Abstract
Green Marketing in Tourism Sector: Eco Hotels and Ecological Practices
Eco hotel is a hotel or accommodation that has made important environmental improvements to its structure in order to minimize its impact on the environment. The basic definition of a green hotel is an environmentally responsible lodging that follows the practices of green living. These hotels have to be certified green by an independent third-party or by the state they are located in. Traditionally, these hotels were mostly presented as Eco Lodges because of their location, often in jungles, and their design inspired by the use of traditional building methods applied by skilled local craftsmen in areas, such as Costa Rica and Indonesia.
Today, eco hotels also include properties in less "natural" locations that have invested in improving their "green" credentials. The EU Ecolabel is an official sign of the environmental quality of services and goods in the European Union (EU) that is both certified by an independent organization and valid throughout the many member States of the European Union. Investment in energy-efficiency within hotels not only helps reduce the operating costs and the frequency of maintenance but it showcases what guests can do at home. Eco-resorts and hotels are types of commercial buildings in which the eco-efficiency measures are adopted throughout the lifecycle of the building, ranging from orientation, design, operation and maintenance.
In this study; examples will be given to energy efficiency in different countries that implement the Eco Hotels. Also, these examples in Turkey will be compared to similar applications businesses. Nowadays, companies realize that they cannot sustain their life without having environmental sensitivity. Many companies begin to be aware of green marketing perceived as environmentally-sensitive marketing by companies. In this study, the relationship between tourism and environment was considered and the concept of eco hotel was researched. The literature on subject was examined about energy efficiency practices in tourism industry and eco hotels and focused on eco practices of Hotels which are international hotels.
Keywords
Eco hotels, sustainable environment, green marketing, ecological practices.
