Parrot Cay & COMO Shambhala Retreat Launch Successful Water Bottle Program to Reduce Waste on Island

October 21, 2010. (Parrot Cay, Turks and Caicos)-Parrot Cay & COMO Shambhala Retreat launched a successful water bottle program in June to reduce waste and the use of plastic water bottles on the Island.

In 2009, Parrot Cay & COMO Shambhala Retreat provided over 100,000 complimentary individual plastic water bottles to guests. These bottles were given to guests at the beach, pool, COMO Shambhala facilities, boats, in their rooms and other locations throughout the Island. The Resort felt that this was creating an unnecessary amount of waste and launched the water bottle program as a result.

The decision was made to provide guests with custom made Parrot Cay water bottles. Water cooler stations were setup throughout the resort for guests to fill their water bottles and staff would fill the bottles for guests at the beach and the pool. Unfortunately, Parrot Cay determined that they would still need to provide bottled water in order to maintain service levels.

Although bottled water is still available, guests are encouraged to use their Parrot Cay water bottles. Britas will be placed in the villa refrigerators and water cooler stations have been placed around the main building.

Green Planet, whose bottles are commercially compostable and biodegradable, now provides bottled water at Parrot Cay. With the new water bottle program in place, over 10,000 fewer water bottles were consumed this August versus the same time last year.

The Water Bottle Project is one of many initiatives at COMO Hotels and Resorts in a response to acknowledge a responsibility to cultures, economies, environments and communities in each destination it operates. Known as the ‘COMO Approach’, this group-wide effort is rooted in a commitment to sustainability and to encourage a strong sense of community.

Understanding Parrot Cay: Parrot Cay in the Turks and Caicos is among the northern Caribbean’s preeminent private islands. It is wrapped in sweeps of sand and peaceful seas featuring an award-winning spa and exceptional cuisine. There are over 1,000 unspoilt acres, wetlands and a mile-long powdered beach. Accommodation in whitewash with chic teak finishing includes beachside villas, some with private pools. The aesthetic is pared down and sleek, four-posters wrapped in soft cottons that billow with the breeze. On virgin hinterland beyond Rocky Point, find larger houses with even bigger cobalt pools. COMO Shambhala Retreat offers Yoga and Asian-inspired therapies to help guests feel energized again. Parrot Cay – a place to rediscover the softer rhythms of long days, easy nights and the salve of peace. Location: Situated on a private island in the Turks and Caicos Islands 575 miles south east of Miami. Parrot Cay is about 35 minutes by boat from Providenciales, the main island. Visit: www.parrotcay.como.bz

Understanding COMO Shambhala: COMO Shambhala is the COMO Group’s healthy living concept that spans environments, services and products, offering a full range of experiences that challenge and inspire us to greater wellbeing. COMO Shambhala advocates proactive responsibility for individual holistic wellness. This entails balancing healthy eating with pleasurable gastronomy, self-directed exercise with expert instruction, massage with greater mental repose, and thought with action. COMO Shambhala embraces all modalities of wellbeing, from yoga’s ancient system of self-development to other proven methods such as Ayurveda, aromatherapy, Pilates, Tai’Chi, and Qigong. Consultants take a consultative rather than prescriptive approach, working with guests on a one-by-one basis to define and achieve their goals. COMO Shambhala cuisine offers enzyme-rich, healthy and delicious cuisine. COMO Shambhala at Home, a lifestyle brand, creates skin and bodycare products developed to complement the environments and services available. COMO Shambhala owns, designs and/or manages nine centres of wellbeing at properties worldwide. Visit: www.comoshambhala.como.bz