our ecolabels

Bookdifferent.com works with the most eligible ecolabels. These labels are provided by organizations that identify products or services that comply with sustainable standards as a quality mark that are less environmentally harmful or promote a fair business.

Through our ecolabel partners, we receive constant updates, which we import into our database and match with our complete accommodation offer. The most credible labels are awarded by impartial third parties and involve independent audits on site. In which within the standard information about the environmental, social, cultural and economic impact of the products and services is incorporated and verified.

All the ecolabels at bookdifferent.com comply with these 3 criteria:

1. Standard publicly available 2. Third party audit 3. Onsite assessment.

Actively Green is a sustainability training and certification program for businesses, including hotels and tour operators. The standard, recognized by GSTC, was developed in collaboration with Sustainable Travel International and Walking Mountains Science Center with support from Town of Vail (Colorado, US). More info coming soon ...

Austrian Ecolabel is directed to tourist accommodations, catering enterprises, conferences/event locations, campsites and shelter huts for their commitment in the fields of environmental management and social responsibility. This is a project of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management from Austria.

Biosphere Tourism is the tourism certification designed to help hotels, campsites and holiday rental comply with international sustainability requirements. The standards were developed by Responsible Tourism Institute (RTI) to guide the entities to develop its activity under the principles of sustainability in all its dimensions, promoting among its customers, users and workers their awareness and the adoption of responsible behaviour

Distinción en Turismo Sustentable (DTS) / Sellos S The National Tourism Service of Chili (Sernatur) created the DTS Program, responsible for encouraging the tourism industry to develop in a more sustainable way, promoting active action in environmental, socio-cultural and economic fields. The program is recognized by the Mesa Nacional de Sustentabilidad Turística (MNST) of Chile and GSTC.

EarthCheck certification is built on the principles for sustainable development endorsed by the United Nations. The standards provide a framework for organisations to achieve the desired outcomes for sustainable tourism. EarthCheck is accredited by the GSTC and complies with the Mohonk Agreement which outlines the guidelines and principles for an international sustainable tourism certification program.

Eco Certification is the national scheme for ensuring sustainability of touristic accommodations on Malta and has been recognised by the GSTC. The scheme was launched in 2002 by the Malta Tourism Authority and today represents approximately 16% of the accommodations. The criteria were updated in 2012 and follow a sustainable scheme covering environmental, social, cultural, economic, quality and health & safety. Third party audits are carried out every two years to ensure that hotels and farmhouses are meeting the requirements.

EcoTourism Australia eco certification was created in 1996 by the Australian tourism industry with the collaboration and consultation by academics, experts, environmental scientists and tourism operators. The EA’s ECO certification is accredited by the GSTC Integrity Program. In 2015 EA’s entered a licensing agreement with Coastal and Marine Eco Tourism to introduce ECO certification in southern Africa. In February 2016 it was awarded the first ECO certification under this agreement.

EcoTourism Ireland (EI) is an organisation set up to stimulate the development of ecotourism countrywide in Ireland. The label is GSTC recognized and has been developed by EI in association with organizations working in tourism, science, environment and national parks, based on the Former Greenbox Ecotourism Label (2006 to 2009). The label can be applied to travel and tourism products that are nature based and have an element of interpretation involved. More recently Vagabond tours joined EI to create a bigger ecotourism impact in the Irish travel industry. (More info coming soon...)

Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) were introduced in 1993, for voluntary participation by several organisations committed to continuous environmental improvement. The standard was written by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre using input from specific stakeholders to create a positive impact in business about best environmental management practices in order to improve their environmental performance.

EU Ecolabel/EU Flower was volunteering established in 1992 by the United Nations. Is a label of environmental excellence that is awarded to products and services with high environmental standards, promoting the circular economy by encouraging producers to generate less waste and less CO2. The EU Ecolabel criteria for tourist accommodations was develop by Joint Research Centre's Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (JRC-IPTS) with technical support from Oakdene Hollins. The work is being developed for the European Commission's Directorate General for the Environment with several updates since 2009.

Fair Trade Tourism is a non-profit organisation promoting best-practice responsible tourism in Africa (South Africa, Madagascar, Mozambique and Zimbabwe) and also in Namibia, Seychelles, Botswana, Kenya and Tanzania. The programme has been operating since 2003 and recognised by GSTC in 2010, being the first tourism certification programme recognised in Africa. The program assists tourism businesses to develop a foothold on sustainability through the use of toolkits, which is endorsed by independent third-party audit.

Great Green Deal is a program of Sellos Verdes, that work specially in Latin countries of South and central America, specially Guatemala, but also Caribe, México, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panamá, Belize, Cuba and Dominican Republic. Recognized by GSTC, the program attends to promote a sustainable system in these countries, helping touristic companies, specially certifying companies that work and promote sustainable tourism.

Green Globe program was established in 1994 after the United Nations Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit in 1992. The program is recognized by GSTC and provides certification, training, education and marketing services in 83 countries worldwide for travel and tourism businesses. Green Globe also maintains a global network of independent auditors who provide third party inspection and validation.

Green Key ecolabel is a program of environmental responsibility and sustainable operation within the tourism industry working in 53 countries worldwide, that aim to raise awareness and create behavioural changes in guests, staff and suppliers of individual tourism establishments and reduce the use of resources. Designed in 1994 by HORESTA in Denmark, it was formally approved by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) in 2003 and recognized by GSTC.

Green Key Eco-Rating Program has been evaluating and certifying properties in North America for more then 20 years to promote sustainable initiatives and improve fiscal performances in hotels, motels, and resorts. The Program is recognized by the GSTC and offers a toolkit to the touristic business to create awareness about environment, employee rights and reducing CO2. Green Key Global is consistent with the ASTM/APEX green meeting standards.

Green Seal is a non-profit organization founded in 1989 based in US. The label includes standard setting, certification and education programs science-based to empower consumers, purchasers and companies to create a more sustainable world. Green Seal is a founding member of the Global Ecolabelling Network (GEN), the internationally recognized network of ecolabelling organizations. More info coming soon

Green Sign is a transparent quality system for evaluation, certification and development of the sustainability performance in touristic accommodations based in Germany. The criteria is a combination of ecology, economy and social responsibility develop by InfraCert and are based on internationally recognized sustainability frameworks such as ISO 14001 (EMAS / Environmental Management), ISO 26000 (Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)) and the GSTC Criteria for the hotel industry.

Green Tourism Business Scheme (GTBS) was created in 1997 and designed for tourism businesses working towards sustainability in UK and is now recognised by UK national and regional government as a crucial part of its drive towards sustainability and received a recognition by Global Good Awards in 2018. The criteria is based on VICE model, that is a related research to the needs of the Visitor, Industry, Community and Environment, improving business with their environmental, economic and social operation.

Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) Criteria for hotels and tour operators: GSTC is an non-profit, independent and neutral organization based on USA that represents a diverse and global membership, including UN agencies, NGO’s, national and provincial governments, leading travel companies, hotels, tour operators, individuals and communities. The GSTC Criteria form the foundation for GSTC’s role as the global Accreditation Body for Certification Programs that certify hotels/accommodations, tour operators, and destinations as having the minimum that any tourism business should aspire to reach sustainable policies and practices in place.

Hoteles más Verdes (HMV) was design in 2011 by the Association of Tourism Hotels of the Argentine Republic. Its validated by the Argentine Institute for Standardization and Certification (IRAM) and has the recognition and sponsorship of the Ministry of Tourism of the Nation and by the GSTC. The program emerges as a necessary consequence in the sustainable hotel management process.

Luxembourg Ecolabel program was created in 1999, with the aim of promoting and developing sustainable tourism in Luxembourg, certifying hotels, rural lodgings, group accommodation and campsites that are distinguished by exemplary ecological management and environmentally practices. These criteria cover all sectors relevant to a tourist establishment: communication and ecological management, purchasing policy, energy, water and waste management, gastronomy and mobility. The credibility of the label is guaranteed by frequent audits and individual support of member institutions.

Nordic Swan Ecolabel was established in 1989 by the Nordic Council of Ministers as a voluntary ecolabelling scheme for Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and is is one of the founders of the international network for ISO 14024 Type 1 ecolabels and GEN in 1994. It is an effective tool to help companies that want to go ahead with sustainable solutions. Nordic countries experts contribute to the development of ideas for new or revised criteria, that is in close contact with businesses and stakeholders with relevant knowledge and by using academic literature.

The Long Run (GER) started in 2009 as an initiative of Zeitz Foundation’s international programme. In 2015 the program was converted in a UK-based non-profit organisation, the Global Ecosphere Retreats (GER)® and in the same year it was granted the Recognition by the GSTC. The GER standard comprehend the 4C’s (Conservation, Community, Culture and Commerce) and that is the base of the program to achieve the high standard in sustainability. More info coming soon...

TOFTigers PUG Mark Travel Operators for Tigers (TOFTigers) is a worldwide campaign to protect India’s tigers, wildlife and wilderness through sustainable tourism founded in 2004. Within the United Nations Millennium goals as well as ongoing research from credible agencies as WWF, The TOFTigers PUG Mark accreditation scheme, recognised by the GSTC, represents South Asia’s first and highest standard in eco auditing for wildlife focused accommodation in both India and Nepal.

TourCert In 2004, kate Umwelt & Entwicklung in cooperation with Tourism Watch, ACSUD Las Segovias, and with the support of the European Commission, conducted a project that dealt with the implementation of CSR in tourism. Based in Germany, but working worldwide, TourCert has become an internationally recognised partner on sustainability and innovation with the task of promoting corporate economic, ecological and social responsibility in tourism and is recognized by GSTC.

Travelife was launched in 2007 and is now recognised within the travel and tourism industry as one of the most comprehensive and credible tools, recognised by GSTC. The system and its criteria for touristic accommodations have been developed through a multi-stakeholder consultation process involving tour operators, hoteliers, trade associations, Non-Governmental Organisations, audit firms and academia. The program allows accommodation providers to monitor and self-assess their sustainability performance.

our ecolabels

Bookdifferent.com works with the most eligible ecolabels. These labels are provided by organizations that identify products or services that comply with sustainable standards as a quality mark that are less environmentally harmful or promote a fair business.

Does your ecolabel perform these 3 criteria:

1. Standard publicly available 2. Third party audit 3. Onsite assessment.

Would you like to see it on this list and give a push-up on the accommodations with your certification label?

Send us an email or …

the staygreencheck
the greener, the better!

nice! we check all accommodations for sustainability

our ecolabels

Bookdifferent.com works with the most eligible ecolabels. These labels are provided by organizations that identify products or services that comply with sustainable standards as a quality mark that are less environmentally harmful or promote a fair business.

Does your ecolabel perform these 3 criteria:

1. Standard publicly available 2. Third party audit 3. Onsite assessment.

Would you like to see it on this list and give a push-up on the accommodations with your certification label?

Send us an email or …

the staygreencheck the greener, the better!

nice! we check all accommodations for sustainability

the staygreencheck
the greener, the better!