MIPIM 2022 (21 MB)

Christie and Co Austria. Obviously, the technical
due diligence checks these issues, but CO2
neutrality or similar is not a major investment
criterion, Waraschitz says. Only time will
tell how much the mandatory taxonomy will
change. The fact is that there is an enormous
amount of money in the market. Furthermore,
the large-scale bankruptcies initially expected
by everyone have not occurred, partially owing
to the aid provided by the government.
What operators are pushing for, on the other
hand, is digitization. It can contribute not only
to economic sustainability but also to social
sustainability, says Christian Pillwein, Beckhoff
Automation. At the moment, for example,
a receptionist is busy with many different
systems: the parking ticket here, the room card
there, and so on. If you digitize this in a sensible
way, then you have more time for hospitality,
for personal contact with guests - and that‘s
what hospitality is all about.
But what really makes a tourism property
sustainable? „Any plus-energy hotel on the
edge of a village is less sustainable than a refurbished
apartment building in the city,“ plainly
states Markus Steinböck, Head of Purchasing
at 3SI. Vacation hotels are primarily located
in the countryside, often in isolated locations
and are usually not well connected in terms of
transport and infrastructure. They have to satisfy
the wishes of a wide variety of guests (for
some it‘s too warm, for others too cold), and
they operate energy-intensive amenities such
as pools, saunas and spas. What‘s sustainable
about that? Therefore,Harald Galla, a partner
at the auditing and tax consulting firm Leitner-
Leitner, believes that energy and its efficient
use are probably the easiest commodity to
calculate.
Tourism is not sustainable
„The very idea of tourism is not sustainable!“
Boom! What Markus Steinböck says hits the
nail on the head, explaining the essence of the
problem and why ESG in tourism real estate
is slow to catch on compared to other asset
classes. There can be no exchange, no knowledge
transfer, no cultural expansion without
travel. And finally, it‘s about socializing itself:
the fun, the recreation, the experience. What
good does it do us if we consume less energy
but are depressed? „Can we oblige tourism to
be instructional?” wonders 3SI‘s Steinböck,
“If processes are sensibly digitized,
then there is more time for hospitality,
for the personal touch.“
Christian Pillwein,
Beckhoff Automation
MIPIM | 2022
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