Travel Blog - Mr & Mrs Smith Boutique & Luxury Hotels

Any eco-warrior worth their salt would rather eat their beach towel than stay in an environmentally unfriendly bolthole. After all, how can you kick back and relax if you’re worrying about whether the light bulbs are energy-efficient, if there’s a recycling program or whether your dazzlingly clean bath has been scrubbed with hostile cleaning products? Luckily, with jet-setters increasingly aware of whether their footprint is that of sinner or saint and with so-green-they-glimmer UK properties such as Brecon Beacon’s Fronlas and Devon’s Barn Cottage to choose from, you don’t have to compromise your morals to get away from it all.

One such property to make your green halo glow is Cornwall’s Trevenna. This rural retreat’s luxury self-catering barns are situated in a lemon-and-lime sweep of rural Cornwall, 40 minutes’ drive from the coast and with the dramatic Bodmin Moor and rippling River Fowey a mere stroll away. Trevenna’s owner, Jonathan Rowe, tells us why green is the new black…

Why worry about eco-credentials?
As a keen globetrotter myself, I know the importance of a relaxing and restorative escape. For me, the most relaxing and rewarding holidays are those that have a positive impact on a destination’s social, environmental, and economic health (as well as encouraging romance, familial love, hearty eating and blissful sleep of course!) Although distinctive design, access to fabulous food, boredom-banishing activities and scenic surroundings are key considerations for any world-weary traveller (and always will be), more and more people are keen to holiday with a healthy eco-conscience.

Why go green?
Consider these alternatives: room service delivering processed food, or a taste of local, fresh ingredients? High-octane floodlights, or low-energy lighting, so your children can count the stars at night? Infinity swimming pool heated by burning oil or by renewable energy? It’s very obvious which approach, when combined with quality accommodation, enhances a guest’s experience and benefits the destination.

Why do you care?
Because of my farm upbringing, I’ve always been naturally close to the fragility of the food chain, living life practically ‘plough to plate’. At Trevenna, guests experience this for themselves, surrounded by a backdrop of fertile fields, which yield fresh ingredients every day. I guess that my degree in biology from Bath University, along with my insight into the business world during my time as a corporate lawyer in London, have helped shape this new phase of Trevenna. Our vision is a fresh, cosy and comfortable retreat with honest, locally sourced food. It’s a treat for busy people, but beyond that, Trevenna is also an innovative enterprise, seeking to engage visitors with our country setting, village community and rural economy.

Why do eco-friendly properties work?
Increasingly, guests are demanding good value for money. A place that provides luxury accommodation and operates with a triple bottom line (the economy, the environment and the community) is excellent value in terms of guest experience. Nobody can simply ‘upgrade’ to this offering if the destination is not already operating in this way; such a philosophy represents the very core and soul of the place.

Why Trevenna?
When guests leave Trevenna, their carbon footprint is positive, having already impacted on our ability to preserve the natural landscape and local way of life so pivotal to our future and success. And I haven’t even mentioned the spa, crackling log fires, flatscreen TVs or hearty home-cooked meals dished up by Karen…

This entry was posted on Friday, June 12th, 2009 at 5:53 pm and is filed under Boutique hotels, Cornwall, Destinations, Eco travel, Insider interviews, Self-catering, Uncategorized, United Kingdom. You can follow any comments on this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.