We live in the South Island of New Zealand. We have an off-grid farmstay in Hokitika. We are not connected to any power grid at all. We generate all our own power from solar panels. We collect all our own rainwater for drinking, washing etc. We use a woodburner to heat our home.
We try to make a big deal about us being an "eco-farm" but we still occasionally get guests that are shocked we are on solar power only. It is in our title and all over our listing but some haven't read a word.
Our farm produces beef, lamb, pork, eggs and fruit & vegetables. We are able to share the fruit and veg with guests but sadly it isn't legal for us to offer them any of our meat. We offer home baking, home made muesli + yogurt for breakfast along with fruit we have grown. We also have our own beehives so we can offer honey as well.
We aren't totally self sufficient and don't believe we ever will be. We still have to buy loads of consumables like oil, flour etc. The majority of guests love what we offer and enjoy the chance to stay here and experience staying in an off-grid home. Some are upset that we don't have a microwave or hairdryers but they tend to the ones who are usually upset about something all the time. 🙂
We have great, fast wifi which surprises some as they thought we would be quite "basic". Some think they won't be able to charge their phones or have electric lights. Of course it is all explained in our listing as clearly as possible - but we know guests don't read.
After we had 2 destructive cyclones in two weeks last year that totally smashed our pine plantation, we have begun to restore our forrest. We now put $10 from each guest's booking towards the planting of a native NZ tree. Guests can offset a bit of their carbon footprint from their travel here by planting a tree. Not all guests are interested or concerned about this at all but we have had some positive feedback.
We will keep trying to improve and offer our guests a great experience. It would be great if we are able to add something to our listing on Airbnb that indicates we are a "green" property. I don't know how it would work or what the criteria should be. I do know that it shouldn't ever be anything a guest can rate us on. They already have no idea how the ratings works for the most basic concepts of Location and Value . Many of our guests are utterly confused about what being "green" and eco-friendly means let alone understanding being off-grid and sustainable, but it is clear that they are interested in learning more and seeking out properties like ours.