Why This is Green

A fluffy new towel when you step out of the shower or bath is lovely, especially when traveling. But when you consider the water, energy, and detergent used, you’ll want do as you do at home: reuse your towel for your entire stay.

Your reuse saves hotels a considerable amount of cash. Let’s face it, they’re not just putting those please reuse signs in their bathrooms solely for the environment. While it’s hard to calculate how much money and water a property saves--each one has a distinct number of guests rooms, varying occupancy and guest willingness, as well as different washers and dryers--the Alliance for Water Efficiency estimates a hotel with 250 rooms at 80 percent occupancy could save up to $66,000 and 220,000 gallons of water per year with a towel/linen reuse program.

Considerable energy is saved, too; 90 percent of the energy use associated with doing a load of laundry is just heating that water to hot. More energy is used to run the dryer. In addition, conventional detergents as well as chlorine bleach can have considerable environmental impact. Towel reuse also reduces labor costs.

Learn More

• The Washington Post: Go Green One Towel At A Time
• American Public University System Sustainability Committee: How Much Water Is Saved By Reusing Hotel Towels And Linens?
• PsychologicalScience.org: Don't Throw In The Towel--Use Social Influence Research
• Alliance For Water Efficiency: Hotels And Motels
• EnvironmentallyFriendlyHotels.com: Towel Reuse Program