ECOCLUB, Issue 90
11
experience. Thirdly, it would take me a lot of time and cost a lot of money for the company. Instead I ask to visit most of the
places possible to visit, meet the guides and see the stables, the kitchen, the supplying companies and partners and so on, to get a
good view of the whole operation. This also gives me a chance to evaluate what the people involved are like, what they know,
the degree of organisation, the general feeling and many of the “soft” values that are hard to measure. After all this is done, the
application is briefed and any questions are straightened out.
The examinations are always very interesting, most of the time wonderfully exciting because of the people I meet, the places we
go and the nature of the job. It is also quite a handful to get all the viewpoints I need, ask all the questions that need to be asked
and get it all summed up in a comprehensible fashion so that I can dig into once the visit is over, especially if I am alone. After a
visit, everything is summarised in a report following a standard format, reference persons are contacted, further information is
requested and minor faults in the application corrected. The report, together with a recommendation as to whether they should
be approved, postponed or disapproved, is sent to the labelling committee. One of the sometimes two examiners is called to the
committee’s meeting, reporting on each case and the committee then makes their decision. An approval leads to an award
ceremony held at a national tourism convention, often causing quite a positive stir with the media and travel agencies waiting to
welcome the approved new members of Sweden’s top team in ecotourism.
Experiences and Conclusions from an examiner
Nature’s Best® labelling system has grown out of the urge to develop Swedish nature-based tourism into high quality
ecotourism, the drive to better market existing products and the will to use the natural resources in a sustainable but
commercial way. The system has grown to be a force in development, adjusting to reality whilst adjusting itself to the society
around it. In 2005-2006 the criteria were revised and the approved companies had to sign the new documents, ensuring once
again they would keep the standards of the system.
In a quality system such as Nature’s Best® there are difficulties and unclear passages that need to be tried to show if they
stand the test. Measuring soft values, the economic balance between absolute scrutiny and testimonial insurance and the
troublesome fact that commercial enterprises and their products change, are factors that make even the most precise
examination uncertain and liable to unforeseen surprises. Happily, and thanks to an honest tourism industry and hard
working staff, Nature’s Best® has had few negative incidents even within the expected, and virtually none where the system
has failed. Surely, these are yet to come. But if things progress as they have been doing so far, we will have positive tourism
development in the future as well, with Nature’s Best® as a tool. Whether this ecolabel directly sells more tourism products,
creates a sustainable living from nature resources in rural areas or makes Sweden more attractive in the long term remains to be
shown, but so far it has made a difference. As of today about 75 companies are Nature Best® approved with more than 250
ECO LIBRARY:
Lodging Design and Facilities Management
by Tod Comen*
Excerpt from: Integrated Rural Tourism: Weaving Low Impact Tourism into the Economic Fabric of Rural Communities.
Todd Comen. Middlesex VT, USA: The Institute for Integrated Rural Tourism, 2006. Pp. 169.
Reproduced by kind permission of the author.
Properly designing and managing a lodging facility is important for two main reasons. First, the lodging facility is the core asset
of the business owner. Second, accommodations are the foundation business for developing an overnight destination. The
purpose of this module is to encourage accommodation owners and staff to develop systems for managing their facilities and to
consider how the design of their facility has an impact on guests, staff, and profitability.
Purpose of Module
1. To introduce participants to the importance of well designed and constructed accommodations facilities.
2. To introduce participants to some tools that will assist in efficiently and effectively managing the lodging facility.
Learning Goals
1. Participants will learn how effective design influences the visitor experience during the occupancy stage of the visitor cycle.
2. Following this workshop, participants will know how to create and utilize a frequency chart for housekeeping and
maintenance functions.
3. Participants will learn how space in a lodging facility should be allocated to satisfy guest expectations.
Introduction
In this module, participants will learn the importance of lodging design and structured maintenance activities. The lodging
facility is the main asset of the business owner. The facility represents a major investment of time and money for the owner. As
the asset increases in value with a successful business, the importance of maintaining the property in good condition becomes
ever more important. The owner of the property may, in the long run, consider selling the asset. The selling price will be higher
if the building is in good shape and the interior aspects are in good working order. During the operational lifetime of a lodge,
