InterCon hotels to support earth hour in India

On the occasion of the Earth Hour being celebrated on March 27 throughout the world, IHG has added a whole new dimension to creating meaningful fun for their guests.

The participating IHG hotels in India will encourage in-house guests to switch off lights in their rooms and join the "guestogether' parties being hosted by them between 8:30 and 9:30pm.

Says Shaun Langdon, IHG's Regional General Manager for India, "More than just a symbolic participation, we wanted to conceive a concept that helps create awareness among our guests. We also wanted to showcase what the community can do beyond just the designated Earth Hour, to contribute to saving energy sustainably. We hope that once our guests go back home, they will host similar community get-togethers on a regular basis, so they can switch off lights in several homes by joining in such social gatherings."

As part of the celebrations, Crowne Plaza Bengaluru Electronic City will organize a candlelight cocktail party for in-house guests, along with "green" theme food. Hotel employees will also form a candle-lit, heart arrangement to show their solidarity for the cause.

At the same time, Holiday Inn Gem Park Ooty will host a complimentary poolside bonfire on March 27 for all its in-house guests to reduce the energy consumption inside the hotel.

Crowne Plaza Today Gurgaon will turn off all the non-essential lights to mark the Earth Hour and organize a candlelight dinner for their guests.

During Earth Hour in 2009, IHG properties in Asia Australasia saved an estimated 80GJ or 22100kWh of electricity, which was equivalent to making 800,000 cups of coffee, powering up to 30 homes for one month, removing 16 tonnes of carbon dioxide, or planting 4.3 acres of trees. This year too, Earth Hour is drawing strong support from other IHG properties around the globe. In Asia-Pacific, IHG hotels in Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Greater China and Southern Asia and Korea are supporting the Earth Hour.