“Donostia Green Destination” was created as a symbol to bring together, give visibility to, and promote all initiatives related to environmental, social, and cultural sustainability carried out in the city.

The goal is to promote a more sustainable city and tourism, and to encourage visitors to experience the city in a sustainable and respectful way, by providing them with a variety of plans, activities, initiatives, and practical advice.

This initiative also includes good practices and environmental programmes from public administrations, as well as internationally recognised certifications.
The “Donostia Green Destination” symbol or logo helps identify all the sustainable places, actions, services, infrastructures, and plans that you can find on our website.

An ecological or environmental certification is an accreditation granted by an assessment body that certifies that certain products, services, processes, or management systems have been carried out in an environmentally friendly manner and, where applicable, in accordance with the relevant environmental regulations.

These certifications, in addition to helping improve environmental performance, allow stakeholders (customers, the local community, staff, suppliers, shareholders, etc.) to verify that tourism services comply with the environmental requirements demanded by each of these certifications.

The most widely used environmental certifications in the tourism sector, all of them voluntary, are the following:

Through strict criteria focused on the main environmental impacts of services, the EU Ecolabel ensures that tourist accommodations bearing this label rank among the best on the market in terms of environmental performance.

Specifically, the label guarantees:
• Optimised environmental management of the tourist accommodation.
• Reduction of CO2 emissions and energy consumption.
• Lower water consumption.
• Reduced use of chemical substances.
• Less waste generation and improved waste management.
• Fewer emissions from transport.
• Limitation of food waste.

This certification is based on the principles of sustainability and, in addition to environmental criteria, it also includes economic and socio-cultural aspects related to the local community where the hotel is located.

Through this certification, tourism is aligned with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), using the analysis and indicators of the UNWTO, the Global Compact, EU indicators, and the criteria of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC).