green are looking for eco-friendly options even when choosing vacation spots. In this day and age, more and more vacationers expect eco-friendly features in a vacation rental. In a recent survey a huge 42% of respondents saying they hoped to stay in an energy-efficient home while on vacation. Recycling is also a big draw with 52% of respondents wanting to see recycling as an option.
“Effortless recycling and integrated bins always make the grade for eco-friendly homes,” says design expert Kerrie Kelly, who writes for The Home Depot. “Water filtration systems, full-sized beauty/cleaning products (as opposed to the smaller, wasteful travel sizes), and Energy Star appliances also help vacationers feel that they are helping the environment.”
Additional eco-friendly must-haves among today’s vacationing families include overall energy efficient heating, cooling, appliances, and green cleaning supplies for the household and laundry. Many will also sit up and take notice if your vacation rental home was constructed using eco-friendly building materials.
As people overall become more cognizant of their day-to-day energy and water conservation, we will see an increased demand for environmentally-friendly vacation rentals. It’s pretty safe to say when you put a vacation rental that is focused on environmentally friendly building materials and features next to one that is not, the eco-friendly home will win out every time.