When we discuss sustainable travel or eco hotels, we often use the terms reduce, minimise, or conserve. For years, the hotel industry has done the right thing by focusing on reducing waste, energy input, and responsibly sourcing meals. But what if we could consider hospitality as more than just doing less harm and actually, heal or restore the hospitality footprint it leaves behind?

Enter regenerative hospitality, and in 2025, we will see it as the largest shift in our hospitality future, particularly in India.

Sustainability to Regeneration

If sustainability is the cessation of bleeding, then regeneration is the literal/healing of the wound and subsequently getting that wound to thrive.

Sustainable hospitality = minimising harm to the environment (minimising negative impact). Hotels reduce their water consumption, install solar panels, ban single-use plastics, all very important for the environment, but mostly to ensure studies established or kept our world in its status quo, or as they say, can I sustain this over time?

Regenerative hospitality = maximising benefit to the environment (maximising positive impact). hotels restore degraded landscapes, replenish aquifers, restore biodiversity and empower communities, so when you leave, it’s healthier than when you arrived.

So, by simplifying, sustainability is the starting point; regeneration is the future.

Why Is Regeneration Important for India Now? 

We’re nearing a tipping point for Indian hotels in 2025. Here’s why:

Policies exist. India has committed to and established Sustainable Tourism Criteria, or STCI, for hotels to develop a baseline for eco-sensitive performance. For instance, Kerala’s Responsible Tourism Mission is already calling out hotels to source local produce, diminish waste production and impact, and support local communities. With established benchmarks like these, the regenerative options create an easy exit from business-as-usual.

Travellers want more now. Today's guests- especially with the post-COVID travel behaviours we are witnessing- are looking for hotels that are eco-sensitive and enact a broad social mission and create measurable, defined public good. They want to support partners en route to a more sustainable future for all.

India's natural advantage. India is rich in biodiversity. From the hot biodiversity hotspots like the Western Ghats to the Himalayas, India presents opportunities for regeneration, in which hotels can meaningfully engage in the conservation of fauna and flora, promote reforestation and support cultural resurgence.

An example of regenerative hospitality in India - 

Let's illustrate those ideas with two destinations that are already leading the way: 

Wayanad, Kerala: More than Responsible Tourism

Kerala has received awards and praise for its Responsible Tourism Mission, aimed at connecting local farmers, artisans and the community to hotels and tourism operators. This is robustly found in Wayanad, a rainforest district in the Western Ghats.

Take Wayanad Wild by CGH Earth. Don't just exist in the forest; be a part of the forest's renewal. The travel program allows guests to join guided nature walks, spot nocturnal species, and understand the forest ecosystem they are guests in. Waste is disposed of at source, local produce is prioritised, and naturalists educate guests.

This is hospitality's role: A focus not only to mitigate food webs and footprints, but to regenerate habitats and renew lives.

Sikkim: The Organic State 

Sikkim is another bright star. In 2016, it became the world’s first fully organic state by outlawing chemical pesticides and fertilisers for all agricultural land. For hotels, this means their food supply chains are already regeneratively designed systems. Guests consume farm-fresh, chemical-free meals and encourage local farmers. 

But that’s not enough. In villages surrounding Yuksam, community-based tourism has been pioneered by the Khangchendzonga Conservation Committee (KCC). There are locals running homestays, trekking routes designed around zero waste principles, and revenue that was kept in the community.  

In Sikkim, hotels and homestays don’t just welcome tourists; they actively enhance cultural values and ecological wellbeing.

What are the Core Pillars of Regenerative Hospitality? 

What does it mean for a hotel to be “regenerative”?  Here are the principles:

1. Restore ecosystems – Reintroduce natives, eradicate invasive species, recharge aquifers, and create safe havens for wildlife.
2. Support regenerative food systems – Source from organic producers, champion agroforestry and compost kitchen waste back to the soil.
3. Build community wealth – Co-create experiences with local people, nourish women-led enterprises, and ensure profits remain in the community.
4. Revive culture –  Instead of token “cultural shows,” showcase artisans, teach local recipes and restore the historic commons.
5. Measure impact – Book-keep results that matter: hectares restored, litres of water recharged, percentage of local sourcing, or counts of biodiversity.

Why It Makes Business Sense?

So, the question is - Does it really work?

The answer is simple: regenerative hospitality is a smart business move.

• Travellers are paying attention. Ecologically minded travellers are willing to pay more for hotels that can show real, measurable impact (not just really good marketing).
• Future proof. With tightening sustainability regulations, hotels that are already regenerating are ahead of compliance and could be more appealing to the investor market.
• Cost savings. Nature-based solutions (i.e. rainwater capture, constructed wetlands for wastewater, composting) will save money and improve the environment in the long mother nature.

How Indian Hotels Can Get Started Today

The transition from sustainability to regeneration may feel intimidating, but step by step, it is achievable. Here is a simple plan of action:

1. Know your bioregion. What watershed, soil type, and species are present surrounding your hotel? Plan your regeneration goals from there.
2. Start with the STCI baseline. Meet India’s sustainable tourism criteria, then go further.
3. Work with the community. Co-develop tourism products with local farmers, guides, and artisans.
4. Revise your food program. Go local, go organic, go seasonal.
5. Involve guests in regeneration. Let them plant trees or help with farm work, or participate in wildlife surveys.
6. Keep it transparent. Publish an annual “impact dashboard” each year with measurable results.

Regenerative hospitality is not simply another catchy phrase—it requires a change in how we view travel. Instead of focusing on minimising harm, hotels could be part of the change, renewing and healing the ecosystem and building community capacity.

By 2025, as travellers increasingly choose eco-friendly hotels that take things beyond sustainability, India has a shot at it. Because of its biodiversity, vast culture, and progressive state policies, India could be positioned as a leader in the regenerative hospitality space.

Because the future of hospitality isn't about leaving no trace; it's about leaving places better than we found them.

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