Bay Gardens Resorts in St. Lucia continues to be recognized for its commitment to sustainable tourism, having passed its Green Globe recertification with flying colors.

The largest locally owned and operated resort group, with five properties in the north of the island, once again earned the Green Globe Gold member certification, awarded to members that have been certified for five consecutive years. 

This prestigious designation is only achieved when a member meets all requisite Green Globe criteria and has completed the independent and mandatory onsite audits.

Three of the resort group’s five properties carry this distinct global certification for sustainable tourism: Bay Gardens Beach Resort & Spa, Bay Gardens Hotel, and Bay Gardens Inn.

“We at Bay Gardens Resorts are well aware of the connections between environmental stewardship, climate consciousness, and proactivity for the health and welfare of our staff, our guests and our local community,” said Sanovnik Destang, executive director of the resort group.

He added that this holistic approach to the company’s operations is especially important during today’s COVID-19 pandemic as the management team continues to work tirelessly to keep its 350-member workforce off the breadline. 
“It’s most encouraging to be recognized so positively by Green Globe because such coordination requires a lot of focused training and nimble management from our teams,” he noted.

Guido Bauer, Green Globe’s CEO, said: “We are very impressed that this small and vibrant business group continues to prioritize the safeguarding of the local environment and demonstrates an exemplary commitment to supporting the people of St. Lucia.”

Bay Gardens Resorts, which has been recognized at national, regional and international levels for its commitment to environmental stewardship, has phased out the use of plastic in favor of biodegradable vessels and utensils made from wood, paper, compostable plastic and sugar cane bagasse. 

The company has also ended the use of all Expanded Polystyrene (Styrofoam) products at its properties. It has also embraced other ecological innovations such as installing GEM Link occupancy sensors in its guestrooms, leading to a 15 percent energy-use reduction per occupied room. 

Bay Gardens Resorts’ environmental efforts also include the conversion of air conditioning units to energy efficient inverter units, transitioning to LED lighting across its properties, and implementing a farm-to-table menu that reduces its total food mileage.

With St. Lucia’s reopening of its borders to travelers in June, Bay Gardens Resorts has introduced heightened health and safety protocols and standards at all of its properties in accordance with guidelines set by the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Tourism.  During the pandemic shutdown, Bay Gardens also premiered a completely reimagined website featuring new videos and virtual tours as well as a dedicated page, “Rest Assured with Paradise Protocols”, outlining its enhanced health and sanitization protocols.