Sustainable Tourism in El Salvador

Is there even such a thing as sustainable travel?

If you, like me, feel a pit in your stomach for even thinking about jumping on a flight, you have all the right to ask yourself this question. But in my worries about the burning of our rainforests and other environmental destruction around the world, I kept coming across this concept of sustainable travel.

A seemingly strange climate action, sustainable travel is told to serve as an important tool to build climate resilience in vulnerable places. “Investing in eco-tourism and nature conservation could play a pivotal role helping green recovery programs”, says the World Bank.

When I finally made the decision to visit the sustainable hotel Palo Verde in El Salvador, I was shown firsthand what eco-tourism means. Being there, I could see the positive impact tourism — if done the right way — can have on both the environment and people.

This is a story of climate resilience and community empowerment, shared by the owner of a small family business on El Salvador’s coast. Meet Camilo Menéndez!

Morning sights at Palo Verde Hotel, El Salvador

Camilo Menéndez grew up in El Salvador during the civil war, a brutal war that started in the early ’80s and lasted for twelve years. During this time, tourism was almost nonexistent in the country. No one wanted to visit El Salvador and the people of the country couldn’t travel abroad. Instead, his family would make the drive from San Salvador (the country’s capital) to the beach region El Zonte, a small and seemingly forgotten beach on El Salvador’s coast. There, Camilo began surfing. He didn’t have access to any surf lessons so like most others in the area, he learned the sport by fearlessly throwing himself out into the waves. And it made him grow a deep respect for the ocean and its power.

“When you sit out there and wait for the perfect wave, you can feel the power of the ocean. It’s a magnificent force that changes you, you become one with nature in a way. I think a lot of the work I do today was sparked from my love for surfing.”

Luckily for Camilo, his parents understood the power of education and made sure to put him and his two siblings through school. As the war lifted, he, his sister, and his younger brother jumped on the opportunity to study abroad.

“I grew up in a very unified family and education changed my life. We don’t come from a wealthy background but I had the opportunity to go to University, which is not the case for most people.”

Camilo headed for Europe and got introduced to a different kind of society and world. He found himself with many opportunities that did not present themselves back home. He could’ve easily chosen to stay, but something called him back to El Salvador and his people.

“I had this deep feeling that I needed to come home and give back to my country, to create the same opportunities that I had been given as young!”

His calling brought him back to the surf paradise he had been visiting since he was a child. With help from his family, he was able to get a loan and buy a piece of land. He predicted the upcoming opportunities in El Salvadorian tourism and wanted to be part of that journey. Most importantly, he wanted to participate in the transformation and help make it right!

Palo Verde opened in 2017 with sustainability on the forefront from the very beginning. Camilo shares how he wants his visitors to be in contact with nature and to have a chance to value the beauty of simplicity, while also getting the opportunity to be immersed in the local community and culture.

Me with Camilo Menéndez and his friend and coffee expert, Luis Rivas, the morning of our Coffee + Climate Workshop!

But running a hotel where modern infrastructure is close to non-existent is not easy. To meet the expectations of travelers from the developed world, Camilo wanted to design a hotel with many of the luxury amenities we are used to -- showers, air conditioning, a pool -- in a neighborhood where most buildings have dirt floors and no running water. One of the biggest challenges has been to source enough water without depleting the villagers of their resources.

“We have access to a small pool of really good, potable water, but that water is shared with 400 other homes in town. My operation alone could easily wipe out that whole system, which I obviously don’t want!”

Camilo decided that in order to avoid this, he would only use this source for restaurant water. The rest (showers, toilets, the pool, the gardening, et) come from a well that they drilled on their own. During the rainy season, water is collected on the roofs and transported via pipes to three big tanks at the back of the building. Collecting the Earth’s own (free) resources, combined with careful reuse of greywater, has created an ecosystem that allows Palo Verde and its guests to get a slice of paradise while not exploiting the local people.

“Ninety if not one hundred percent of my employees are born and raised in the village. They get to work by foot -- zero impact, haha! For many of them, this job is the first introduction to modern amenities. Their families still shower and wash their clothes in the river and most of their houses have dirt floors.”

I ask him how they respond to that sharp difference in reality.

“It empowers them. I wish to provide an opportunity, especially for women, to gain economic freedom. Besides learning hotel management and hospitality, I push my employees to continue their educations and broaden their fields.”

Besides the fact that you can’t spot one piece of single-use plastics within the vicinity, sustainability is about so much more than that, Camilo explains. To achieve this, you must aim for sustainability on all fronts, for everyone involved.

Economically Sustainable

In a place like El Salvador, economic sustainability takes a whole new spin. With a new government in place, safety in the country has increased tremendously in recent years — a reassuring confirmational nod being received every time you ask a local about it! The country is on its way up but the broken trust for the government is still there. For many small business owners, that means money under the table, and no sight of taxes to build the country up.

“It was important for me to do things by the books and showcase to other business owners that you can have a successful business and still pay money to the government. I have been to Europe and I’ve seen what a functional society looks like. I want that for El Salvador as well. To create a stronger government, we need to support it with money, which means paying taxes. Most El Salvadorians are yet to understand that a strong government can help you, not hurt you.”

Socially Sustainable

In terms of social and environmental sustainability, it seems there’s nothing Palo Verde isn’t doing. With a focus on diversity and equity for all, and an emphasis on female empowerment, the resort is run by a group of young villagers who you can see are taking great pride in their work. When you arrive at the hotel, you are greeted by an all-women workforce at the front desk. In fact, a majority of the staff is women, which turns out to be an intentional choice.

”It was important to me and my family to put women in positions where they can make a living and gain economical freedom, which means having the power to decide the outcome of their lives.”

In our fight against global warming, educating and empowering girls is topping the Project Drawdown list! With higher education, women make better and more conscious choices — for themselves and their families — and end up leaving a much lesser footprint on the planet.

I’m giving a speech on climate optimism during our Coffee + Climate Workshop

Environmentally Sustainable

With the goal to be a sustainable resort from the get-go, the hotel is thoughtfully designed to maximize energy efficiency. With lots of open spaces with greenery and natural airflow, there is not a lot of need for air conditioning. Big windows and rooms that all face south reduce the need for too much artificial light. Reduce comes first, Camilo points out, followed by reuse and recycling.

For waste management, Camilo proudly shows the operation where they sort glass, paper, metal, and the occasional outsider plastic bottle. He explains that a lady comes and picks up a bag of recycling every couple of days that she uses to make money. The other recycling gets picked up by the local facility.

As mentioned earlier, water sourcing is mindfully designed to recycle as much water as possible. Greywater is repurposed for watering lawns and plants. During the rainy season, pipes that are invisibly designed into the building’s infrastructure lead water from the rooftop into big tanks.

Although solar and composting isn’t part of the infrastructure yet, it’s coming soon, and you can see how excited Camilo gets every time he gets to share new progress. He is not just doing this to make money from tourists, he truly cares about people and the natural world. And he wants to see change, big change!

“I’m not running a hotel, I’m creating a showcase to prove that a different business model is possible.”

Camilo showing me his waste management system

Palo Verde

Palo Verde means “Green Branch” and the name has many meanings. There’s a big tree in the middle of the property that looks pretty pale in the summer, but that he says blooms with beautiful flowers and green leaves during the rainy season. He decided to keep the tree when building the hotel and designed the property around it. Camilo explains that the tree is a symbol of life and death, of the beautiful circularity of Mother Nature herself.

The word “Palo” speaks for the branch part, the time of the year when the Earth is drier and all you see are branches. “Verde” is for the rainy season when everything blooms again. It’s a reminder, he says, that everything comes and goes, just as it should, just as the guests at his hotel. And the guests are coming!

“Even five years ago, no one knew about El Zonte, it was not a place to go. Now, even local people travel here and value our local beaches and sources!”

But it’s not just locals that are starting to love this gem, the surf world has begun to pay attention too. With some of the best waves in the world, El Salvador’s Punta Roco (15 miles from El Zonte) is being added as a stop on the World Surf League (WSI) this summer!

However, no success story comes in a vacuum and Camilo makes it clear that it’s not just him, it’s the entire neighborhood! In partnering with coffee suppliers in the region, local artisans, restaurants, and other hotels around, El Zonte is a unified force that’s growing with its people.

“It’s an ecosystem, we create this change together.”

Camilo looking over El Zonte beach at sunset

So what, then, is sustainable tourism?

There are ways to make your trip “less bad”, like buying carbon offsets, calculating the most efficient route, and saying no to single-use plastics. But could your travel actually do good?

Yes, I’ve seen now that it can. I’ve come to understand that truly sustainable tourism is visiting places where your money can make an actual impact, supporting tourism that gives to the local communities and grows alongside its people. It means sustainability for everyone involved -- people, planet, and economy!

If you feel guilt over adding air miles, I totally understand. But if you, like me, wish to keep visiting beautiful places on our magical planet, here’s a checklist to think about for booking your next trip!

Sustainable Tourism:

Empowers local communities and economies

Respects local culture and natural ecosystems
Supports sustainable practices, like the elimination of disposables, climate education, and smart infrastructure
Is mindful and booked with intention
Can have the power to change a region and its resilience to climate change