Ecolabelling in the Romanian Seaside Hotel Industry—Marketing Considerations, Financial Constraints, Perspectives

Abstract

The tendency to implement diverse environmental tools and promote the adoption of environmentally friendly practices in tourism activities is relatively new. One such tool is the EU Ecolabel used in the hotel industry as a voluntary European initiative meant to attest to the responsible attitude towards the environment. Since holding the ecolabel by the Romanian accommodation units is rather an exception, our aim was to investigate the views of industry managers on environmental issues, focusing on the EU Ecolabel, and get a glimpse of the challenges and prospects of ecolabelling within the seaside hotel industry. To this end, the study was designed and conducted on 60 hotel managers. The research results gave evidence to the measures already implemented, those pending implementation, reasons for not applying for the EU Ecolabel, and the most challenging criteria. The potential impact of the EU Ecolabel on the economic activity efficiency, and its role in customer decision processes and in marketing communication, was highlighted. Subsequently, a mathematical model was proposed, revealing that the intention to meet the criteria and obtain the EU Ecolabel depends on the managers’ level of knowledge of the EU Ecolabel, their opinion on whether holding the EU Ecolabel represents a competitive advantage, and the current efficiency level of the hotels’ economic activity. Considering the research findings, it is obvious that the industry would benefit from ampler and more sustained information campaigns on the EU Ecolabel.

Drivers for Pursuing Sustainability through IoT Technology within High-End Hotels—An Exploratory Study

“…Green certificates have a positive influence on a hotel's tendency to implement IoT technology, especially to satisfy B2B customers' positive attitudes towards green initiatives and specific energy saving initiatives. This driver is in line with several of the findings by [14,19].…”

“…Previous research has indicated that not only sustainable practices, but also environmental green certificates are components which can develop the green image of a hotel and ultimately represent a competitive advantage for the hotel. Green certificates (e.g., the EU Ecolabel) may improve the hotel's relationships with its close stakeholders, like customers and suppliers [18], but also result in an improved corporate image and reputation among the general public [5,19]. It is also important to integrate internal stakeholders, the managers and employees, in the educational efforts to increase sustainability awareness and specific knowledge, including specific training programs about environmental protection [5,20].…”

Determination of Managers’ Attitudes Towards Eco-Labeling Applied in the Context of Sustainable Tourism and Evaluation of the Effects of Eco-Labeling on Accommodation Enterprises

“…Barbulescu et al [33] showed that hotel managers in Romania implemented environmental management applications to save power and water and to minimize waste. The hotel managers who participated in their study stated that environmental management applications provided competitive advantage.…”

“…Studies on the impact of eco-labelling have focused on several directions: the advantages of eco-labelling for tourism companies, the tourism industry, and tourists, the difficulties that companies face when trying to obtain such a certification, and the impact of holding an eco-label on consumers' decisions. There are also less investigated aspects, such as those regarding the real advantages that an ecolabel brings to tourism businesses, although the theoretical advantages are listed in several works [33]. The second aim of this paper, in this context, was to reveal the impact of eco-labelling activities on accommodation establishments.…”

Bioeconomy and Social Responsibility in The Sustainable Hotel Industry

“…With several exceptions (Italy with 159 Ecolabelled hotels, France 92, Spain 59, Austria 36 and Switzerland 10), most European countries have only several hotels with this label (European Commission, 2017a). Bărbulescu, Moraru and Duhnea (2019) underscore that "even if managers are aware that EU Ecolabel represents a comparative advantage", the additional costs, difficulty to meet the criteria and also its voluntary character represent real barriers, preventing the widespread presence of such EU Ecolabelled hotels in Romania.…”