Following accusations of greenwashing, Booking.com has adjusted its sustainability programme to encourage hotel partners and accommodation listings to obtain third-party sustainability certifications.
The platform announced that it would provide information about organisations willing to fund or offer discounts for sustainability certifications, which can cost several thousand dollars a year to obtain and maintain.
The new programme, in partnership with sustainability certification platform, BeCause, will enable properties and certification providers to share data and progress with each other and travel agents, reports Skift. Booking.com will recommend a subset of certifiers, including Sustonica, Green Key Global, and EU Eco Label.
Hotels will receive guidance for obtaining certifications based on their property types and locations.
Following criticism of the website’s previous Green Leafy Badges and vague sustainability scoring system, Booking.com opted instead to display third-party certifications. It also added the ability for travellers to filter their searches to easily find certified properties.
