by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 2:40 PM ET, Thu May 2, 2024
The World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) new Hotel Sustainability Basics program has reached yet another important milestone. The program now has 3,400 verified properties across 80 countries.
That's a significant jump since March when the WTTC last announced enrollment figures, which at that point had reached 1,700 hotels across 70 countries.
The news also indicates rapid adoption of the program, which was kicked off by the WTTC merely five months ago in January 2024.
Major hotel brands that have now adopted the WTTC program include Jin Jiang, one of the world’s biggest hotel groups with more than 10,000 hotels, European hotel giant Louvre Hotels Group, Choice Hotels and Radisson Hotel Group.
The Sustainability Basics has also gained endorsements from destinations around the world, including the Caribbean, Mauritius, Colombia, UAE, Azerbaijan, Mexico, and Ecuador.
The Sustainability Basics program, which is an independent global sustainability verification program, was created to help hoteliers improve their sustainability ratings and raise the bar of sustainability across the hotel industry.
The verification process is handled by Green Key and SGS. Participating hotels follow a 12-step program that’s designed to reduce a property’s carbon emissions, while also promoting nature conservation, and ensuring local communities benefit from a hotel's operations.
Choice Hotels International, Rockville Corporate Headquarters. (Photo Credit: Choice Hotels)
The latest participation milestone marks an important and pivotal step toward a more sustainable future for the industry, the WTTC said in a statement on Thursday.
Hotels from across the world have joined the program including properties in Germany, China, Mexico, United Arab Emirates, Sweden, Spain, India, Madagascar, and Turkey.
WTTC also announced that the hotel sustainability program has inked new strategic partnerships.
That includes a collaboration with BeCause, which is aimed at enhancing relationships with online travel agents (OTAs) and will result in a new platform for hotels committed to sustainable operations.
The hotel sustainability program has achieved what WTTC calls “full alignment with Green Key”, a company that provides an international eco-label for tourism facilities. The “full alignment” that has been achieved means that “all Green Key certified hotels are now in full compliance with [the WTTC hotel sustainability program] and can obtain…verification with no extra effort.”
“WTTC's Hotel Sustainability Basics is a powerful testament to our collective effort in promoting sustainable practices in the hospitality industry,” Julia Simpson, WTTC president & CEO, said in a statement.
“Reaching 3,400 verified properties is not just a milestone; it's a clear indication that the industry is ready to embrace sustainability on a global scale. This initiative is about uniting hotels, industry partners, and sustainability standards to create a future that is resilient, responsible, and respectful of our planet.”
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