RICHMOND, VA. – On April 25th, the Virginia Green Travel Alliance announced the winners of the 2022
Virginia Green Travel Star & Leader Awards. These awards are presented annually to Virginia’s greenest
tourism operators and partners for their outstanding commitments to sustainability and contributions to green
tourism in Virginia. The awards were presented during the 9th annual Virginia Green Travel Conference &
Awards that were held on April 25 & 26, 2022 at the Hilton Richmond Downtown.
This year, nine (9) Virginia tourism operations were chosen to receive the Virginia Green program’s highest
award, the Virginia Green Travel Star Award. Eleven (11) additional tourism businesses received the Virginia
Green Travel Leader Award for their continued commitments to environmental stewardship, and seven (7)
individuals received the Green Team All-Star Award for their efforts to lead their organizations’ green program
efforts. Additionally, the Virginia Green Travel program held a People’s Choice Awards Contest that challenged
the award winners to promote their award and engage their customers via social media. The awards were
presented on April 25th during a reception, co-hosted by Virginia Tourism Corporation’s Rita McClenny and
NBC12 Meteorologist Andrew Freiden.
“Conserving natural resources, engaging customers, and working to increase sustainable tourism business in
Virginia -- the Virginia Green Travel Certification program works to support and promote those businesses that
are committed to reducing the environmental impacts of their operation,” says Tom Griffin, the Executive
Director of the Virginia Green Travel Alliance.
“The Virginia Green Travel Star Awards recognizes the ‘greenest’ businesses and individuals that have
demonstrated outstanding commitments to the environment in the past year. We are proud to recognize
these businesses as they are true partners in our efforts to promote sustainable tourism in Virginia!”
The Virginia Green Travel program is run through a partnership between the Virginia Department of
Environmental Quality, the Virginia Tourism Corporation, Virginia State Parks, the Virginia Restaurant, Lodging
& Travel Association, and the Virginia Green Travel Alliance. The program encourages green practices in all
sectors of Virginia’s tourism industry. More than 1,200 businesses and partner organizations have voluntarily
certified their green commitments through Virginia Green.
The 2022 Virginia Green Travel Star Award winners are:
Green Hotel of the Year Fairfield Kingsgate Wyndham, Williamsburg
Green Attraction of the Year Green Leaf & Pebble Tea Spa & Café, Virginia Beach
Green Brewery of the Year Stable Craft Brewing, Waynesboro
Green Convention Center of the Year Greater Richmond Convention Center, Richmond
Green Event of the Year The Yuengling Shamrock Marathon, Virginia Beach
Green Transportation Facility of the Year James River Transportation, Richmond
The 2022 Virginia Green Travel Leader Award winners are:
Birdsong Pleasure Garden, Luray
Twin Lakes State Park, Green Bay
Crazy Rooster Brewing Company, Powhatan
Elation Brewing Company, Norfolk
Oak Grove B&B, South Boston
James Madison University Dining Services, Harrisonburg
Shored UP LLC, Hampton
Ducard Vineyards, Etlan
Westmoreland State Park, Montross
Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens, Richmond
Capital Region Airport Commission, Richmond
The 2022 Green Team All-Star Award winners are:
Sarah Stalcup-Jones, Virginia Clean Cities
Hannah Proteau, Green Leaf Green Leaf and Pebble Tea Spa & Café
Chef Khaled and Team - Green Team All-Star, Hilton Richmond Downtown
Megan Hale, Chesapeake Parks, Recreation & Tourism
Matt Robinette, Richmond Region Tourism
Life-Time Achievement & Support:
Virginia Green Stellar Supporter Award: Ron Kuhlman, Virginia Beach CVB
Industry Game Changer Award: Mark Swingle, Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center
People’s Choice Social Media Awards:
1st place: Birdsong Pleasure Garden, Luray
2nd place: Westmoreland State Park, Montross
3rd place: Stable Craft Brewing, Waynesboro
If you would like more information about the awards, please contact Tom Griffin of the Virginia Green Travel
Alliance at (804) 986-9119 or Virginiagreenta@gmail.com.
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