Tackling Tourism Emissions: What Hosts Can Do to Help

[Felicity11]

Tourism is responsible for an estimated 8.8% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and that number is continuing to grow. A 2024 study published in Nature Communications confirms this, noting that tourism emissions are projected to double by 2050 if no significant changes are made. (Sun et al., 2024)

So, where do these emissions come from, and what can hosts do to help reduce them?

According to the Tourism Emissions Project Summary, the three major contributors are: Aviation, Energy Use and Transport.

Weaving sustainability into your hosting doesn’t mean a complete overhaul—it means taking thoughtful steps that align with your values, your local context, and your guest experience. As more travellers actively seek out sustainable stays, it’s also a chance to stand out in a meaningful way.

1. ✈️ Aviation

Air travel is the single largest source of emissions in tourism, especially for long-haul and business-class flights. While Hosts can't control how guests travel, we can help make their stay more worthwhile by encouraging longer, slower travel and providing suggestions for meaningful local experiences. These types of trips reduce the need for frequent travel and help guests get more from their journey.

2. 🏡 Energy Use in Accommodation and Tourism Sites

The energy used to run tourism operations—including accommodation—is a major contributor to emissions, from heating and cooling to lighting, hot water, and laundry. Here’s how Hosts can take action:

Start with making your home more energy efficient: this includes:

• Sealing drafts, adding insulation, installing thermal-backed curtains, and upgrading to energy-efficient lighting.
• Setting heating and cooling systems to sensible temperature ranges for your climate.
• Adding friendly, visible reminders for guests to turn off appliances and lights when heading out.

When it’s time to upgrade, choose energy-efficient appliances such as:

• Hot water heat pumps
• Reverse-cycle heating and cooling
• Induction cooktops

Also consider:

• Installing solar panels and batteries to generate and store clean energy.
• Switching to a renewable energy provider if solar isn’t an option.

These upgrades often pay off over time by lowering bills and boosting property value, and they make your space more comfortable for guests.

3. 🚗 Ground Transport and Everyday Operations

Transport-related emissions don’t stop with flights. Once your guest has landed, additional emissions are created by everyday operations we undertake (such as the shopping trips or linen cleaning), the products you stock, and the transport choices your guests make.

Here’s how you can help reduce these:

• Think local when you shop: stock your home with locally made jam, tea, coffee pods, toiletries, and cleaning products to reduce transport emissions.
• Help guests travel more sustainably during their stay:
• Let them know if EV charging is available at your listing or nearby.
• Share tips on green rideshare options (like “Green” Ubers - electric EVs).
• Suggest EV car rentals via platforms like EVEE or Turo.
• Provide walking maps, public transport info, or bike hire options.

When you offer this kind of helpful info, you're not just reducing emissions but also showing your guests that you’ve thought about their needs and are supporting their journey to travel better.

Hint – Add this information to your guest confirmation letter, check-in letter, and house manual so it’s easy for guests to find and act on.

🌾Communicating with Guests

Many Hosts are doing great work behind the scenes, but don’t forget to tell your guests what you’ve done! Let them know about the steps you’ve taken to reduce emissions and waste in setting up your home. Simple signage, welcome notes, or compendium entries can go a long way. For example:

“We’ve set up our cottage with energy-saving appliances, solar panels, and refillable amenities. Thanks for helping us reduce waste during your stay!”

Clear communication helps guests feel connected to your efforts and often inspires them to participate in small ways—without feeling like they’re being asked to change their whole routine.

Hint - Add this information to your house manual so it is easy for guests to understand what steps you have taken - you never know, you may inspire them to make changes to their own homes! 

🌱Empowering (Not Pressuring) Your Guests

Guests want to feel welcomed, not judged. That’s why how you communicate sustainable practices matters just as much as what you do. Instead of telling guests what they must do, offer gentle, empowering suggestions:

“Before heading out, feel free to turn off lights and appliances to help us reduce emissions.”

A small sign on the back of the door works wonders. According to research from Booking.com, Accor, and the University of Surrey, guests respond better when they feel their actions are valued—not required. When you highlight what you’re already doing—and offer low-pressure ideas for what they can do—you’re helping create a collaborative, inspiring experience that many guests will remember and appreciate.

🌸Final Thoughts

The emissions created by global tourism are significant. But that also means the opportunity for impact is huge. We’re not just Hosts—we’re part of an industry that can show what sustainable travel really looks like.

In recent discussions at Sydney Climate Action Week, we talked about the need to move from awareness to action in tourism. Hosts around the world are already stepping up—and the feedback from guests has been encouraging. More and more travellers are not only noticing these efforts but choosing to stay at properties that take sustainability seriously.

You don’t need to do everything at once. Start with one or two changes that suit your home and context. Every action makes a difference—and together, we can shift the culture of tourism.

So whether you’re installing solar, swapping to heat pumps, choosing local goods, or offering guests helpful low-emission options, you’re helping reduce tourism emissions and shaping a better future.

Let’s keep learning, improving, and inspiring each other. One stay at a time.

Curious to learn more? Check out the full Nature Communications article and Tourism Emissions Project infographics to understand the big picture. This is the request for citation from the site I have referenced above. Sun, Y-Y., Faturay, F., Lenzen, M., Gössling, S. & Higham, J.E.S. (2024). Drivers of global tourism carbon emissions. Nat

[John5097]

@Felicity11 


My first Airbnb unit was inspired by energy efficiency. I didn't originally plan on having a short term rental. I had been using it as an office studio space, but it has a low ceiling with no insulation that really made it practically unusable during parts of the year.

I was originally planning to live back there myself and use it as an apartment unit when I was in town as I planned to live and work out of state. 

Then one day I decided it would just be too miserable in the drafty space with no insulation, and the only way to fix it would be to replace the ceiling. It would both totally transform the space from low ceilings to high ones, but the real reason was to add insulation. 




 At this point I discovered Airbnb and decided that would also be a good option.

Everyone laughed at me and said no one would stay and I was completely wasting my time and money.
 
One thing led to another. I went ahead and removed all the sheetrock just to be able to add new insulation, and new widows and doors, that way I could shoot foam all into the openings which is also essential. And added new gable fan to exhaust hot air from the attic area. 

Thankfully I added an additional wall between the two living spaces. This was also for sound insulation, as I didn't want to hear anyone. 

It was a slow process. Even replacing and rebuilding the entrance door took about a week. The old door stuck and I knew would be a problem. I also wanted all the casing to be treated wood so I wouldn't ever have to rebuild it again.

By this time I was already way over budget and stressing out, but had to maintain high standards, that all came back to it being efficient. I also used environmentally friendly products, which cost more but were also non toxic. Even the paint and flooring were expensive to do it right. 

In the end the unit was incredibly comfortable and efficient. Everything is durable as well and easy to clean. 

As its a guest apartment and I added more insulation to the rest of the house the utility bill had decreased. At most guest use an additional $25 a month in utilities. And it's sound proof, which is really nice, as I like to promote that's it very private and secluded. 

I even added a mini split ductless heat pump. It runs all the time but is so efficient that it didn't increase the bills at all. The overall utility bill is also very low. In fact I have friends renting a 2 bedroom condo that have unity bill 3x as much as both my entire house and rental unit,  and their condo is very uncomfortable and loud. 

I installed the mini split washing Youtube videos. It took a few days in the off season, but I like to do things right. 

Heat pumps are very efficient and the ductless puts heat or AC directly into the living space without any waste going through ducts. 








I'm glad you mentioned this because  I like to think back on what path I took for what I'm doing and if I hadn't decided to add insulation to the ceiling, and just do the extra work, and get on with it, I probably wouldn't have rented it out for STR. And if I had left it the way it was it wouldn't have been successful. 

But other host can do things like foam around windows, weatherstripping. And if you have a drafty widow or door that is causing problems, just go ahead and replace it, as the added benefits are worth it. 

Other things I do are provide all the info they need to get around once they are here. In my Guest Guide, I include a section called "Getting Around" which has all the options. 

 I'm just outside the historic district, so give suggestions on all the parking and transit options. I keep updating this to provide more detailed information.

For example once guest get to the historic district the can take the DASH which is a free shuttle service all around the main tourist area. I include instructions to download the Transit App. https://transitapp.com/

The shuttles are like Disney World and every 10 minutes can just hop on one and hop off in a new area to explore around. 




Also very detailed information on parking. I suggest where to park, from the most convenient but low cost to free. I also include where the closest public bathrooms, art walks, places to eat, etc. 

i do this because I want them to have a great trip but it also saves them time and they aren't driving around in circles looking for an empty parking place, or stuck in traffic, and more inclined to walk. 

So it's bridging all the different getting around options. 

I provide the exact rate range it cost to Uber in the listing description. As some guest prefer to fly and not have a rental.

Also accurate information on the distance to major attractions, start parks, the beach, county parks, etc. 

And how to avoid traffic. I include what times to  go to the beach. For example if they leave at 9:30 am, there won't be any traffic in the summer, but if they wait until 10 am they could be in traffic for an hour just to get to the beach, and then may not be any parking. I also include a parking pass. 

Yes and I do all of this and rarely interact with guest. The place is already well thought out. There are easy instructions for everything. 

I also have the space very comfortable when they check in. That's a biggie. It will cost more if they have to make adjust the temp, and the less they touch it the lower the bills and the less they will break it. 

In over 5 years, I've only sent guest one message a day after guest check in to see how they were doing, they didn't respond so I never sent another one. 

Some rave about the how detailed the guest guide is. 

Every other host I've seen always exaggerate the distance and time to get downtown and the beach. While I give exact distance and even more info on best times to travel.

Sometimes guest send an inquiry and want to know walking distance and I suggest they stay downtown. It's a noisy busy city if thats what they want. It will cost the exact same to Uber across the city as from my listing, as I know the other listings aren't as accurate so don't try and correct them. 

As it turns out guest don't really need me for anything as they already have everything they need. I also don't need to rant and rave about how unfair the rules are. I also communicate everything that could possibly be an issue, and keep everything as accurate as possible, which also makes it more efficient. I'd say my detailed instrucitons likely save at least 20% time and energy because they have a plan and not suck in traffic. 

Some things I can't control. Sometimes a guest will run the washer dryer non stop. Two people running 4-5 loads a day, so had to increase rates. 

So I will try and include some information about how the apartment is very efficient which also means it's more cost effective. (I have all 5 star reviews in every category) But not sure if that would encourage them to use the WD more or less? 

[Bhumika]

Hi @John5097 , thank you for sharing your journey of transforming your Airbnb unit. The pictures are a testament to all the hard work you've put in for your listing. Did you plan and design it all by yourself? 

It's impressive how you've turned a challenging space into a comfortable and efficient rental!

Best,

[John5097]

@Bhumika 

Yes thanks for asking. It was already a living space and I had my builder's license so knew what would need to happen to make it comfortable and functional, but I also hire sub contractors for some things and set expectations that I wan't it done right. I don't even mention I have a builders license to subs as I know they want to do it right and take pride in their work as they are a licensed professional, so its actually less expensive to just tell them to do it right, and just let me know if there's anything I can do, and I'll pay them as soon as its finished. 

[Felicity11]

Hi @John5097 

Thank you for reading my post and for your wonderful detailed response.  I love hearing about the journey you have been on to become a host and the lengths you went to in order to make your home so comfortable.  I agree there is a bit more work in the initial set up and building of the home but this goes on to make a more comfortable and energy efficient home which as you say costs a lot less to run.   I think there are many people who to not realise that the bit extra you spend in the set up can go on to make such a big impact in the comfort of your home and the costs to run and not to mention the health impact this can have.  

I love hearing more about what you have added to your guest book for guests to be able to get around your area so easily and the transport options.   This is wonderful inspiration for other hosts.  It does take a bit of time to set up but it can make such a difference to guests enjoyment when they stay with us. 

It is great to connect with you! 

[John5097]

@Felicity11 

Your post are always so inspiring!

Yes I agree it's all in how the space it originally set up. If the space if inefficient its also going to be uncomfortable.

I didn't even consider the heath aspects, but as it turned out people with allergies love my listing. Some have had extreme allergies. The real deal allergies, with medical names. The first one was a mom in town for surgery for her daughter. This was during the peak of covid. She could tell from the pictures that it might be right for them, as I had also mentioned zero mold or mildew in the listing. She requested non fragrant detergent and settled on Dr Bonners as I had some of that. I also asked about other stuff like cleaning products such as Lysol bathroom cleaner and that wasn't an issue. They said it was all perfect, and they retuned for follow up surgeries. Then the next one had really extreme allergies. After she arrived and called me in a panic and had forgotten to ask me if the mattress had any latex. I assured her not to panic and that we would work it out and not to worry. I looked up the mattress and as it turned out didn't have latex. It wasn't cheap either. I assured her all the paint was non VOC, and flooring was non VOC. That's not why I got it. I just liked the quality and don't skimp on some things. As it tuned out she was just so happy to have a place she could vacation. So after that I always try and help people with allergies. When they mention it, always sending an inquiry first, I share my experience with all the other previous guest with allergies. 

This all comes back to it being efficient and functional. There is no fooling guest if there is some musty odors, and for a lot of people it's hard to find a place they can even live inside.

Yes it's great connecting with you on your post. I think the whole thing is that guest can tell if a host is purposeful or not. That's probably a huge one as most guest are going to know if it's healthy or not. Even with hotels as well if an AC isn't maintained and guest sees any mold thats going to be a one star review. 

[Sally208]

In my view, single-night stays are incredibly wasteful — from sheets and towels to cleaning products, hot water, dryers, vacuums, and even cleaners' fuel. I chose Airbnb to live like a local, not to recreate a hotel. Maybe it's time we encourage minimum two-night stays to reduce the environmental impact and keep the spirit of local living alive.