Sustainability
Original Sokos Hotel Wiklund Turku towards sustainable tourism!
Original Sokos Hotel Wiklund Turku towards sustainable tourism!
- Original Sokos Hotel Wiklund in Turku has been awarded the Green Key and Sustainable Travel Finland (STF) environmental certifications.
The Green Key certificate and Sustainable Travel Finland (STF) environmental certification guarantee that the hotel will support sustainable tourism through its operations and is committed to developing its activities for the benefit of the environment in the future.
Hotels and other accommodation facilities that have received the Green Key certificate and STF certification are committed to considering environmental well-being in their operations. Their daily environmental work includes economical energy and water consumption, waste reduction and recycling, offering local, vegetarian and organic products, using environmentally certified detergents and cleaning agents as well as papers, and enabling ecological mobility for customers.
"Receiving the Green Key certificate and STF certification for Original Sokos Hotel Wiklund means a lot to both staff and customers. It motivates and activates us in everything we do related to active environmental work. We are committed to reducing waste, improving energy and water consumption, and increasing environmental awareness. For customers, one of the criteria for choosing a hotel today is the hotel's responsibility, and we want to be actively involved in reducing our carbon footprint," says Hotel Manager Tarja Toivonen.
Did you know?
Some hotel rooms have solar protection films that reduce the need for cooling by almost 50% per room. The estimated savings in electricity used for cooling is 10 MWh/year.
Our hotel uses 100% renewable district heating, which allows us to zero our emissions for heating energy. The hotel's electricity is also produced with 100% renewable energy.
Most of the carbon footprint of hotel accommodation comes from breakfast. Food waste is a big problem, and in Finland, restaurants produce up to 61 million kilograms of food waste. When eating from a buffet, remember that you can always get more. You can also reduce your carbon footprint by choosing vegetarian, vegan and organic products. We monitor the amount of food waste and continuously strive to reduce it through our operations.
What sustainability actions do we take?
*Due to our central location, we encourage customers and staff to arrive by public transport, and during their visit, many places can be reached on foot or by using the hotel's loaner bikes!
*We continuously strive to reduce paper consumption. Would you like to receive your receipt by email instead of paper? Checking in with IPA also helps save paper! (More about IPA here>>)
*We sort waste. The hotel's 3rd floor Co-work space also has a recycling point for customers!
*We save energy, e.g., our Wihta sauna is heated only 4 hours/day
*We save water by adjusting water flow in rooms and common areas.
*At breakfast, we serve warm sandwiches made from the previous day's leftovers
*At breakfast, there's also a leftover sausage buffet for pets! (if sausages are left from the previous breakfast)
*The restaurant menu also offers vegetarian and vegan food options.
*We use environmentally certified cleaning products for room cleaning. We also don't automatically clean the rooms of longer-staying guests daily; our guests can determine their cleaning needs themselves.
*We also encourage children to travel responsibly by giving them Onni Orava's environmental passport at check-in.
*We highlight locality and are a Heartfelt Finnish hotel in the heart of Turku!
*In autumn 2024, we received the Booking.com Travel Proud certification, which required diversity training organized by Seta Ry. We are a safe, equal, and fair operator, and we want everyone to feel welcome and safe when visiting us.
*From late 2024, our hotel will also use a mobile key
Sustainability goals for 2026:
*Enhancing and enabling recycling
*Staff switched to using reusable mugs in 2025, now we're spreading the message to customers
*Reducing waste
*Making locality more visible
*Digital newspapers instead of paper ones
Read more about the Green Key Certificate >>
Read more about Sokos Hotels' responsibility >>
How can you make a difference?
*Arrive by public transport or leave your car in the parking garage during your stay. Everything is close by!
*Request room cleaning only when really necessary. You can ask for just emptying the trash if you feel your towels are still usable.
*Avoid using disposable dishes.
*Recycle! There are sorting instructions in the rooms, but if you need more comprehensive recycling options, check out the sorting station in the 3rd floor Co-work space. The reception can also recycle waste for you if you can't find a suitable container.
*Only take as much food on your plate as you can eat. You can always get more! The amount of plate waste at hotel breakfasts is enormous. Some of our locations already use bio-scales.
Read more here >>
*Drink tap water! In Finland, we can enjoy clean and fresh tap water, so please avoid buying bottled water.
*By choosing a Green Key certified hotel, you support sustainable tourism. You can also leave us feedback if you noticed areas for improvement or have good ideas for increasing sustainability! (wiklund.turku@sokoshotels.fi)
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