Why Your Vacation Rental Should Be Sustainable

Extreme heat, hurricanes, wildfires, and floods affecting almost every corner of the planet makes the climate crisis ever more evident. Sustainable travel is becoming a more popular movement, in fact, 74% of people surveyed by Booking.com want travel companies to offer more sustainable travel choices. 

So, how is climate change affecting short-term rentals, and what can hosts and property managers do to help? According to Sustonica, a company offering sustainability certification for vacation rentals, 78% of guests surveyed intend to stay in sustainable accommodation, with the proportion even higher among Millennials and Gen Z. In this article, we reflect on this rapidly evolving situation and how you can capitalize on it.

Scorching Summer Vacation Anyone?

One trend that has already made itself clear is a preference for traveling to different destinations or at unusual times to avoid extreme weather. In the scorching summer of 2023, travelers traded their typical beach getaways for cooler mountain escapes or ventured from southern cities to northern havens, seeking refuge from relentless heatwaves and weather extremes. The European Union estimates that even a simple 1.5℃ increase in global temperatures could decrease tourism in 80% of Europe, with worse scenarios having an even more dramatic effect in southern Europe.

In our October review of the U.S. short-term rental market, we found that 2023 may be the year of the off-season. The extended travel season pushed on into October, with a 15% year-over-year (YOY) increase in demand, a significant hike from the previous month (11%).

Europe is no different - in September, the “shoulder season” officially kicked off with YOY demand up 19.7% in September, a return to the double-digit demand growth seen in the first half of the year, and in October it remained strong, growing 8.9% YOY.

Escaping the city in the summer is nothing new for Europeans or New Yorkers, who flock to the coast to refresh themselves away from the urban jungle, but with record-breaking temperatures extending further outside of the summer even into October, the high season might find itself moving as well.

As a host, this means you might have to adapt to the temperatures too. Consider keeping your pool and barbecue open a month or two later, and don't rush to switch to winter bedsheets prematurely. In some locations, such as beach or ski destinations, it’s worth looking into offering different activities for guests who aren’t able to enjoy the local scenery in the way they used to.

Apart from just adapting, what can the short-term rental industry do to help slow climate change? You might be surprised how wide-reaching the benefits are.

Supercharge Your Bookings with Electric Vehicle Chargers

Amenities are a key way to differentiate yourself from your competitors, and there are a few sustainable amenities that will boost your presence as a host. One is electric vehicle (EV) chargers.

While EVs are still a small proportion of all the vehicles on the road, according to the US Department of Energy, sales of EVs from 2020 to 2021 almost doubled, and they aren’t expected to slow any time soon, as EVs become cheaper and easier to operate. For EV drivers, a charging point is non-negotiable, like a pet-friendly rental would be for someone traveling with a dog, so installing and advertising your charging station is an easy way to boost your business.

Only 50,000 US rentals have an EV charger, with a much bigger presence on the West Coast: all 15 of the top markets for EV chargers are there. Of those top 15, 11 are in California, three in Washington, and one in Oklahoma (pandemic drive-to favorite, Broken Bow). While in all of these markets, less than 15% of listings have an EV charging point listed, those 15% are able to charge higher rates due to the need for these facilities. In Joshua Tree, listings with an EV charger can charge 10-20% higher average daily rates (ADRs) than similar listings without one.

If you’re concerned about the cost of installation and electricity, bear in mind that you’ll be able to charge higher rates thanks to your charging point, and consider charging an extra fee for use to cover the cost.

Sustainability Tips

While it can be hard to know where to start, EnviroRental is a great resource for property managers looking to take their first steps towards sustainability.

“The impetus for sustainable stays is growing quickly. The traveller is increasingly interested in staying in vacation rentals that are making real efforts to be greener. Property managers can tap into this demand, often charging extra while at the same time building nuance and passion into their brand. At EnviroRental we are on a mission to help all of the short-term rental industry take some early steps on the greener path. Good for the guest, the planet and your business.“ - Bob Garner, founder, EnviroRental.

Installing features like energy-saving appliances and lights is a breeze. Plus, using timers and smart devices helps manage energy use when no one's around. It's a great way to nudge your guests towards being more mindful about their energy and water use. And the best part? It also helps to reduce your operating costs.

If you’re operating multiple properties or getting through a lot of bedsheets and towels, consider taking your laundry offsite. Professional laundry machines use about one pound of water per gallon of laundry, compared to a typical in-house washer which uses 20 times that. Choices like this can make an impact on both your environmental impact — and your bills. 

A big piece of the sustainability puzzle is teaching your guests about what we can all do to be more eco-friendly. This can be something as simple as providing recycling bins and simple illustrations of what goes where, encouraging your guests to turn off the A/C when they’re not in, or providing plastic-free toiletries. 

While the future of tourism is still uncertain, the path to a greener and more profitable future for vacation rental owners is clear. By embracing sustainability, not only are you ensuring a safer future for our planet and its inhabitants, but you can also boost your bottom line, getting ahead of the curve and giving yourself an edge with the growing climate-conscious travelers.