Conscious
Always caring about the impact of our decisions
Every organisation, in fact, every human being, has an impact on the world. For Travelodge, being conscious means being aware of the impact we make and increasing the positive. Our long-term goal is to become a net-zero business by 2050, and throughout 2025 we’ll set out to deliver this plan.
Energy Management & Carbon Emissions
By the end of 2025, we aim to reduce energy use per room sold by a further 2%.
Building New Hotels & Refurbishing Our Existing Hotels
Sustainability is embedded in our new-build approach. All our new developments will meet at least a ‘Very Good’ rating under the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM).
Water, Waste Management & Recycling
As a business we have a responsibility to recycle and use water wisely. We have set targets in place to reduce our water consumption and improve our recycling.
Responsible Sourcing & Supply Chain Management
We are constantly working with suppliers on responsible sourcing.
Energy Management & Carbon Emissions
At Travelodge, we recognise the part we play in reducing carbon emissions and managing energy consumption. In our first report in 2022, we set an objective to confirm our plans for our hotels to operate on a net zero basis by 2050.
Our hotels mainly use electricity for lighting, heating and cooling. During 2024 we focused on our objective to reduce carbon emissions and achieved this through a reduction of energy consumption by using technology such as:
- Efficient LED lighting in both common areas and guestrooms
- Smart Heating and Cooling controls
- Solar panels
- Replacing old, inefficient, electrically powered boilers for hot water, with new technology such as air-to-water heat pumps
Case Study: London Chiswick High Road Travelodge – a model for low-carbon hotels
As part of our ongoing commitment to sustainability and customer experience, the new London Chiswick High Road, which opened in April 2025, has been developed to BREEAM ‘Excellent’ standards and an EPC rating of ‘A’. While all new developments must meet at least a BREEAM ‘Very Good’ rating, Chiswick demonstrates our ambition to go further where site conditions and design opportunities allow. The hotel also features our latest design, offering a stylish and well-designed environment tailored to the needs of modern travellers.
This next-generation design is informed by our largest-ever consumer study, which engaged 5,000 UK business and leisure travellers to understand the needs of today’s budget travellers. The findings highlight a demand for style, choice and homely touches that facilitate work, rest and relaxation – both within and beyond the customer room.
Sustainability remains at the core of our design philosophy. Key features include:
• Eco-friendly materials – The filling of our duvets is made from recycled plastic bottles. In our SuperRooms™, we provide a Lavazza Eco coffee pod machine made from recycled plastic and a drinks mat made from recycled foam from Nike’s footwear manufacturing scraps. The fabrics for our curtains, cushions and desk chairs are produced from recycled polyester.
• Energy-efficient technology – The hotel utilises low-energy lighting, motion-sensing controls and aerated showers and taps, reducing both energy and water consumption without compromising customer comfort.
The London Chiswick High Road Travelodge exemplifies our Better Future commitment – delivering high-quality, affordable stays that integrate sustainability, innovation and customer experience.
Building New Hotels & Refurbishing Our Existing Hotels
Maintenance & Refits
Upgrading our existing hotels is a key part of cutting carbon – but it’s also one of the most complex. Since most of our hotels are already up and running, making them more energy efficient through refits and maintenance plays a big role in reducing emissions.
We’re focused on finding the most effective changes, understanding what each site needs, and rolling out proven solutions across the board. By investing in smarter systems and improving how our buildings perform, we’re working to use less energy and shrink our carbon footprint over time.
Water Management
With over 600 hotels and approximately 47,000 bedrooms, we have big plans for water conservation, reducing waste and improving our recycling credentials.
As part of our Conscious pillar, we’re committed to using water responsibly across everything we do. Water’s essential to so many parts of our operation—from cleaning and cooking to laundry and customer bathrooms. Our hotels depend on it for showers, sinks, toilets, kitchens, and, in some locations, Bar Cafés.
In 2018, we began our water efficiency programme to help reduce usage both in our operations and in customer rooms. Over the last six years, we’ve made solid progress. We’re now in the reduction phase of our plan, focusing on cutting consumption through better efficiency, upgraded infrastructure and changes to how we work day-to-day. Looking ahead, we’re also exploring ways to reuse and recycle water wherever possible.
One of the big steps forward in 2024 was rolling out water-efficient shower heads across our hotels. At the same time, our specialist maintenance teams focused on high-usage sites, finding and fixing issues that were wasting water.
Waste and Circularity
From food and packaging to furniture and textiles, waste is a key challenge in hospitality. Managing it responsibly is essential to reducing our environmental impact and improving efficiency. We’re working to reduce waste across our operations, improve recycling rates and embed circular economy principles that keep materials in use for longer. By strengthening how we manage resources, we’re reducing our footprint, building a more resilient, responsible business and making meaningful progress towards delivering on our Conscious pillar.
Responsible Sourcing & Supply Chain Management
We rely on our supply chain, so we are constantly working with suppliers on responsible sourcing.
From mattresses to energy to carpets to laundry services, companies within our supply chain are a key part of the Travelodge ecosystem. Responsible sourcing and supply chain management looks at how we select our suppliers in a fair and ethical way as well as their approach to sustainability practices.
In 2024, we built on the progress we made in 2023, when we worked with 50 of our key suppliers to test out our new responsible sourcing tools. The insights we got from that helped shape our Supplier Questionnaire and a draft Supplier Code of Conduct. This year, we expanded the programme to include those original suppliers plus 21 more—bringing the total to 71 and covering 64% of our supplier spend.
Case Study: Introducing Sedex
A focus for Travelodge going forward will be on enhancing supply chain transparency through our membership with Sedex, a leading ethical supplier platform This collaboration will enable more effective monitoring and management of supplier practices, focusing on key areas such as labour conditions, environmental impact and ethical business operations Partnering with Sedex marks a significant step forward in our efforts to build a fairer, safer and more responsible supply chain.