It’s one thing to live life greener when you’re at home, but what about when you hit the road? At the Moonrise, we’re all about making it easy for our guests to feel good about their stays with our green hotel efforts (like our solar-paneled roof, property-wide recycling program, electric vehicle charging station, etc.) But how can you stay eco-friendly even when you’re not at the best boutique hotel in St. Louis?
You can still be in a kick-back-and-relax vacation mindset while protecting the little blue dot that our moon orbits! As your next summer excursion blasts off, we have some ideas to consider for ways you can travel green!
Pack Light
Whether you’re traveling the cosmos or venturing to a neighboring state, your rocket (or more likely, your plane or car) works just like any other machine. It requires more fuel to perform a more powerful task. So, if every passenger packs just a little lighter, a lot of carbon gas can be prevented from entering our atmosphere. Something to keep in mind when deciding if you really need all six pairs of shoes for that two-day trip!
Be Mindful At Hotels
Trust us, this one’s not personal. It goes for all hotels in the world; people love to enjoy themselves when they’re away from home. But keep in mind that taking shorter showers, turning off the TV and lights before leaving the room, and being as mindful as you would be in your own home is not only courteous but also hugely helpful to the planet. (This is also why we provide recycling-specific trash cans in all our rooms, to make it easy on our guests to continue their good green habits when they’re with us!)
Say No To Plastic
The anti-plastic movement extends far past just traveling. Plastic bottles account for an astronomical fraction of our planet’s waste. So ditching the 12-packs of plastic bottles and bringing a single reusable water bottle on your trip instead, especially if you’ll be partaking in activities that require lots of hydration, is a real power move. The same can be said for plastic bags, plastic straws, and other single-use plastics.
Check Your Hotel’s Policies
The Moonrise is eco-friendly, so you can easily stay green while staying with us. But not all hotels are quite as considerate of the planet. Doing some quick investigating about your hotel of choice will help you determine if it does its part for the environment!
Consider Your Transportation
While out of town, pick walking or biking over taking a cab whenever possible. If you’re in a big city, electric scooters and public transportation may also be options. Keep in mind that while they are greener choices, they still do leave more of a carbon footprint than walking. And you can also be thoughtful about how you get to your destination. If you’re traveling in a group and your destination is within driving distance, a road trip is greener. But when it’s just you, it’s actually much more eco-friendly to hop a flight! You can even choose one of the 30+ airlines that offer carbon offset programs to neutralize their aircraft’s carbon emissions.
Eat and Drink Local
This one is extra easy because it’s something you likely already do when vacationing in a new place! When you eat and drink local products, you not only support the local economy, you cut out the carbon emissions required to transport a product over long distances. Our own eco-friendly Eclipse Restaurant makes a point of sourcing ingredients locally, is Green Dining Alliance Certified, and offers lots of local beers and other beverages as well. (If you’re looking for the best rooftop dining St. Louis has to offer, we’ve got you covered there too.) Check out our menus!
One last tip – remember that you can always bring your four-legged friends along with you when you stay with us – we’re not just green, we’re a pet-friendly hotel too. And, if you’re in search of a green location for an upcoming event, check out our corporate event venues and other unique event spaces. Before you blast into hyper-speed, we hope that you take these tips to heart and keep them in mind wherever you travel…to St. Louis and beyond!