There are still plenty of global-warming skeptics who would push polar bears off dwindling ice caps if they could make a buck doing it. But much to the chagrin of the scientifically challenged, going green has become not only a do-gooder endeavor but also a profitable business strategy. So when Gamble Hospitality took over the Quarterage Hotel in Westport last year, it set out to make the place a destination for eco-conscious travelers. What started as a simple idea to include in-room recycling blossomed into a 38-point plan that has garnered national attention. At the renamed Q Hotel and Spa, visitors are picked up from the airport in a Toyota Prius shuttle. They conserve water by bathing in low-flow showers, sip organic wine at the lobby bar, zip around the metro on free bikes and digest easy with the knowledge that their food scraps are composted by a local farmer. The staff washes linens in water-conserving machines, refills organic bathing products in shower dispensers in order to do away with those wasteful little bottles, and even zaps the bugs on the hotel grounds with earth-friendly bio-agents. The best part: The eco-experience feels no less luxurious. Who says tree huggers can't travel in style?
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