Joining the growing tide of establishments that are opting out of single-use plastic straws, both Tintswalo Atlantic and The Oyster Box Hotel have stopped providing single-use plastic straws at their hotels.

Tintswalo Atlantic has replaced plastic straws with re-usable glass straws. Lisa Goosen, the owner of Tintswalo Atlantic says: ‘According to National Geographic, although straws amount to a tiny fraction of ocean plastic, their size makes them one of the most insidious polluters because they entangle marine animals and are consumed by fish. Our location right on the Atlantic Ocean, where we witness amazing sea life every day, constantly reminds us about the vulnerability of nature and we feel very strongly about supporting the environmental campaign to stop using plastic straws to help save the oceans. Apart from the use of glass straws in the hotel, it is also a popular gift item offered for sale in the hotel gift shop’.

The Oyster Box will provide guests with biodegradable paper straws if requested. “Through our ‘Last Straw’ campaign, we’ve done away with plastic drinking straws on the property,” explains General Manager, Wayne Coetzer.  “As we are perched here on the edge of the magnificent Indian Ocean and as a single straw takes 200 years to break down, it was paramount that we join the ‘no to straws’ movement in order to play our part.”

The hotel is also offering hotel residents a free cocktail or milkshake for every bucket of rubbish they collect from the beach, using buckets supplied by the hotel. Coetzer says, “The very success of tourism has the potential to undermine its long-term viability. The hospitality industry has a responsibility towards the magnificent places in which it operates to embrace the idea that together with travellers, we can create a reality where the environment is in perfect harmony with travel dreams.”