NY has come up with ingenious solution to tackle plastic waste and promote sustainability

For many tourists, a hotel stay offers more than a cozy bed and room service. It's a thrilling chance to get their hands on a variety of free toiletries. Trying out new shampoos, conditioners and lotions is a common pleasure for guests, who excitedly pack them up to take home as memories of their vacation. However, starting January 1, 2025, hotels in New York State won't give guests small bottles of shampoo and lotion anymore. It comes from a new law to cut down on waste, per FOX29 Philadelphia. 

This rule applies to hotels with over 50 rooms. Hotels that break these rules will get a 30-day warning to fix the problem. If they don't, they'll face a $250 fine. This fine goes up to $500 for later offenses. In 2025, New York will join California as the only two states in America to ban the little bottles in most hotels, as reported by The New York Times. Also, the state of Washington has passed a bill to reduce the usage of plastic toiletries by January 1, 2027. This rule will start with bigger hotels in New York City. All hotels should follow it by 2026. This plan is part of a bigger push to help the environment by using less plastic in hotels. Some large hotels have already started doing this. The money from these fines will go to the Environmental Protection Fund.

In 2019, Todd Kaminsky, a former state senator, and Steven Englebright, a former state assemblyman, introduced the bill in the State Legislature. In 2021, Governor Kathy Hochul signed the measure into law, but its delayed implementation gave hotels a chance to use the small bottles they already purchased, per Englebright. The ban echoes a nationwide motivation to reduce plastic waste in the hotel industry. Among the larger chains, the InterContinental Hotels Group and Marriott have committed to restrain their dependence on plastic, starting with toiletry bottles, per the outlet.

A Marriott Hotels spokeswoman told Fox29 that the company is working on making its amenities better. They swap out small toiletry bottles for bigger ones with pumps to cut down on plastic waste. By 2023, Marriott Hotels had 95% of all its managed and franchised spots worldwide on board. They plan to bring more areas into this new system through 2024. Hilton Hotels has also taken steps to meet environmental rules. From 2023, they'll give out full-size bottles of shampoo, conditioner and soap instead of tiny single-use ones. This change helps to lower waste how much soap gets thrown away.

The amount of single-use plastics in hotels has reached concerning levels. Small shampoo bottles, straws, water bottles, and garbage bags play a key role in this problem. Many people use more plastic than they usually do when they are away from home and are less concerned about their environmental impact. Every year, the hospitality industry alone generates 150 million tons of single-use plastic, as reported by Sustainable Hotel News.

Luxury hotels face a challenge with their toiletries. While chain hotel guests don't usually care about keeping souvenirs, those staying at luxury hotels do, as reported by Forbes. Luxury hotels team up with luxury brands to create special scented products that boost their brand's identity and create an impression in the minds of their guests, a sort of neuromarketing. Guests often take these products home, helping the hotel's brand stay with them—something wall-mounted dispensers can't do.

Environmental and cost issues push hotels to move away from plastic bottles, but finding replacements that still feel luxurious is tough. Single-use foil packets are an option but they don't feel as premium. Branded dispensers might become the norm, but they should be high-quality, unique, tamper-proof, non-refillable, and easy to use. To keep the memory of their stay alive, hotels could sell branded products or give a parting gift, even shipping it to guests' homes for convenience.