by Erin Link
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Summer time equals vacation time! And if you're anything like me, you probably want to spend your vacation on or near the coast. However, the problem with traveling and vacationing is that we usually overlook the importance of our responsibility to the environment. "Green" habits should be practiced at all times. I mean, that's why they call them habits, right. You should practice them everywhere. Even during your vacation time.

Unfortunately, it's very easy to lose all sense of responsibility at a nice, luxurious (or even average) hotel. Why is this? Little things add up tremendously! Tiny soaps that are hardly used, showers with water pressure approaching fire hose pressure, freshly washed towels (even though you've only used them once AFTER SHOWERING), and these are just a few items that need attention.

Fortunately, the Hotel Industry has realized the trend in "green" vacationing and that it not only benefits the traveler and the environment, but it also cuts costs and helps promotional possibilities.

Here's My List of the Top Ten Eco-Friendly Hotels:

• Hotel Triton, San Francisco, Calif.
  Kimpton Hotels was a pioneer in ecologically aware hotels in the U.S., a trend that started at this boutique hotel. Today, there’s extensive recycling and energy-efficient everything, and virtually every piece of paper - from your in-room napkins to your bill - are made from recycled material. And the eco-rooms have water-saving devices, water filtration systems and air purifiers. Kimpton’s other hotels have also adopted many of these eco-practices.
• Sadie Cove Wilderness Lodge, Alaska
  At this getaway in Kachemak Bay State Park, the entire place is off the grid, generating its own electricity through wind and hydro power. The lodges are hand-built from scavenged driftwood and the hotel supplies its own kayaks and fishing gear to lodgers at no extra cost. It’s not only eco-friendly it’s relaxing: Groups of eight can have a lodge to themselves and watch bald eagles flock on the beach.
• The Fairmont, Washington, D.C.
  Fairmont has been an industry leader in greening their hotels, making the process part of their corporate mission. In D.C., the hotel directs some of its electricity dollars to wind power and have installed a hydrocarbon-powered dry cleaning machine. They’ll soon be rolling out Eco Meet so businesses can hold green conferences, as well as a green wedding program.
• Inn By The Sea, Cape Elizabeth, Maine
  At this luxury resort, exotic plants were replaced with indigenous varieties that require less water and chemical treating, as well as providing shelter to local wildlife. They’ve replaced all incandescent light bulbs with better fluorescent lights. And a part of the proceeds for their bathroom supplies goes to the Rainforest Network.
• >Asheville Green Cottage, Asheville, N.C.
  It’s hard to describe the Asheville Green Cottage, just outside of the arts-and-crafts heart of Asheville, North Carolina, without using the word ‘organic’ a lot. You’ll find organic local fruit, natural latex mattress with organic wool toppers and organic cotton sheets, along with organic towels and toiletries. It’s a good match with the B&B’s fair-trade coffees and teas, non-toxic cleaning products and chlorine-filtering showerheads.
• El Monte Sagrado, Taos, N.M.
  Water is a precious commodity out in the semi-arid desert, and this luxury hotel takes its conservation seriously. Not only do they collect rain for watering the lawn, but they reuse all the waste water (yes, you read that right) by pumping it through an extensive, innovative filtration system that involves hitting it with ultraviolet rays and other measures. In this way, the water can be cleaned without environmentally unfriendly chlorine. Need more? The structure is built from a material called “gunash” which looks and acts like adobe but is made from recycled power plant ash.
• Las Manos Bed & Breakfast, Buena Vista, Colo.
  The walls of this B&B, set among Colorado's 14,000-foot mountains, are made of local adobe and strawbale, and ceilings are insulated with cellulose from old newspapers. In addition to solar and wind energy, rooms face the sun to minimize heating costs. Wood floors and cabinets were built with standing-dead, blue-stain, beetle-killed pines that were naturally dead (and still strong). Hot water is on-demand.
• Habitat Suites, Austin, Texas
  Efforts here consist of using ladybugs as natural pesticides and shade trees as natural coolers. The plants don’t require much water, and are only watered at night or in the morning, when watering is most effective. The hotel has received cooperation from the city of Austin as well, which partnered with the hotel to ration thermostats during peak periods to prevent brownouts from energy hogs.
• Orchard Garden Hotel, San Francisco, Calif.
  Conceived and created as a green hotel, this is one of the few LEED-certified hotels in the U.S. It was built with low-emission wallpaper and carpet, as well as wood taken from non-virgin forests. And every room has a system where lights and appliances can only be used if a keycard is in a wall slot, which ensures you don’t leave anything on while you’re out.
• Journey Inn; Maiden Rock, Wis.
  The floors of this tiny B&B are heated with a solar-powered water system, and the cooling is handled naturally with cross-ventilation. Curl up on a bed of natural latex foam wrapped in wool and organic cotton that rests on a wood frame harvested from sustainably managed forests. The native landscape is managed through composting, and furnishings are treated with minimally chemical-laden paints, varnishes, adhesives and sealants.

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