Global Sustainable Tourism Certification

Eco-certification

The Hotel Criteria are organized around four main themes: effective sustainability planning, maximizing social and economic benefits for the local community, enhancing cultural heritage, and reducing negative impacts to the environment.  

GSTC certification is a win-win situation for all.  Proven benefits of the GSTC certification include:

• A better holiday – certified hotels show higher satisfaction scores compared to non-certified accommodations.
• No guilty feelings – the hotel makes sure that sustainability is taken into consideration throughout.  This will help you enjoy your holiday without feeling guilty. 
• Support your destinations – local staff and support to the local environment will help the destination thrive. For today, and for coming generations. 
• No greenwashing – Hotels that are GSTC certified are operating sustainably. They are checked on-site and all processes are reviewed. We make sure that you don’t have to complain about any of the sustainability issues afterwards.

Best practices

Melenos Lindos Exclusive Suites is a luxury boutique hotel in the village of Lindos on the Greek island of Rhodes which is eco certified by GSTC. The owner used a local architect to design the hotel and worked with artists to create the hotel’s traditional mosaics and artwork, inspired by 17th century Lindian mansions and created with local materials. In addition to traditional craftsmanship, the owner has also put into action several on-site sustainability programs. For example, the hotel has a private garden and orchard, where staff members grow fruits and vegetables that are used in the hotel restaurant. It also has a linen re-use initiative to reduce water consumption, a recycled waste program, and has installed low energy lighting. Would you like to know more about the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, please visit their website. 

You can recognize eco-certified hotels by the logo of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council!

The Global Sustainable Tourism Certification is accredited by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC).

The Global Sustainable Tourism Council is compliant with following hearts of the staygreencheck: