Eco-Conscious Hotel Lets Guests Decide Whether They Want Room’s Towels Washed Before Next Guests Arrive

HEALDSBURG, CA—In a continuing effort to minimize the environmental impact of each patron’s stay, eco-conscious hospitality chain h2hotel announced plans Monday to allow those staying in their accommodations to decide whether they want towels, bath mats, and washcloths laundered for the next guests. “Tourism often leads to greater consumption of natural resources than usual, so in order to reduce our water and energy usage, we are giving guests the option to decide whether they want their bath and hand towels washed after they leave,” said h2h communications liaison Lauren Englehardt, adding that customers who want to aid h2hotel in their sustainability mission should hang their towels on the designated rack to remain untouched until the next guests arrive. “Given that bath linens are mostly used for showering, they shouldn’t ever get that dirty. Allowing the next guests to use your still-damp towels is a small gesture that greatly increases our energy efficiency and reduces our carbon footprint. Multiple guests in a row using the same towels without washing them just lets us conserve that much more.” Englehardt also noted that h2hotel extends the same policy to washing bedsheets, cleaning drinking glasses, and replacing bars of soap.