Richard Hammond is a journalist
and author of Green
Places to Stay: From Beach Huts to Eco-Chic Hotels, All Over the
World. His website -- Green
Traveller -- is a must read. This conversation first appeared
on the Planeta
Forum.
Richard, can you tell us about the history of the book
and how successful it's been?
Green
Places to Stay is part of the 'Special Places to Stay' series
by independent publisher, Alastair
Sawday. Since publication, it's been selling extremely
well and there's also been a heck of a lot of press interest
– reflecting the media's growing interest in all things
green. The Guardian published a four-page
feature on the book when it was published - - followed a week
later by the Sunday
Times
There has since been coverage in a host of other national newspapers
and magazines, including The Times, Independent on Sunday, Daily
Express, Conde Nast Traveller, and Elle magazine. The key thing
about the book is that it features places that use eco-friendly
technologies and/or contribute to conservation and/or provide
genuine benefits to local communties. Every property was visited
either by me or by someone I could rely on to vouch for the owner's
genuine commitment to the environment and/or the social dimension.
I oversaw all the completed inspection forms and had to make a
call on whether the place was genuinely green. The final count
is 165 properties in over 50 countries.
How many of these hotels and ecolodges did you personally
visit?
About a third. It took 16 months to research and write. Over this
period, I was writing a monthly eco-travel column for the Guardian
newspaper so while I'd visit a country to write an article for
the paper I'd also use the visit to inspect properties for the
book. That column is now weekly as there's such a growth
in interest in green travel.
Are there any hotels that you discovered after publication
that should have been included?
Yes, heaps of places! This book only skims the surface of the
many fabulous places that are out there. Often the best places
were those that weren't interested in marketing themselves as
green, they were just getting on with what they felt was right
without shouting about it. Coming across those places isn't easy
so I had to rely on local experts to point me in the right direction.
Will there be a second edition?
The publisher is keen to do a second edition, though it's probably
not going to be for at least another year. I'm currently looking
to include more properties on the Special
Places to Stay website. There will be two types of places
listed - those that we've inspected and those that we've been
recommended but haven't yet inspected. I'd love to hear about
any places that are worth considering.
5) Can you tell us about your Green
Traveller website and how it showcases green travel?
It's an online forum for modern travellers to debate green travel
issues. Some of the most popular topics have been 'Is it ok to
visit a remote tribe?' and 'Is it ok to swim with dolphins?' The
aim is also for it to link to green travel companies, featured
green places to stay and ethical holidays.
Green Places to Stay, like Lonely Planet's Code Green
and Tourism Concern's Ethical Travel Guide, appears to be aimed
at the independent traveler market, allowing travelers to figure
out where to go without taking a package tour. Is this a correct
assessment of your book's intended audience?
Not necessarily, the book is aimed at anyone looking for a greener
place to stay, whether independently or on a package tour. In
the listings in the back the back, I recommend four ethical travel
companies that offer package holidays, which include in their
itineraries some of the places listed in the book.
Do we have accurate statistics of who makes up the green
traveler market?
Mintel (a UK-based market research company) has carried research
linking the ethical consumer market with future trends in eco
travel. It recently predicted a 25% growth in the green travel
market year on year. Also, to tie in with the International
Year of Ecotourism in 2002, UNWTO commissioned a series of
reports looking at the development of ecotourism in seven countries
(US, Canada, Britain, Germany, France, Spain and Italy), which
includes sections that deal with the ecotourist market.
What is your opinion -- are green travelers mostly independent
or participants in group tours?
In my opinion, green travel is no longer a niche market. Green
travellers fall into both categories.
What are the options for green travel in London?
The Travel Channel's six part series on 'How to Holiday Greener'
featured one programme devoted entirely to How
to Have a Greener Holiday: London. Examples include walkit.com
- a website that shows the quickest walking route to the city's
attractions, greentomatocars - which runs a fleet of hybrid hire
cars, and Acorn House - one of London's first eco-friendly restaurants.
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