Tui Travel hosted 40 hoteliers, engineers and sustainability experts at a one-day conference designed to raise standards across its accommodation suppliers last week.
The group unveiled a set of Guidelines for Environmental Sustainability in Hotels aimed at extending the Travelife Sustainability System.
Tui wants to have half its customers staying in a Travelife-certified hotel by the end of summer 2011 and its entire UK programme, which includes 2,000 properties, accredited by 2015.
All hotels will be required to subscribe to Travelife by May 2011 at an average cost of €500 for two years.
Sustainable product manager Sean Owens said: “Travelife accreditation will be a licence to operate in future.”
The group audited 400 of its biggest properties by the end of last year, and another 100 this year.
But Owens said: “There are a great many hotels where the penny has not dropped. The key is ensuring hoteliers recognise the mutual benefits.” He acknowledged it was easier to incorporate sustainability in new properties than existing hotels, but said: “There are many low-cost options for making savings.”
Owens added: “Sometimes hoteliers need to think of the whole picture. If a hotel has heavy bed linen, it requires much more air conditioning to cool the bedroom.”
The conference drew representatives of resort groups Atlantica, Iberostar, Riu and Sol Melia. Tui Travel environment manager James Whittingham said: “Making a difference in mainstream tourism will bring about the greatest change.”