Sustainable holiday rentals are becoming increasingly important as more guests look for eco friendly places to stay.
For property owners, sustainability is not just about the environment. It can reduce running costs, attract higher value guests, and justify premium rates.
This guide explains why sustainable holiday rentals matter and how owners can benefit from them.
Increasing Demand For Eco-friendly travel and accommodation
When we conducted a quick review of UK search demand, keywords related to eco friendly holiday accommodation and sustainable stays generated over 2000 monthly searches.
This does not even include more specific searches for particular destinations, eco lodges, or holiday rentals with features such as EV charging stations, which suggests the real demand is much higher.
Industry research supports this trend. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council sustainable travel report, travellers increasingly want sustainable options, although price still plays a major role in decision making.
Booking.com research also shows that 76 percent of travellers want to travel more sustainably over the next 12 months.
This growing interest shows that eco friendly accommodation is no longer a niche preference. It is becoming an expectation, creating a clear opportunity for holiday rental owners who want to attract more environmentally conscious guests.
Low Search Demand For Making Holiday Rentals More Sustainable
While demand for eco friendly travel is clearly rising, search demand from hosts looking to make their properties more sustainable remains very low. When we reviewed UK keyword data at Smooth Rentals, we found almost no meaningful search volume for terms related to making a holiday rental more eco friendly or improving sustainability practices.
This gap suggests that many property owners are not yet actively researching or prioritising sustainability, even though guests increasingly expect it. In practical terms, this creates an opportunity for early adopters.
The good news is that this allows holiday rental owners to enter a growing niche with far less competition. By introducing visible eco friendly features now and communicating them clearly in listings and marketing, you can position your property as a strong sustainable option while demand continues to increase in the coming years.
Less competition today means greater visibility, stronger differentiation, and a better chance of attracting environmentally conscious guests before sustainability becomes a standard expectation across the market.
Going Sustainable Reduces Your Energy Bills
Sustainability upgrades can also reduce your running costs. Many changes that make a holiday rental more eco friendly, such as improved insulation, efficient heating systems, and renewable energy, directly lower energy use.
Real world examples show how significant the savings can be. For example, modern energy efficient holiday lodges using heat pumps and solar power have reported annual energy costs of around £408, with potential to drop to about £102 when solar generation is fully used.
For holiday rental owners, this shows that going sustainable is not just good for the environment. It can also deliver long term savings on energy bills.
Sustainable Holiday Rentals Can Charge Premium Rates
If you make your holiday rental eco friendly and offer features such as EV charging, you have a clear justification to charge higher rates. Research shows that many travellers are willing to pay more for sustainable accommodation.
For example, a peer reviewed study on willingness to pay for sustainable tourism found that eco conscious travellers are willing to pay around a 5 percent price premium to stay in environmentally friendly accommodation.
This reflects a wider trend. Guests with strong interests, such as green travel, are typically more engaged and more loyal. By appealing to a niche audience with clear values, holiday rental owners can justify premium pricing, attract repeat guests, and build stronger long term demand.
Sustainability Certification
Sustainability certification helps prove that your eco friendly claims are real. Instead of simply saying your property is green, certification shows that your practices have been independently verified against recognised standards. This builds trust with guests and helps avoid concerns around greenwashing.
One of the main certifications designed specifically for holiday rentals is Sustonica
. It is the first sustainability standard created for short term rentals and focuses on areas such as energy conservation, waste reduction, water use, and supporting local communities.
The certification is also recognised by major booking platforms. Properties validated by Sustonica can appear in Booking.com’s Travel Sustainable filter and gain higher visibility, which can help increase bookings.
More broadly, certification can deliver real business benefits. Research shows eco certified accommodation has seen booking increases of around 9 percent after being highlighted in sustainability filters.
At Smooth Rentals, we are partnered with Sustonica and can help holiday rental owners understand whether their property qualifies and how to get certified. We also provide an exclusive discount code for clients interested in the certification process, so get in touch with us if you would like to learn more.
Making Renewable Energy Claims Easy To Verify
Many holiday rental owners assume that proving renewable energy use requires complex installations, major upgrades, or switching energy providers. In reality, it can be much simpler.
New solutions now allow property owners to demonstrate renewable energy use without physical changes to the property. For example, services such as Zero Labs provide renewable energy certificates that match a property’s actual electricity consumption. These can be set up quickly and do not require changing suppliers or installing new equipment.
This type of approach works by automatically tracking energy usage and generating verified proof that renewable energy has been purchased to match consumption. Property managers can then share this evidence with guests through simple tools such as QR codes, helping demonstrate genuine sustainability rather than making unverified claims.
It can also support sustainability certification. Verified energy data can strengthen applications for programmes such as Sustonica and help justify higher pricing, as guests increasingly value clear proof of environmental responsibility.
