When choosing accommodation in Prague, you’ll probably consider a range of factors: proximity to the sights, access to public transport, atmosphere and tradition, or price. If caring for the environment is part of your travel ethos, you can choose from a range of sustainable accommodation options designed to make your stay both comfortable and responsible. environmental certifications Accommodation providers can show that they meet specific sustainability requirements through environmental certification schemes. Among the best known are Green Key, an international certification programme for tourism establishments based on the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and the EU Ecolabel, the European Union’s official voluntary label for products and services with a demonstrably lower environmental impact. Other sustainability certifications and rating systems used by accommodation providers include EcoStars, GreenSign and the Czech Eco-friendly Service label, awarded by the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic. The Green Stay Initiative is a rating system that assesses and compares hotels’ sustainability data. There are also separate certification schemes for buildings. These include BREEAM, which assesses the environmental performance of buildings, including their energy performance. Green Key and EU Ecolabel holders green key eu ecolabel Michelin 1 key hotels Andaz Prague Nové Město official city partnerMichelin 1 key hotels Augustine Hotel Prague Malá Strana hotels Century Old Town Prague — MGallery Collection Nové Město official city partner hotels Courtyard by Marriott Prague City Žižkov official city partnerMichelin 2 keys hotels Fairmont Golden Prague Staré Město official city partner hotels Hermitage Hotel Prague Nové Město hotels Hotel PULSE8 Karlín hotels Ibis Praha Malá Strana Smíchov hotels Mama Shelter Prague Holešovice hotels Motel One Prague — Florentinum Nové Město hotels NH Collection Prague Smíchov hotels NH Prague City Smíchov hotels Novotel Praha Wenceslas Square Nové Město official city partner hotels Prague Marriott Hotel Nové Město official city partner hotels Radisson Blu Hotel Prague Nové Město official city partner hotels STAGES HOTEL Prague Libeň official city partnerMichelin 1 key hotels The Julius Prague Nové Město hotels Hotel Duo Střížkov official city partner hotels Majestic Plaza Hotel Prague Nové Město what the certifications assess Environmental certification schemes look at a range of factors connected with day-to-day operations. These encompass energy and water usage, reduction strategies, and the integration of renewable energy technologies. Waste management is another important area, covering waste prevention, sorting and recycling, as is reducing single-use products. Cleaning and laundry practices are also assessed, including options such as less frequent towel changes and the use of environmentally friendly cleaning products. The criteria often also cover food and responsible purchasing, including the use of local, organic and fair-trade products and measures to reduce food waste. Some certifications also look at how guests can get involved in greener practices, how the accommodation supports the local area, community and economy, and whether it sets specific targets for reducing its carbon footprint. Source: www.the-cloud-one.com certification is not the only sign of sustainability Certification provides a verifiable way for an accommodation provider to show that it meets defined environmental criteria. However, not having certification doesn’t automatically mean that a hotel isn’t helping to protect the environment. It may have introduced a range of meaningful measures without seeking certification. Likewise, descriptions such as “eco-friendly” and “green hotel” don’t necessarily guarantee an independently verified level of sustainability. Prague’s hotels show just how varied these approaches can be. Clarion Congress Hotel Prague This conference hotel in Vysočany, for example, keeps bees on its roof, helping to pollinate plants nearby. Around 800,000 bees live in its 14 hives, and the hotel’s own honey is served directly to guests at breakfast and in the hotel café. Guests can also take some home with them. The hotel has also replaced single-use toiletry packaging in its rooms with large dispensers and is reducing the amount of printed material provided to guests. Source: www.facebook.com/clarioncongresshotelprague Source: www.facebook.com/adriahotelprague Adria Hotel Prague Hotel Adria on Wenceslas Square has taken a different approach, with a particular focus on energy efficiency. Motion sensors and LED lighting are used in its communal spaces. The hotel has been monitoring and reducing the building’s energy consumption for many years using various metering and control technologies. It also works with a sheltered workshop that produces the hand-painted mugs it uses at breakfast, while a fundraising collection at reception supports the Bohemian Switzerland National Park. Mosaic House Design Hotel Mosaic House Design Hotel near Slavonic Island also deploys innovative technical solutions. The hotel has green roofs that retain rainwater, improve the building’s insulation, provide space for birds and insects, and help cool the surrounding area on hot days. The plants on the roof are watered with treated grey water from sinks and showers, which the hotel collects and treats using special bacteria. The same water is also used to flush its low-flow toilets. Waste heat from the treatment process is also used to preheat incoming water, reducing gas consumption. Source: www.facebook.com/mosaicprague Source: www.the-cloud-one.com The Cloud One Hotel Prague The Cloud One near Masaryk Railway Station also gives guests a role: they can opt out of regular room cleaning and thus help save water and energy. Its breakfast buffet includes organic and fair-trade products, among other options, while the building itself has achieved the highest level of BREEAM certification, a mark of excellence in environmental performance. sustainable accommodation is not just about hotels The very concept of hostel accommodation, built on shared rooms and communal spaces, can itself contribute to a more sustainable operation. According to an analysis by Bureau Veritas in cooperation with Hostelworld, the hostels surveyed have a lower average carbon intensity per bed-night than hotels. Yet shared accommodation isn’t automatically environmentally friendly. Energy and water consumption, laundry and cleaning practices, and waste management all play important roles. Guesthouses can also reduce their environmental impact by taking the same kinds of steps as hostels and hotels. One example is Luma Terra Prague, a hostel on the border between New Town and Vinohrady. It flushes its toilets with rainwater, avoids single-use plastics, has LED lighting with motion sensors, and uses environmentally friendly cleaning and laundry products. It also contributes to the restoration of Czech forests through the Sázíme Česko initiative. At the other end of the comfort spectrum are Prague’s campsites. Their environmental footprint can be lower because they offer a more basic form of accommodation, but guests themselves also play a major role — from transport choices to water and energy use, all the way to waste management. Campsites can also deploy technical solutions. Family Camp Drusus, for example, is partly energy self-sufficient thanks to its own photovoltaic system, a heat pump with geothermal boreholes, and solar collectors for heating water. a sustainable stay is a shared effort Whether you choose a hostel, guesthouse, campsite or hotel for your stay in Prague, how sustainable your accommodation is depends largely on how it is run and on your own behaviour. So when choosing where to stay, you don’t need to search for the perfect environmentally friendly option. It’s more useful to look at the specific measures an accommodation provider has introduced and then to support them through your own choices during your stay. discover sustainable accommodation in Prague choose your accommodation hotels Adria Hotel Prague Nové Město Michelin 1 key hotels Andaz Prague Nové Město official city partnerMichelin 1 key hotels Augustine Hotel Prague Malá Strana official city partner hotels Botanique Hotel Prague Karlín official city partner hotels Buddha-Bar Hotel Prague Staré Město hotels Century Old Town Prague — MGallery Collection Nové Město official city partner hotels Clarion Congress Hotel Prague Vysočany official city partner hotels Comfort Hotel Prague City East Strašnice hotels Courtyard by Marriott Prague Airport Ruzyně official city partner hotels Courtyard by Marriott Prague City Žižkov official city partnerMichelin 2 keys hotels Fairmont Golden Prague Staré Město campsites Family Camp Drusus Třebonice official city partner hotels Hermitage Hotel Prague Nové Město official city partner hotels Hilton Prague Atrium Karlín hotels Hilton Prague Old Town Nové Město hotels Hotel Adalbert Břevnov hotels Hotel Duo Střížkov hotels Hotel PULSE8 Karlín hotels Ibis Praha Malá Strana Smíchov hotels INNSiDE Prague Old Town Nové Město show more