Bryn Elltyd Eco Guesthouse
John and Celia Whitehead opened this award winning eco guest house in 2007 with a vision of offering ‘green’ accommodation at the heart of Eryri National Park.
The Business:
Bryn Elltyd Eco Guesthouse, Tanygrisiau, Gwynedd
John and Celia Whitehead opened this award winning eco guest house in 2007 with a vision of offering ‘green’ accommodation at the heart of Eryri National Park. As an 1833 granite building, ensuring its energy efficiency has always been a challenge, but this tourism business has become the first carbon negative guesthouse in the UK and secured Gold Green Tourism accreditation over 10 years ago.
The challenge
Sustainability has always been a driver for the business, thanks to John and Celia’s guiding principle that we should tread lightly on the planet and leave it in a fit state for later generations.
Bryn Elltyd opened with a clear commitment to going beyond net zero. John believes to succeed you must make things happen and since welcoming the first guests they have led the way in sustainable tourism. They have added new insulation, solar panels and have a boiler which runs on cat litter.
When Green Digital Academy was launched, John saw an opportunity to give the business a boost on its journey to sustainability.
What the experts say
Taking part in Green Digital Academy was a natural step for Bryn Elltyd and was part of the bigger picture to continuously innovate and improve green credentials. A carbon audit helped the business identify areas for improvement and funding has ensured that they have been able to implement change.
Outcome
Wales has been named one of the world’s most sustainable destinations to visit and a business Bryn Elltyd has already achieved net zero – but the owners believe that there is always more to be done and would like to see more support for businesses to adopt greener practices