Ecological Promises and Execution in hotel chains. Case: Restel Cumulus and Scandic
Järvenpää, Mona (2012)
Järvenpää, Mona
Laurea-ammattikorkeakoulu
2012
All rights reserved
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2012060111298
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2012060111298
Tiivistelmä
During the last decade the terms ‘eco’ and ‘green’ have created a trend in the tourism indus-try. This research focuses on two hotel chains that operate in Finland. One of the target chains is Finnish Restel Cumulus hotels and the other chain is originally Swedish, Scandic. This research studies the basic facts and the eco promises of these two hotel chains and the terms that this topic includes, for example sustainability, eco-label, ecological and eco-tourism. This research aims to find the answer to the main research question. The main re-search question is ‘What are the ecological promises and how are they executed in the hotel chains?’ The research methods used in this research were interviews with hotel managers and receptionists, systematic observation, documentation by camera and mystery shopping.
Eco labels are the most reliable ways to recognize an ecological hotel. The customers also affect the eco-labels criteria changes, because when the knowledge about eco issues grows, the customers will begin demanding new services from the hotels. Eco-labels or the fame of eco-labels are the creation of the eco-tourism trend. When the knowledge on the environ-mental problems grew one would have thought that tourism industry would have damaged from it but the opposite happened. Instead of people having stopped traveling they wanted to travel more and with a positive effect on the environment.
What was discovered is that Scandic is clearly a prime mover in the ecological issues. When Restel is just starting their ecological path, Scandic is keeping up with the criteria changes. Both chains have their own target groups and challenges on the ecological matters. Restel Cumulus and Scandic both function in the same country but they have nearly opposite opin-ions about the affect of ecological deeds. For example one difference was about the opinion about the costs of eco deeds. Scandic claimed that being an eco hotel does not cost much more than functioning normally whereas Restel Cumulus claimed differently. Also the need for ecological acts caused conflicting opinions. In Finland the need is created by the custom-ers’ demands. It is clear after this research that the customers’ needs vary a lot in Finland. Some customers have development demands on ecological maters and some give negative feedback about the eco changes.
Internationality is an advantage in the ecological field. When the hotel chain needs to com-pete with other international chains for example in the EU area it is easier to make the changes towards an eco label because the consumers expect it. In Finland the changes are made slowly and they are lead by the major Finnish companies. The knowledge of ecological issues is growing but in Finnish hotel chains the acts are in a smaller scale than in the interna-tional chains. The acts towards more ecological future begin on the management level. The personnel have the power to influence the acts but not the phase. The education of ecologi-cal issues and ecological behavior should be a bigger part of the tourism education because if the people who will have the power to affect on the issues in the future have not have any education on the matter, are suppose to be qualified to make the right moves and changes.
Eco labels are the most reliable ways to recognize an ecological hotel. The customers also affect the eco-labels criteria changes, because when the knowledge about eco issues grows, the customers will begin demanding new services from the hotels. Eco-labels or the fame of eco-labels are the creation of the eco-tourism trend. When the knowledge on the environ-mental problems grew one would have thought that tourism industry would have damaged from it but the opposite happened. Instead of people having stopped traveling they wanted to travel more and with a positive effect on the environment.
What was discovered is that Scandic is clearly a prime mover in the ecological issues. When Restel is just starting their ecological path, Scandic is keeping up with the criteria changes. Both chains have their own target groups and challenges on the ecological matters. Restel Cumulus and Scandic both function in the same country but they have nearly opposite opin-ions about the affect of ecological deeds. For example one difference was about the opinion about the costs of eco deeds. Scandic claimed that being an eco hotel does not cost much more than functioning normally whereas Restel Cumulus claimed differently. Also the need for ecological acts caused conflicting opinions. In Finland the need is created by the custom-ers’ demands. It is clear after this research that the customers’ needs vary a lot in Finland. Some customers have development demands on ecological maters and some give negative feedback about the eco changes.
Internationality is an advantage in the ecological field. When the hotel chain needs to com-pete with other international chains for example in the EU area it is easier to make the changes towards an eco label because the consumers expect it. In Finland the changes are made slowly and they are lead by the major Finnish companies. The knowledge of ecological issues is growing but in Finnish hotel chains the acts are in a smaller scale than in the interna-tional chains. The acts towards more ecological future begin on the management level. The personnel have the power to influence the acts but not the phase. The education of ecologi-cal issues and ecological behavior should be a bigger part of the tourism education because if the people who will have the power to affect on the issues in the future have not have any education on the matter, are suppose to be qualified to make the right moves and changes.