How important is it for an accommodation facility to invest in sustainability as well? The organisers of Hotel 2025 have been asking themselves this question for several years now, establishing a prize dedicated to those businesses that manage to combine quality, innovation and respect for the environment. And so, this year too, the Hotel Sustainability Award 2025 will be one of the most eagerly awaited highlights of the event dedicated to hospitality and catering professionals, scheduled from 13 to 16 October at Fiera Bolzano.

The goals of the Hotel Sustainability Award 2025

Applications closed on 10 September for the "Green Oscar" of hospitality, now in its seventh edition, whose aim is to spotlight the most innovative and virtuous facilities and companies in the field of sustainability. The awards ceremony – scheduled for 13 October during the fair's opening day – will not merely recognise best practices but will celebrate them across five categories, designed to highlight the different facets of sustainability.

Three of these are dedicated to exhibitors and will recognise those who adopt an ethical and sustainable approach to catering, those who promote reuse and the circular economy, and those who use cutting-edge technologies to improve efficiency and environmental sustainability. As for operators in the tourism sector, the "Sustainable Tourism Pioneers 360°" category is designed for accommodation facilities that already hold environmental certifications and have advanced sustainability pathways, while "Better Together" is aimed at tourism businesses that, even without formal certifications, have launched collaborative projects with public or private partners in pursuit of more conscious tourism.

Hotel 2025, what are the main themes at the heart of the event

The Hotel Sustainability Award is just one of the many initiatives at Hotel 2025, the Fiera Bolzano event dedicated to hospitality and catering professionals. It is an opportunity to explore current trends in the sector and anticipate future scenarios, through meetings, updates and discussions among operators, companies and industry stakeholders. From 13 to 16 October, the event will be structured around four macro thematic areas: value of people, focused on staff wellbeing and training, innovation, food & drink and architecture & design, with a particular focus on low environmental impact materials.

With over 230,000 accommodation facilities including hotels and non-hotel establishments, the hospitality sector represents a fundamental pillar of the Italian economy. This year too, Italy confirmed its position at the top of global rankings, among the world's top ten destinations by number of foreign tourists. But in the face of a constantly evolving market, Fiera Bolzano represents a crucial forum for addressing the current challenges head on — from increasingly high customer expectations oriented towards personalised experiences, to the integration of new technologies to streamline services.