A luxury Wiltshire hotel is encouraging its guests to cut their carbon footprint as part of an education initiative on how to help slow the impact of climate change – as it challenges them to minimise their carbon output during their stay.
Bowood Hotel, Spa and Golf Resort, which sits at the heart of the 2,000-acre Bowood Estate, is committed to conserving energy and promoting sustainable practices, all whilst saving costs amidst the current energy crisis.
With the light bulb bonanza of the festive period behind it, and January at an end, the hotel is looking to generate a broader understanding of the things that can be done to minimise our impact on the environment (without compromising on the guest experience) by making small changes.
To help do this, it’s encouraging guests to get involved and make a conscious effort to reduce this where they can. This includes adopting small habits during their visit that they can implement into their everyday routine, including taking three minute showers, using towels for the whole duration of their stay, and brushing their teeth with the water turned off.
As part of this, it’s set to challenge guests to try and reduce their carbon output across February – by targeting a reduction in energy usage when compared against January’s output.
Jeff Condliffe, General Manager at Bowood Hotel, Spa and Golf Resort, said: “Climate change is a huge issue. And we’re committed to doing our part in protecting the planet for future generations. When it comes to making a positive difference though, the smallest of actions can have an impact and we’re encouraging our guests to make small changes where they can.”
He continued: “However, it’s often tricky to get people’s buy-in without some form of incentive, so we wanted to set guests a challenge to encourage their involvement. With January a fairer month to compete against than December, we’re challenging guests to help us reduce our output for February – with our hotel team getting involved too.”
Jeff added: “Of course, energy costs are high on the agenda at the moment for both businesses and the public – so we’re hoping we’ll help people to recognise the small changes they can take away and follow at home to make a bigger difference in the longer term.”
Bowood is committed to educating guests on its energy conserving practices beyond the initial challenge in February too, with the hotel pledging to make it part of its many sustainable long-term strategies. The hotel is already devoted to a sustainable approach, with examples being low-energy light bulbs in place throughout the hotel and resort, along with wood from the estate being used to fuel fires in public areas, while a 500kw biomass boiler provides heating and hot water throughout, with the wood chip used in the process sourced from the Estate’s woodland. In the last 50 years alone, Bowood Estate has planted more than 1.2 million trees which offsets an estimated equivalent of more than 1,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.
With a dedicated Sustainability Committee, the hotel and wider Estate has further plans in place to continue contributing to the fight against climate change, which includes purchasing 50% of services and consumable supplies from within 50 miles by 2024, generating renewable energy on the Estate by 2025, and by 2030, reducing direct fossil fuel consumption by 50%.
Additionally, Bowood has reduced single-use plastic in its hotel bedrooms by over 90%, with an ambition to have removed it all by the summer. Whilst the primary water source for the PGA Golf Course irrigation system comes from the estate’s private water supply, reducing the reliance on treated mains water.
Jeff Condliffe added: “Despite the rise in energy bills, we’ve had sustainable processes in place for years, which means we’ve been affected less than others. However, an environmentally friendly approach runs throughout our ethos – so we’re keen to emphasise the things we can be doing at a time when it’s foremost in people’s minds. We’re hoping this initiative will add an element of fun to a serious issue!”
The move was supported by Jane Pendlebury, CEO of HOSPA, the Hospitality Professionals Association, who said: “Hotels and other hospitality businesses are struggling right now to manage rocketing energy costs. Bowood though, is a standout case in point of a hotel that is already ahead of the curve in combating climate change, and it’s now benefiting from that, with its biomass boiler negating energy cost rises, for instance, being a prime example. The fact Bowood is seeking to encourage more people to be carbon conscious though, is fantastic and we love the thought of challenging guests to raise awareness.”
Should the target be met, any guests who stay at the hotel in February will be entitled to a discounted future stay at the hotel to celebrate the achievement.
For more information on Bowood’s sustainability commitment, please visit https://www.bowood.org/sustainability/.
