Visit Finland has awarded Solo Sokos Hotel Lahden Seurahuone the Sustainable Travel Finland label. The companies that have received this label meet the criteria created by Visit Finland, an organisation promoting tourism, which take into account financial, ecological, social and cultural sustainability alike.

Seurahuone is the first operator in the Lahti region to receive the Sustainable Travel Finland label.

“We welcome the recognition with great joy and pride, and we will continue our valuable work for sustainable tourism with even greater enthusiasm,” says hotel manager Marika Haavisto.

For a traditional and widely known hotel in Lahti, responsible operation does not mean empty promises, but acts of sustainability are redeemed and made visible in everyday life – for example, in the following ways:

• In addition to the most recent recognition, Seurahuone has the Green Key certificate, the implementation of which is monitored annually by external auditors.
• “Paperless” is the word of the day, so unnecessary printing is avoided. For example, orders are not printed for the kitchen of Seurahuone’s restaurant Trattoria, but they are sent by email to the chefs, who view the orders on a tablet.
• Seurahuone’s heating, water and energy consumption are closely monitored. In addition, the hotel premises have motion sensor-controlled lights and LED lighting.
• The use of plastic straws has been greatly reduced at the hotel. All the straws used are ecological.
• Seurahuone does not prepare food from fish species classified as endangered. Beef consumption has been drastically reduced, and vegetarian options have been added to menus and other catering. Conference catering is planned using seasonal produce, and there is close cooperation with local producers.
• Waterflow and consumption are monitored regularly. All the hotel’s wastewater is cleaned, and there are solar collectors on Seurahuone’s roof that are used to heat some of the hot water.

The voice of our own staff is heard

The Lahden Seurahuone staff plays a key role in the hotel’s sustainability work.

“Our hotel pays attention to sustainability in many different ways, and each of our employees has the opportunity to play their own part. For example, our staff discusses recycling and sorting in our work community’s in-house social media. We can thus share our know-how with each other. Involving employees in our hotel’s sustainability programme is one of the key issues,” says Marika Haavisto.

Lahden Seurahuone’s future goals include significantly reducing food waste, improving sorting efficiency, reducing the carbon footprint and maintaining high levels of job satisfaction.

Everyone who works or visits Solo Sokos Hotel Lahden Seurahuone is responsible for their environment and promoting sustainable development. Together we are more.