Dana's Five For Fun - July

Cool eco- and econo-conscious freebies and travel sites.

1. RANK finds and ranks travel routes based on criteria such as price, travel time and CO2 emissions. Unlike other solutions that consider only one means of transport at a time, routeRANK integrates rail, road and air options and shows them in a single view on one screen.

2. Green Explorer, new travel site from Nokia, "Not to make money or attract users to Nokia phones, but because it is a good thing to do."

3. HomeLink USA, one of the few home exchange sites that has European homes for swap with US homes. I find other home exchange sites are top heavy with listings from the US. and listings are old, free, or copied from other sites. Reminder: the vacation homes mentioned on this site also consider swaps.

4. Free advice about Sedona from locavores, trail experts, and guides. Also, search this blog for "Sedona" or "hiking."

5. Free eBooks for summer reading.

Dana's 5 for Eco Summer Travel

1. Tyvec Papier Travel Bags. Light and 100% recyclable. saskia-diez.de

2. Los Poblanos, NM Lavender Shampoo & Conditioner. Delightful, pure and organic from the farm at Los Poblanos Inn.

3. Earth-friendly luggage on sale and travel bags with free shipping and return shipping.

4. Sedona's new farmers market at the airport parking lot, Fridays 8 AM - 12 PM.

5. Shared luxury. Fractional ownership in boats, boutique hotels, eco-destination clubs.

This blog is for bottom-up dispensers of cool who enjoy eco-travel deals and healthy living. We feel that "the small, the slow, the local, and the personal" will build the new economy. Your comments will help enrich this information for all of us. Please share your tips and experience.

Summer Savings on Holiday Homes & Vacation Rentals

1. Southern Arizona Day Trips.

2. Most Romantic Green Vacations.

3. Save up to 50% percent off vacation rentals. Sedona, Arizona healthy living vacation rental, $699 the last week of July. St. Augustine, Florida $85 a night in June. Some restrictions may apply.

4. Best place to host your blog or website about your healthy vacation home.

5. Big Green Lies. New TV show exploring common myths about eco-friendly practices such as cloth versus disposable diapers, hybrid versus traditional cars.

This blog is for bottom-up dispensers of cool who enjoy eco-travel deals and healthy living. We feel that "the small, the slow, the local, and the personal" will build the new economy. Your comments will help enrich this information for all of us. Please share your tips and experience.

Fresh Ideas For Summer Green Vacations

Most green travel tips focus on the destination, like my organic lifestyle vacation rentals. But how you get there and what you do on vacation may have a big impact. Get fresh answers fast in the The Union of Concerned Scientists, peer-reviewed report. Their analysis works with three key factors:

1. The type of vehicle you are taking to reach your travel destination;
2. The distance you are traveling; and
3. The number of people traveling with you.

My tips, "Forget Being Fanatic" has simple ways to protect your home while you're away and cut vacation costs to the planet and your pocket. It's available as a PDF at http://www.ecoluxurylodging.com/pdf/GreenVacationTipsJuly08.pdf

Hug It: Dana's Top Five

1. Leverage your impact with CarrotMob.com and their new ways of activism. In the first ever Carrotmob event, a liquor store agreed to invest in upgrades that made their store more energy-efficient. In exchange, hundreds of Carrotmobbers showed up at once to support the winning liquor store.

2. Win a Green Home from HGTV. Enter until June 5, 2009.

3. Research Shows Dancing Improves Health for Seniors.

4. For the birds. Check the Audubon's Climate Change Quiz and see if you can beat my score: 7 out of 8.

5. MACA urges O'Bama's to use pesticides in their organic garden because, among other reasons, "Americans don't have time to grow their own food."


This blog is for bottom-up dispensers of cool who enjoy eco-travel deals and healthy living. We feel that "the small, the slow, the local, and the personal" will build the new economy. Your comments will help enrich this information for all of us. Please share your tips and experience.

The "Ick Factor"

One of the hottest amenities in travel is hypoallergenic rooms. We've been offering them for years to guests with sensitivities, but also to people who don't want to be exposed to whatever bacteria and bugs came with the guy who slept there the night before.

In addition to being super-clean and free of dirt-holding carpeting and upholstered furniture, our self-catering holiday homes and vacation rentals are purified by steam-cleaning the floors and tile at 120 degrees, changing the anti-microbial HEPA air filters, no use of aerosol spray cleaners or fresheners, disinfecting with hydrogen peroxide, sun light and fresh air, and fragrance free cleaning. Mattresses and pillows have dust-mite covers and no VOC paints and finishes keep toxins out of the air. These methods also cut down on dust, pollen and other irritants.

As Practical Traveler, Michelle Higgens wrote in the NY Times, "This much cleanliness is a bit neurotic. But its not enough for hotels seeking health-conscious consumers to just offer organic food..." She also notes that most hotels offering these amenities charge a 5 to 10 percent premium.

Resources for pure vacationing:

Smoke-Free Hotels

Asthma and Allergy Foundation

Indoor Air Quality Association

Canadian Centre for Occupational and Health Safety

Special Offers at Smoke Free Hotels

Bloomin' Wonderful Resolutions-- Dana's Five W's

What's your green resolution? The holidays brought a sea of appliances, electronics, packaging, and gift cards into my relatives homes and left me awash with mild shock about how my world is filled with plastic--even if I do carry my own shopping bags and gave up trash bags in 1988. Noodling on how to take it easy on me and momma nature in 2009 produced five simple things I can do that have big impact. I sometimes need mnemonics to remember things, so these are my "Five W's."

1. Wallet. No lectures about spending on lattes, I'm talking about the 10 billion gift cards, library cards, ID cards, membership cards, and other PVC cards that add 75 million pounds of plastic to our waste stream every year. Inspired by the cashier at Home Depot who is collecting thousands of gift cards to be recycled at her register, along with a Starbucks employee who drops cards off by the bag full--in 2009, I’m going to ask businesses if they use Earthworks recycled cards. And I will recylce my used and expired cards by mailing them to Earthworks.

Send your PVC cards to:

Earthworks System, LLC33200 Bainbridge Road, Suite Esolon, OH 44139

2. Water. Yeah, you know about plastic water bottles filling the dumps and possibly leaching toxins into our bodies, so I'm not going to go over that again. I'm concerned about my water filtration system using plastic parts. By mid-year my water filtration supplier promises plastic-free water filtration products will be available and if his molds don't work, I intend to research ones that do.

3. Wash. Research cleaning with a steam cleaner. Judy Garbutt, co-owner of a green cleaning company in St. Augustine, cleans floors, tiles and tubs with a steamer. Eliminates mold, germs, and doesn't use toxic cleaners. She recommends the EuroFlex SC, available on Overstock.com for less than $100. Does it use more water than mopping? Add to electricity use? More research on the wonder cleaner forthcoming.

4. Wear. I'm going to save money and energy drying my clothes and linens using the clothes line more and the dryer less. It saves money on the second-biggest electricity using appliance in my home (frig is first) and cuts down on fabric softener (full of toxins and expensive!).

5. Worry Less. In 2008, I eliminated rental cars on my travels by ride sharing, walking, and using public transportation. It wasn't easy. I have lots of luggage. I'm usually on a tight schedule. I have the tendency to be overly responsible, which can create anxiety.

On a trip to attend a wedding, I borrowed my mother's hybrid and was terrified something would happen to it while I was driving. Not the mood I wanted to be in for celebrating nuptuals. On a trip to Sedona, the shuttle ride from Phoenix to Sedona added three hours to an already long drive. That wasn't easy on my back and I was car sick. But it was cool how many people were amazed that I didn't have a car. It seemed incomprehensible to people that a successful person would walk when they could drive. Americans love their cars.

This resolution is to make greening my travel less stressful this year than it was in 2008--worry-free. See if I'm able to come up with anything when I share my green travel resolutions in January.

Thoughtful Travel

"Traveling eco-friendly is not about giving up luxury, it's about traveling more thoughtfully," said actress and author Mariel Hemingway. "By travelling greener we not only enjoy this world's beautiful destinations, but also help preserve them for people to enjoy for years to come."

Traveling green doesn't have to cost more, staying in green vacation rentals can save you cash, protect your health, and reduce your impact on the environment. The long-term benefits of reducing your exposure to toxins from plastics and standard building materials can save you even more as health care costs rise.

Dana's Top Five Travel Ooohs and Aaahs

1. Don’t Go There, Top 10 Worst Travel Spots
2. Global Lost and Found, ever leave behind a phone, laptop, or MP#? This service helps you retrieve your electronics, a must have for world travelers.
3. Moon Struck, photo blog by Paul Rutowski (the striking photo above).
4. No more bottled water. Hyatt switched to filtered water in their restaurants.
5. First Tracks for Skiing! Taos goes green with 100% renewable electricity sources and more.

The Wheels Go ‘Round & ‘Round As The Footprint Goes Down, Down, Down

Guest blogger Terre Short has 24 years of hospitality management experience that includes the daily operations of five-star properties. Her current assignment is creating a new standard of eco-luxury at the sweeping Montana ranch, the Resort at Paws Up. The resort is on Andrew Harper's Top 20 List of US Hideaways and is in the registry of Preferred Boutique Hotels. Here's how the folks at Paws Up are working to green the resort.

This past summer, we began looking closely at our carbon “evil ways”at Paws Up Resort and we began to make adjustments. Perhaps the one that carried the biggest and unexpected punch was the purchase of a school bus.


We paid $5,000 for a bus in excellent shape and hired the most colorful and fun driver in all of Montana to transport employees and guests. From the very first day “Dale” made the bus fun, he had all 12 employees singing out the window as they pulled away from the Resort.

His ridership quickly grew to an average of 30 employees a day, though I suspect the singing waned and more iPods joined the commute. Dale picks up his riders in Missoula and drives them 35 miles to the Resort in Greenough–located in the heart of the Blackfoot Valley, Montana.

Not only do all of the riders save on gas, but we only pay $50 a day in diesel, plus Dale’s time and the collective footprint of the resort is reduced greatly. This is just one of many efforts the Resort is making to contribute to the “Greening of
Greenough.”

If you'd like to share a story of how you're greening your travel, lodging, or home, write to me--you can be a guest blogger on this site which gets as many as 1,000 readers a day.

Red Hot Rate Specials Coming in 2009

Staying at a knowledgeable friend’s house while on vacation can mean your hosts know the new restaurants and shops, let you whip up a quick meal in their kitchen and live in a quiet, attractive neighborhood well-off the tourist track. And best of all, they would leave you to your own devices and give you a key to the front door.

If you don’t have the benefit of a rich pal with a vacation home in your desired destination, that's what vacation rentals are for--if the owners dish out the inside scoop. Look for all the conveniences of home—fully equipped kitchens, with dishwashers and sufficient china and cutlery for all you plan to entertain (not a Spartan set of four bent forks and spindly knives). Also check for the comforts of housecleaning services, washing machines, and owners who provide backpacks, parkas, binoculars, or other gear for the local environs (like we do).

Our specials include insider information on our website, coupons and deals for local restaurants, adventures, and shops on this blog and on site in the vacation homes, and occasionally, when we have a cancellation, a rate special.

In 2009 returning guest will get a free service: a tour, massage, wilderness guide, or session with a healer.

We'll also post deals at other vacation rentals with a commitment to the local culture, economy, and environment PLUS fab healthy homes for sale so you can make your own vacation rental property. Buy low! Join the $240 billion dollar vacation rental industry! Or just get inspired to green your own home or redecorate with health supporting materials.

Wandering But Not Lost

More highlights from the Green Biz Conference with Seth Goldman (Honest Tea), Van Jones (The Green Collar Economy), Paul Ray (Cultural Creatives), The Ruckus Society, Better World Books, and Roxanne Quimby (Burt's Bees):

-Coming soon to this blog, guest bloggers from the conference like Eric Aragon, left (that's me, far right), and other bloggers offering savings at nurturing camps, resorts and vacation rentals plus advice on greenovating your home.

-Forget "green," consumers want the focus on "me" AND "we." As in, save my money AND the planet--protect my health AND mother earth's. Green is a cause many consumers don't identify with, but "responsibility" is what they want from businesses, products and services. Source: Joel Makower's latest research, Green World Media, Inc.

The Best Things In Life Are Free

Going green can help you save--on health care costs, fuel bills, tuition, and admission fees. There's something free for everyone--indoors for culture vultures and outdoors for the more adventurous.

Top 10 Free US Attractions

1. Bellagio Fountains, Las Vegas, Nevada
2. Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia
3. Waimea Canyon, Waimea, Hawaii
4. Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California
5. Angel's Landing, Zion Park, Utah
6. USS Arizona Memorial, Honolulu, Hawaii
7. Pacific Coast Highway, Route 1, California
8. US Holocaust Museum, Washington, DC
9. Freedom Trail, Boston, Massachusetts
10. Central Park, NY City

If you bank with Bank of America your sheck or debit card gets you into 70 museums free of charge. Details at the Bank of America Museums on Us website.

Even the Ivory Towers have opened up and gone green. Try any one of the 2,000 free courses online from MIT. Daredevil, Walter Lewin is an Internet legend for using stunts to demonstrate the laws of physics. Yale, Notre Dame and Berkley offer freebies from Psychology to Nutrition.

What freebies do you like for going green?

Support Walking, Biking

Walk Score needs your help to create more walkable neighborhoods. Please sign the petition to support walking, biking, and transit--the 2009 Transportation Bill

The 2009 Transportation Bill is a once-in-a-decade opportunity. Walk Score will hand-deliver the list of supporters to Congress on foot, on bike, on bus, and on subway.

Is Green Travel Disappearing?

Will travelers be looking for green lodging given our global financial woes?

The shrinking economy has some saying green was just a fad we can no longer afford. Travel writer, Paul Mansfield of Telegraph Media says, "It would be nice to think that the economic shock will usher in a period of sustainable travel. But my bet is that green will suddenly no longer be fashionable, as people demand the right to spend their limited money as they wish. Expect the term "green" to disappear overnight from many brochures.

And business travelers may be quick to abandon sustainable practices. Commenting on the results of a recent Business Travel World survey which shows a whopping 76% of CFOs plan to cut travel, editor in chief, Betty Low, said: “’Green’ initiatives seem to be disappearing from the corporate landscape as quickly as they arrived. Only last year companies were at pains to publicise their environmental policies which could include anything from using environmentally friendly taxi companies to sustainable sourcing. Since the onset of the credit crunch, however, many of those same companies are becoming increasingly concerned about their own sustainability and consequently such policies seem to have moved down the agenda.”

But TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel community, recently announced contradicting findings. The results of its annual travel trends survey of more than 3,000 U.S. travelers show travelers appear to be going lean and green by visiting national parks, hiking, and engaging in adventure activities. A greater amount of Americans said they will be environmentally conscious in their travel decisions in 2009, and more plan to visit eco-friendly hotels in the coming year.

The green trend may be evident in their choice of transportation -- 22 percent said they'll go biking while on vacation this year, compared to 13 percent, last year. Forty-seven percent of travelers plan to go hiking this year, up from 43 percent, last year. Read more about the TripAdvisor survey results…

Readers of this blog also contradict that green is vanishing. They still plan to travel green according to the survey we ran in October. The majority, 91.8 percent said that all other things being equal, they would make the socially responsible choice or "go green even in tough times."

And being green is still what Eco Luxury prospects and guests report is the best feature of our properties. Findings indicate a need to clarify that when we say "luxury," we mean taking it easy, not stuff. But otherwise, respondents say going green hasn't vanished in a haze of economic self-preservation. In fact, taking care of the planet may be the very path to take to care for ourselves.

Secret Florida: Laid Back Luxury and Romance

If you think Florida is all golf courses and palm trees, you haven’t explored St. Augustine. While I have been known to poke fun at Florida, I can’t get enough of “The Old City.” Whether you love romance or adventure, you need look no further than this playground. Just a short drive from Orlando or Jacksonville airports, it sits on a sound where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Matanzas at two inlets.

For the big picture view of how the city is laid out and a taste of the natural wonder, start off with a sunset cruise with sweeping city and harbor views from the Schooner--Freedom--a 72-foot tall ship. Departs from the City Marina next to the Bridge of Lions. Or for more exercise, walk up the 219 stairs at the St. Augustine Lighthouse for views you’ll never forget. Beats a Stairmaster any day.

St. Augustine was founded in 1565, long before Jamestown, the English colony in Virginia and 55 years before Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock. One of it’s many claims to fame is it is the oldest European settlement in North America. Of course the Hopis were here long before the Spanish. With no cars allowed on some of the historic streets, the town is a walker's dream, full of quaint nooks and crannies to explore, quirky museums, unique shops, and art galleries with everything from Dr. Suess to work by local artists.

You can paddle 20 different runs to Anastasia Park or Crescent Beach from the Matanzas River where you can kayak or canoe alongside dolphin and manatee while bird watching, fishing or just reconnecting with yourself and the natural beauty.

Bald eagles nest from October to March and wright whales can be seen blowing as mothers and calves migrate from colder waters. Or catch Sea Monsters, a new film from National Geographic at the World Golf Hall of Fame and IMAX Theater.

New restaurants mean even world-traveling foodies can make mouth-watering discoveries and lasting memories. One such spot opened this summer. Fifth generation Chef Jean Stephane Poinard moved from the famed culinary region of Lyon with his charming, wine-making wife, Valerie, their children, and their sous chef to open Bistro de Leon. The name is a clever nod to the culture-combo. And when you're ready to recover from indulging in their baked goods and sauces, the revitalizing food of Present Moment Café offers an creative counterpoint across the tracks on King Street.

95 Cordova is an elegant spot to hit for a late dessert and quiet jazz. Don’t be afraid to wander in dressed in your touring clothes. Located in the Casa Monica Hotel where guests stroll through in everything from wedding attire to shorts, the gracious servers treat you the same in a business suit as in your coverup and bathing suit.

For a few laughs and an entertaining spin on accurate history, end another evening with a trip on Ripley's Ghost Tour. While many guides offer ghost outings, Ripley's includes a camera, an EMF meter and a spooky trip into the Ripley Museum after hours. You'll also find professionally trained guides give more fact than mythology with Ripleys. Believe it or not.

The St. Augustine Wild Reserve offers tours for small groups to see their rescued exotic pets, mostly big cats that didn't make Siegfried and Roy or other Hollywood pussycats.
See the EcoLuxury website for links to all the sites mentioned, suggestions for when to go, and how to save money. Caution: you’ll find no listings for tourist joints where you might overpay for the view and mediocre food. We figure you can find those on billboards and in hotel lobby brochures. We don’t get paid for advertising, we do it as a courtesy to our vacation rental guests.

Hit The Hay

Sleeping in a barn on hay, a new way to travel cheap and eco. Or is it? Read more...

Eco-Friendly And Recession Ready

Here's some link love from the newsphere and blogshere on saving green, yours and Mother Nature's:

Making a Home Greener, Healthier, and a $$ Saver

Save money on doctor bills, make your home healthier. Green Bedrooms Help Allergy Suffers

Tax Breaks for Going Green

Five Ways to Green Your House for Under $100 (And save money!)

Cut back on pesticides and irrigation and save big. Green Your Landscaping for Less

Save money and cut waste on vacation.

Travel Green Without Sacrificing Style Tips

Recession-proof travel tips: find cheap gas on the road, booking tips and more.

Take a Short Survey, Win a Mini-Vacation

Can I get your opinion? Answer my brief survey about travel and enter to win a DVD here. I'll enter you in a drawing to win a copy of a newly released film by Emmy Award winning director, Jan Nickman called Living Temples which takes you on a journey to feel nature's beauty and the importance it plays in our lives. Order your own from ThirdPlanetProductions.com.

The survey is at this link http://survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07e2duq03ffmjwefyl/start

Slowly But Surely Green?

American Airlines plans to acquire 42 new Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. This shows me the power of the consumer. It's actually a big deal because Boeing designed the 787 Dreamliner from the passenger perspective, thinking that people will book travel based on the plane.

I realize many of you won't fly anymore because it isn't green. But many of us have to fly to see ailing family or conduct business. If you have to, it's good to go as green as you can and as comfortable as this Dreamliner with improved air and water purification systems, as well as new humidification techniques and lower cabin pressure, which are expected to reduce passenger fatigue.

For the environment, the 787 advanced engine design provides a quieter operation, with an expected noise footprint 60 percent smaller than other aircraft of similar size, benefiting those in the air as well as those on the ground. The plane's lower overall weight and improved design means we also will reduce our impact on the environment by burning less fuel. The 787 aircraft also has the largest overhead bins in the industry – approximately 30 percent larger than comparable aircraft bins. The large 19-inch windows are designed to make the cabin feel more spacious.