Epitomising our unique brand of hospitality with heart, Columbia Beach Resort continues to forge ahead with powerful and empowering initiatives tasked with safeguarding our sublime surroundings.
Badge of Honour
Every year, Columbia Beach Resort’s team actively seeks out opportunities to engage in socially and environmentally mindful pursuits, and we have been honoured with a collection of prestigious recognitions to this end, including being bestowed a Green Key Award (an international eco-label for tourism facilities that display high-standard compliance with a strict set of criteria, spanning environmental management, and water and energy efficiency, to green activities and corporate social responsibility), as well as being welcomed into Small Luxury Hotels’ (SLH) founding ‘Considerate Collection’, a bespoke community of 26 hotels, which go the extra ‘eco-mile’ in proving that luxury is compatible with longevity.
Indeed, now, more than ever, it is not a choice or a luxury to act upon the footprints of our operations to neutralise their impact: it is a necessity and a badge of honour we wear proudly in leading by example that when there is a will, there is also, indeed, a way.
And, so, we have continued to forge our road forward into a future uncompromising in its need for social and environmental awareness and action, investing ourselves wholeheartedly upon a journey of sustainability, with many significant steps taken over the last 12 months to this end.
Seeking Solutions
The resort now operates ‘off grid’ in terms of water consumption following the installation of a 3rd degree treatment facility that sees every drop of wastewater recycled for use on its lush 33,000 square meters of landscaped gardens. Excess treated water is supplied to local farmers and in times of natural water scarcity, the resort will turn to its desalination plant to ensure guest needs are met. Water saving devices are also established throughout the resort and include auto-stop taps and 2-phase flush toilets.
Moreover, given the resort’s stunning backdrop of Pissouri Bay, we are particularly mindful of the detrimental effect of plastic pollution on the earth’s waters and the associated impact this has on marine wildlife. Thus, we are proud to have pursued a partnership with Mina Water, a pioneering business that provides drinking water encased in fully recyclable packaging.
Eco-friendly products (such as chlorine-free cleaning chemicals and products derived from renewable resources) have long been utilised across the resort, and Columbia Beach Resort is now operating with zero CO2 emissions, thanks to the employment of sustainable alternatives to a traditional boiler and new electromechanical upgrades, which allow individual building systems to heat water as required. Solar panels are also in place for water heating across all 169 suites as well as our award-winning Hébe Spa and indoor pool.
Caring Luxury
Champions of our community and culture, Columbia Beach Resort values that no step is too small to make when in the simple and subtle yet sincere service of those who venture into our sphere of influence.
That is why our Columbia Cat Care Project – which cares for, neuters, and feeds feral cats in the local area – has been going from strength to strength since its inception in 2009.
It is also why it was a source of immense joy when we were initiated into the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower network in 2021, which aims to improve everyday experiences and interactions for people with invisible disabilities.
Training our staff members accordingly and providing complimentary sunflower products, Columbia Beach Resort is now a Sunflower Organisation, a feat which Marketing Manager, Anthea Vikis, celebrates for its impactful potential: “The latter’s golden rules of offering assistance, being kind, listening closely, having patience, refraining from judgment, and showing respect are all integral to our everyday life here at the resort as it is, so becoming a Sunflower Organisation was a natural fit. Columbia Beach Resort remains steadfast in its quest to make all guests feel safe, understood, and appreciated. Indeed, this will never change.”
