At Villa Blanca, comfort and conservation co-exist in harmony, reflecting the commitment of Greentique Hotels to sustainable hospitality. Our profound respect for the natural surroundings and dedication to uncompromising standards of personal service makes a stay at Villa Blanca a truly exceptional Costa Rica experience. Sustainable hospitality involves the hotel in several levels of green operations, including recycling, biodegradable cleaning products energy usage management, and organic gardening. Additionally, its commitment to the community is evidenced in its staff, 95% being local residents who in a reflection of the region’s warm and engaging spirit provide the distinctive, friendly service that is a signature feature of the Villa Blanca guest experience.

In January 2007, Villa Blanca received Five Green Leaves by The Certification of Sustainable Tourism (C.S.T.), Costa Rica’s highest award for sustainable practices and operations. It was the first time in 10 years that Five Green Leaves had been awarded. For those wanting to express their support of sustainable practices in eco tourism and the hospitality business in general, Villa Blanca is a choice one can make to travel well and travel right while in Costa Rica.

The hotel staff is comprised of over 95% local residents of the Canton of San Ramon. The recycle way, reducing our carbon footprint: We have an strict sustainable program that re-cycles hotel waste, produces its own compost, organic pesticides, enhancing native orchid, bromeliad and native plant landscaping programs, and operates its own organic vegetable, medicinal, organic green house. Natural spring water: Villa Blanca receives its water from two wells fed by natural springs that are tested regularly by an accredited – certified laboratory in San Jose, for their quality levels. Biodegradable products: The hotel uses biodegradable cleaning products and avoids the use of chlorine and other harsh chemical cleaners whenever possible. Energy savings: The majority of hotel light fixtures (those that are non-dimming) are low-wattage fluorescents. Although solar energy is very limited in a cloud forest, the entire hotel was converted from electric water heaters to propane, a significant energy efficiency improvement. Share and invite guests to join us: We invite our customers to join our conservation program by cutting back on energy consumption and by sharing what we do with others whenever possible. Please follow posted suggestions on the property.

C.S.T (Certification in Sustainable Tourism)

Our C.S.T. Guarantee Our C.S.T. guarantee of commitment!

The Certification in Sustainable Tourism Program – CST is a product of the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT). CST was designed to differentiate tourism sector businesses based on the degree to which they comply with a sustainable model of natural, cultural and social resource management. CST is regulated by the Costa Rican National Accreditation Commission and consists of a scale of 5 “levels” of sustainable tourism achievement. Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Hotel & Nature Reserve and Si Como No Resort Spa & Wildlife Refuge of the Greentique Hotel Group currently hold CST highest level of certification 5 Green leaves.

What is CST all about? It is a program that seeks to categorize and certify each tourism company according to the degree to which its operations comply to a model of sustainability. To this effect, five fundamental aspects are evaluated:

1. Physical-biological parameters Evaluates the interaction between the company and its surrounding natural habitat.
2. Infrastructure and services (Exlusive for Lodging Companies) Evaluates the management policies and the operational systems within the company and its infrastructure, regarding the energy saving, water polluting and waste handling policies and technology.
3. Service Management (Exclusive for Tour Operator Agencies) Comprises the process by means of which, the company considering all the elements internal and external, and designs a turistic product in accordance with the trends of the market and the proper characteristics of the country and places in where goes to operate.
4. External Client Evaluates the interaction of the company with its clients in terms of how much it allows and invites the client to be an active contributor to the company’s policies of sustainability.
5. Socio-economic environment Evaluates the identification and interaction of the establishment with the adjacent communities, analysing for example, the degree in that the tourist companies answer to the growth and development of the region, with the generation of new employment or the achievement of benefits in pro of the collectivity.