IT Systems & AI Engineer

Europe is cracking down on 'Green' hotels. Here's what changed on sept. 27. Emese Maczko Sat, October 3, 2026 at 1:30 AM PDT * UK regulators are cracking down on travel ads using phrases like "eco resort" and "eco hotel" for potential greenwashing violations. Hotels have long used words such as "eco," "green" and "sustainable" to stand out in an increasingly crowded market. However, European regulators are now scrutinizing these words more closely. On September 9, Britain's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) published rulings against Thomas Cook, loveholidays and DialAFlight over travel ads using phrases such as "eco resort," "eco hotel" and "eco-conscious resort." This ruling arrived less than three weeks before stricter European Union greenwashing rules also took effect on September 27. UK regulators are already challenging "Eco" Hotel claims. A paid Google ad from Thomas Cook promoted the "Sandos Caracol Eco Resort." Thomas Cook argued that Google advertising tools had generated the wording automatically and that "eco" had previously formed part of the hotel's name. The ASA still found that consumers were likely to interpret "eco resort" as describing an environmental characteristic or benefit, while the ad failed to explain what that benefit actually was. Similar rulings against loveholidays and DialAFlight targeted the phrases "eco hotel," "eco resort" and "eco-conscious resort." In the loveholidays case, the company said it was simply reselling third-party hotels and using names supplied by accommodation providers. However, this reasoning did not prevent the ASA from finding the advertising misleading. The ASA said it identified all three ads through its AI-powered Active Ad Monitoring system, which proactively searches online advertising for potential breaches. The rulings did not impose fines. However, the United Kingdom's wider consumer-protection regime gives the Competition and Markets Authority and courts powers to impose penalties of up to 10% of global turnover for breaches of consumer law. The EU tightens Green marketing rules from September 27. Across the European Union, the Directive (EU) 2024/825, known as the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive, was adopted in 2024, but apply from September 27, 2026. The rules add several items to the EU's blocklist of commercial practices considered unfair in all circumstances. Generic environmental claims such as "environmentally friendly," "eco-friendly," "green," "climate friendly" and "carbon friendly" can be prohibited unless a business can demonstrate recognized excellent environmental performance relevant to the claim. For hotels, this means that instead of saying a property is "eco-friendly," it must communicate a measurable environmental achievement that is accurate and substantiated. The directive also requires qualifications to be presented clearly and prominently rather than being buried somewhere. Hotels should also review sustainability badges since under the Directive (EU) 2024/825, private sustainability labels generally need to be based on qualifying certification schemes. Moreover, a claim that a hotel stay has a neutral, reduced, or positive greenhouse-gas impact cannot be based simply on carbon offsetting. September 27 is not the start of A grace period. EU member states had until March 27, 2026, to transpose the directive. European Commission confirms that "the Directive shall enter into application" from September 27. From that date, businesses must ensure that consumer-facing environmental claims and sustainability labels comply with the new requirements. Penalties will be enforced at national level. When imposing a fine, authorities will consider factors such as the seriousness and duration of the violation and whether the business took steps to correct it. For certain major cross-border infringements, EU consumer-protection rules allow maximum fines of at least 4% of annual turnover in the member states concerned. In Europe, the word "green" is rapidly becoming less of a marketing shortcut and more of a claim businesses must be prepared to prove. For hotel companies, the immediate task is clear: audit websites, booking engines, paid search campaigns, social media, OTA listings, sustainability pages, badges and future climate promises. The lesson from the UK cases is that even a word embedded in a hotel name that is automatically pulled into an advertisement can become an environmental claim in the eyes of regulators.

Major travel brands sent packing over 'eco' ad claims. September 9, 2026 8:53 am Thomas Cook, Loveholidays and DialAFlight have all been battered by the advertising watchdog for making environmental claims in their advertising campaigns without being "clear and transparent" about what they were based on. The rulings form part of a wider crackdown on environmental claims in the travel agent sector, following intelligence gathering by the Advertising Standards Authority's Active Ad Monitoring system, which uses AI to proactively search for online ads that might break the rules. First up were two Google ads for Loveholidays, which ran in July, promoting the "Green Garden Eco Resort" and the "Marvida Family Eco Hotel". In response to the ASA investigation, the online travel agent explained that in both cases the term "Eco" was part of the accommodation's name rather than an environmental claim formulated, adopted or endorsed by Loveholidays. The firm insisted it did not make any separate representation about the environmental credentials of either property, and the ads only reproduced the property names for identification purposes, in keeping with standard practice for an accommodation retailer displaying third-party inventory. Meanwhile, a paid-for Google ad for Thomas Cook stated "Sandos Caracol Eco Resort". Text underneath stated "Relax at Sandos Caracol Eco Resort - flights included. Book now with Thomas Cook". Alongside that was an image of two people in a swimming pool. In its defence, the travel firm tried to blame Google, insisting it had created the ad using either the Google Ads tools Performance Max or Dynamic Search Ads. Those tools automatically generated parts of search ads based on the terms used by consumers when searching with the engine. It insisted said the phrase "Eco Resort" therefore appeared automatically in the ad, in response to user search terms. Even so, Thomas Cook maintained it had taken steps to block "Sandos Caracol Eco" as a search term to prevent it appearing in future searches. Finally, a Meta ad for DialAFlight, seen in July for Jumeirah at Saadiyat Island Resort, said: "Reconnect with yourself and your surroundings at our eco-conscious resort ..." DialAFlight said the claim "eco-conscious resort" had been taken from a factsheet provided by the accommodation, while the hotel provided the ASA with a list of environmental initiatives and activities undertaken at the resort. In all three cases, however, the watchdog found that consumers were likely to interpret the claims as meaning the accommodation had environmental characteristics or benefits, but were not given enough information to understand what those were. Banning all three from running again, the ASA went on to warn the firms about future activity. A Loveholidays spokeswoman commented: "As an online travel agent, Decision Marketing do not own, operate or manage the accommodation Decision Marketing sell. The hotel names displayed in its advertising reflected the trading names of the properties, rather than environmental claims made by Loveholidays. "We have updated the listings for the hotels concerned and removed the advertisements. We will continue to review our processes to ensure the information we provide to customers is clear and transparent." ASA director of complaints and investigations Miles Lockwood said: "For people looking to make more environmentally conscious choices when it comes to booking their holidays, it's important that they can trust the claims that they see in ads. "Today's rulings make clear that if a hotel or resort is described as 'eco' or 'eco-conscious', advertisers need to be clear about what that means, so people have the information they need to make an informed choice about where to book."

Three travel firms have adverts banned over 'misleading' environmental credentials. Three online travel agents have been censured over environmental claims made in adverts. Loveholidays, Thomas Cook and DailAFlight all breached the advertising code, according to the Advertising Standards Authority. The advertising watchdog ruled that paid-for Google or Meta adverts by the companies promoting eco resorts "didn't make the basis for their environmental claims clear". The rulings form part of a wider piece of work on environmental claims in the travel agent sector. The adverts seen in July were identified for investigation following intelligence gathering by the ASA's active ad monitoring system, which uses AI to proactively search for online adverts that might break the rules. All three firms were ordered to amend or withdraw the adverts identified. The ASA noted that the advertising code requires that the basis of environmental claims must be clear and "unqualified claims could mislead if they omitted material information". Referring to two loveholidays adverts, the ASA said it considered consumers would interpret the claims 'Eco Resort' and 'Eco Hotel' in the ads as meaning the advertised accommodation had some environmental characteristics or benefits. "While the claims were part of the accommodations' names, we considered they would also be understood as a description of each accommodation. "We understood the resort advertised in ad (a) had eliminated single-use plastics from its operations, used energy-efficient LED lighting and motion sensors to decrease electricity usage, and avoided the use of harmful chemicals. We understood the hotel advertised in ad (b) used: waste separation and recycling; processes to reduce water and electricity usage; and processes to reduce food waste." However, the information on environmental credentials by two accommodation providers "had not been clearly explained in either ad". The ASA also considered consumers would interpret the claim 'Eco Resort' in the Thomas Cook advert "as meaning the advertised accommodation had some environmental characteristics or benefits. "While the claim was part of the accommodation's name, we considered it would also be understood as a description of the resort. "We understood from the advertised resort's website that the accommodation had several environmental initiatives that included the use of solar power, water treatment systems, and the operation of a nature reserve. However, that information had not been clearly explained in the ad." The ASA also found that that resort environmental information had "not been clearly explained" in the DailAFlight advert, "and we considered that the ad was not limited by time or space to the extent that the information could not have been provided. "There was therefore sufficient space within the ad to make clear the basis of the claim 'eco-conscious resort' so that consumers could proceed with their consumer journey in an informed manner. In addition, the ad's landing page did not include information that explained the basis of the claim." Loveholidays said it aggregated and resold third-party accommodation supplied by independent hotel and resort operators, and did not own, operate, or manage the accommodation featured in the ads. The resort and hotel names in the ads were the trading names provided by their suppliers. In each case the term 'Eco' was part of the accommodation's name, and not an environmental claim formulated, adopted, or endorsed by loveholidays. Thomas Cook said the phrase 'Eco Resort' appeared automatically in the ad in response to user search terms. The company said the Sandos Caracol Eco Resort changed its name in July 2025. "However, given some consumers knew the hotel by its previous name, they may have used it when searching for the hotel," Thomas Cook said. The company pointed out that it had taken steps to block 'Sandos Caracol Eco' as a search keyword term to prevent it appearing in future searches after being approached by the ASA. DialAFlight said the claim 'eco-conscious' resort had been taken from a factsheet provided by the accommodation. The Jumeirah Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi provided a list of environmental initiatives and activities undertaken at the resort, the firm added.