Travalyst, a not-for-profit global coalition founded in 2019 by Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, has announced an initiative to help provide clarity for those seeking sustainable accommodation.

The coalition, which includes Amadeus, Booking.com, Expedia Group, Google, Mastercard, Sabre, Skyscanner, Travelport, Trip.com Group, Tripadvisor and Visa, hopes to strengthen credibility and create consistency in the way sustainability certifications are displayed on travel booking platforms.

In the first phase, Travalyst has produced a list of the first 49 sustainability certifications for accommodation that meets its criteria.

We spoke to Aromica Bhattacharya, Certifications Project Lead, to find out more:

Why have you taken this initiative?

Research carried out by our coalition partner, Booking.com, revealed that 45% of travellers view accommodation that is labelled more sustainable, as more appealing, but travellers want consistency; the research also found that 67% of travellers agree that all travel booking sites should use the same certifications.

By asking certifications to meet a set of criteria, we aim to enable industry alignment behind accommodation sustainability certifications, and provide consistency in those displayed across booking platforms.

You say consumers are confused. Is that also the case in the corporate sector?

Sustainability is an increasing priority for the corporate travel industry, with 45% of businesses ramping up investment in 2024. However 60% of corporate travel buyers cite the lack of transparent access to data as a major challenge.

Travalyst’s mission is to align the travel industry behind clear, consistent and credible sustainability information to help people make more informed choices. Travalyst’s certifications initiative aims to strengthen credibility and create consistency in which certifications are displayed on travel booking platforms.

How did you set the criteria?

Travalyst has worked closely with its partners, and in conjunction with its Independent Advisory Group, to align on three criteria that certification bodies must comply with in order to be included on Travalyst’s list. These are:

1. Third-party audit that includes on-site and/or remote online assessment of sustainable practices reported by the property.
2. Publicly available standards upon which the certification is based.
3. Focuses on evaluating the impact of social and/or economic, and/or environmental factors, among others, as encompassed within, but not restricted, to the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

These criteria are designed to establish an initial threshold that supports the certification industry to meet evolving regulatory requirements. They represent just the first step in a broader, ongoing effort to improve the sustainability governance of certifications for the accommodation sector. 

All entities that operate and/or manage sustainability certification programs, schemes and frameworks in the accommodation industry are invited to participate in the Travalyst Certifications Initiative.

You’ve approved 49 certifications. Roughly how many are there out there?

It’s challenging to say the exact number of certifications globally; there are likely hundreds. Travalyst had 59 apply and 49 made our list of compliant certifications. Travalyst welcomes continuous applications from certifications as part of an iterative review process.  

What about those that didn’t meet the criteria?

If a certification body applied and was not compliant with the Travalyst criteria, they have been informed of missing requirements and invited to provide further documentation for review.

Isn’t 49 still too high a number? Is the ultimate aim to have one standardised approach?

One of the aims of this initiative is to have one standardised approach of the process and structure that sustainability certifications in accommodation adhere to. By aligning these certifications with our criteria, we are working towards greater consistency. This is just the first step in an ongoing effort to simplify and enhance the integrity of sustainability information for both consumers and the industry.

For this first iteration of the initiative, 49 is a good starting point. Travalyst strives for its certifications initiative to be as inclusive as possible, because achieving a critical mass of credible organisations that are working towards the same goals is crucial. The diversity in this first list reflects the wide range of sustainability certification suppliers that exist globally, and every property, however small, should be able to credibly demonstrate their sustainability practices to the industry and consumer. We want our certifications initiative to be inclusive, and we remain cautious to ensure we do not, inadvertently, legitimise inequity in the certifications industry.

What’s the next step?

This is a long-term initiative intended to provide consistency in the sustainability certifications shown across travel booking sites, and to support accommodation certification bodies to meet evolving regulatory requirements. As such we will continue to work with our stakeholders to closely monitor the fast-evolving legislative landscape and adapt our approach accordingly. We expect the criteria to change over time, as well as the types of data we collect from sustainability certifications, in order to meet the needs of our partners, wider industry and travellers.

In the short term, we will continue to review certifications that apply for the initiative in an effort to make the list inclusive of all certifications compliant with our criteria.

travalyst.org