What was once a "nice-to-have" checkbox has become a non-negotiable requirement for a growing segment of travelers.
I'm talking about sustainability, the trend quietly taking over travel.
Unlike buzzier trends like wellness, sustainability has been taking over from the shadows, not as exciting to talk about, but impossible to ignore.
And it’s become the driving force behind the hottest hospitality brands of the next generation.
Brands like 1 Hotels are becoming cultural phenomena, commanding premium rates and cult-like followings solely focused on their environmental mission.
Here's how it unfolded…
The Early Days
Back in the early 2010s, sustainability was the hot topic in culture and like every other industry, hotels jumped on the bandwagon:
- Towel and linen reuse programs
- Energy-efficient LED bulbs
- Basic recycling bins in guest rooms
These were low-cost, low-effort gestures that hotels could implement without major capital investment. The messaging was simple: "Help us help the environment."
Most guests ignored them.
And new industry trends took the spotlight…
But there was still a devoted group of travelers committed to sustainability.
And by the mid-2010s, properties realized these guests didn't trust vague sustainability claims, they needed something to keep this group of travelers happy, without a huge CAPEX investment…
Enter third-party certifications.
Hotels started pursuing LEED, EarthCheck, and Green Globe certifications to prove their commitment. Carbon offset programs became add-ons at checkout. Properties began measuring and reporting energy, water, and waste metrics.
Yet these were still “checkbox exercises,” not meaningful experiences.
Then something shifted around 2018-2020, driven by a perfect storm of changing guest expectations.
Millennials and Gen Z travelers were becoming a larger percentage of the travel segment than ever before and thanks to social media, they had a voice…
A loud one.
Checkbox exercises weren’t going to cut it for hotels anymore. These travelers were conscious about their environmental impact and were actively seeking travel experiences that aligned with their values.
Values-driven travel choices became a form of personal branding.
Climate awareness moved from activist circles to mainstream consciousness. Suddenly, choosing where to spend your vacation became a statement about who you are.
Properties like Mashpi Lodge in Ecuador started operating as research stations, with on-site biologists making species discoveries. The Brando in French Polynesia invested in seawater air conditioning systems that cut cooling energy by 90%. Babylonstoren in South Africa went all-in on farm-to-table dining, using produce grown on property for a majority of their dishes.
Soneva resorts even built "Waste-to-Wealth" facilities that transform resort waste into valuable products, recycling over 80% of all materials.
Sustainability was no longer a side dish. The next generation wanted it as the main course.
Where We Are Today
The current landscape has evolved far beyond basic green initiatives. We're seeing:
Conservation as Core Programming: Properties operating as wildlife research centers, with guests participating in citizen science projects and species monitoring.
Regenerative Tourism Models: Hotels that give back more to their environment than they take, through reforestation, soil restoration, and community development programs.
Wellness Meets Sustainability: The two biggest trends in hospitality are converging.
Properties like Heckfield Place in the UK and São Lourenço do Barrocal in Portugal combine biodynamic farming with wellness programming, offering guests mindfulness sessions in organic gardens and farm-to-table cuisine that's both healthy and environmentally conscious.
Nature-Immersed Stays Built to Preserve: Properties are now designed to work with the land rather than against it.
At Onera, we've woven this philosophy into our DNA, preserving enchanted forests at Fredericksburg and building units tucked into the trees at Wimberley, where the designs are shaped around the land rather than imposing on it.
But we’re still in the “early innings” of sustainable travel, there are a ton of untapped opportunities.
The Current Opportunities in Sustainability
The sustainability market in hospitality has several major gaps creating opportunities for savvy operators:
The Trust Gap: Too many properties greenwash with surface-level initiatives. Guests are getting savvy about what's real versus performative. Properties that can prove their impact through third-party verification and tangible outcomes are commanding premium rates.
The Experience Gap: Most "sustainable" hotels still treat it as an operational add-on rather than core to the guest experience.
The Accessibility Gap: Premium sustainable options exist, but there's limited middle-market accessibility. Smart operators are finding ways to offer meaningful sustainability without luxury price points.
The Integration Opportunity: Properties successfully combining wellness and sustainability are seeing outsized demand. The overlap between health-conscious and environmentally-conscious travelers is massive and underserved.
Our upcoming project Baya exemplifies this convergence–a tropical landscape resort 45 minutes from Miami that blends wellness programming with agritourism.
Guests experience farm-to-table dining and guided agricultural experiences on 25 acres of mature tropical fruit trees, all while staying in Bali-inspired villas with private grottos and natural pools.
It's wellness and sustainability working in tandem, creating economic opportunity for local farmers while delivering the immersive nature experiences travelers crave.
The properties winning right now are those that make sustainability central to why guests visit, weaving environmental stewardship into every touchpoint from arrival to departure.
This isn't just about checking boxes, it's about authentic impact.
Thanks to social media, travelers now have a larger voice than ever. You can't just say you're sustainable anymore; you have to prove it. Brands like 1 Hotels understood this early, embedding sustainability into everything from reclaimed wood design to zero-waste operations.
The nice-to-have has officially become something travelers are specifically searching for.
Ready to reduce your OTA dependency and drive more direct bookings?
At Oasi, we've built an experienced team of creators with a robust machine for content and social media marketing specifically for hotels & experiential resorts.
If you want to boost leisure revenue and direct bookings, we'd love to help.
From social media growth and marketing strategies to revenue management and full-service property management, we're ready to help your property attract the Modern Traveler and maximize your returns.
Fill out an inquiry here and let’s explore how we can work together.
See you guys next week!
-Ben Wolff
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🎥 Check Out My Podcast with Steve Turk Diving into The Story Behind Baya, Our New Tropical Landscape Resort
🎥 Check Out My Episode on The Bigger Pockets STR Podcast on Redefining Luxury Hotels and Outperforming Traditional Hotel Models
🎥 Check Out My Podcast Episode on the Action Academy about Making Millions Through Direct Bookings
Ben Wolff
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