by Tao Oliveto, Brattleboro, VT

We stayed at the historic Latchis Hotel, circa 1938, now a preserved memorial building on Main Street in Brattleboro. The original lead-paned windows still open - something now rare in most hotels - there is no A/C and the heat still comes from radiators. The stairwells are welcoming, with natural light and I noticed most guests used the stairs to the 3 floors of rooms. There is no parking garage or large, new lot, or luxuriously furnished lobby, just a straightforward comfort and friendliness.

If you do want to be impressed by style, however, visit the original Latchis “theatre” next store - now a movie house. Detmetrius Latchis had the walls painted with the images and scenes of the Greek gods, like Jupiter welcoming Psyche, the temple of Zeus and Colona with her children, Apollo and Diana. There are also statues - one of Thalia, the Muse of Comedy and Cleo, the muse of History. The ceiling is sky blue with stars and the twelve signs of the zodiac.

Staying in the heart of a city allows you to sightsee car-free and I chose this place because it’s one way to support local business (and history!) while traveling. The rooms are simple - just a few pieces of maple furniture, including a wooden bed frame. The rooms also feature consigned art by local artists.

The Latchis is participating in the Project Green, which asks guests to save resources by reusing linens. This is not so impressive, however, when you consider all the other ways we can consume less during hotel stays. Here’s my list - feel free to add on.

1. Bring your own toiletries, rather than using the small bottles and tubes provided, which will be thrown away and replaced after each use. I travel with a small shampoo/body bar, which is wrapped only in paper and can be carried with you while flying.
2. Use one towel for everything, rather than using bath mats/handtowels.
3. Skip room service during your stay, eliminating more water, energy, detergent use.
4. Use your own drinking mug and water bottle.
5. Use the stairs instead of elevator.
6. Use one trash can - rather than the two usually provided - and you will keep more plastic out of landfill.
7. Open windows instead of A/C. Turn heat off when you leave your room.

8. Ask your host where you can recycle items. If it’s not available, bring home any paper, newspaper to recycle at home.

Tags: business, green, travel

This entry was posted on Monday, April 28th, 2008 at 3:21 pm and is filed under Green Misc., Living Local, Voluntary Simplicity. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.