The Green Key is an ecolabel awarded hotels, inns, youth hostels, conference facilities, camping sites and holiday houses. In order to obtain The Green Key the companies must live up to more than 70 criteria relating to water consumption, cleaning, sorting of waste and electricity consumption. If the business does not fulfill the criteria - or does not follow them - the business will loose the right to The Green Key. 

The Green Key is an ecolabel awarded hotels, inns, youth hostels, conference facilities, restaurants, camping sites and holiday houses. At present time The Green Key is operating in Denmark, Greenland, Sweden and Estonia.

In order to obtain The Green Key the companies/restaurants must live up to many criteria. Some of the criteria are:

· Limitation of water- and energy consumption
· Environmentally safe cleaning- and washingagents
· Waste management
· Training of staff
· A certain percentages of the food served at breakfast must be organically grown
· Non - smoking rooms and non - smoking tables in the restaurant must be available

The Green Key is awarded for 12 months, after which it must be renewed. Once or twice a year the businesses are inspected by a certified inspector. If the business does not fulfill the criteria - or does not follow them the business will loose the right to The Green Key.

The Green Key is supported by: HORESTA (Association of the Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Industry in Denmark), VisitDenmark, The Outdoor Council, DANHOSTEL Danish Youth Hostels, The Restaurant Trade Association, The Danish Camping Board, The Association of Danish Holiday House Letter and The Danish Environmental Protection Agency.

Additional info:

The Green Key
HORESTA
Vodroffsvej 32
DK-1900 Frederiksberg C
Denmark
Tel.: +45 35 24 80 80
Fax: +45 35 24 80 86
Opening hours: daily 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Homepage: www.green-key.org
E-mail: e-mail:miljoe@horesta.dk 

At Denmark’s more than 500 camping sites you can be as ‘green’ as it suits you to be. Sites that are especially green will soon be identified, and there is an ecological camping site close to the North Sea – Nymindegab Camping – where a solar heating system maintains the temperature in the swimming pool and indoors. The host hails from New Zealand, and his ideas about the environment and being together permeate the site, where the organic produce shop is a great success. The Green Key is developing a national certification of environmentally friendly camping & caravan sites.

Møn, Odsherred and Slagelse tourist offices offer holiday homes that meet a number of environmental requirements with regards to the sorting of waste, electricity saving measures, water and heating. The Green Key is developing a national certification of environmentally friendly holiday houses.

If you would like to see life in the country at close quarters, but would prefer to have a bed to sleep in, there are farms all round the country that offer farm holidays. The National Association for Farming Tourism publishes a brochure with a large number of farmhouses. Many regional brochures are also available. Please contact the regional offices for further information. Or read more here.

If you are prepared to do without modern conveniences while on holiday, 750 nature camps welcome you all over Denmark. Accommodation is either free or costs a mere DKK 15. The nature camps do not allow cars, motor cycles or mopeds. Toilet and running water is available. At one third of the camps, a shelter is available which makes it possible to camp in the open, yet be sheltered from weather and wind.

Friluftsrådet publishes a guide which lists the various camps. The latest edition covers 2004-2005. The guide costs DKK 98 incl. updating booklet and is obtainable from most book sellers, tourist offices and from Dansk Cyklist Forbund.

The nature camps have their own homepage www.teltpladser.dk which offers information on for instance the latest established nature camps.

Farm Holiday
The Green Key