Sustainable holidays in the Allgäu

For us, sustainability isn’t a passing phase

At the hotel Das Rübezahl we live and breathe sustainability. And we’ve been doing so for generations, not just since it became “fashionable". That’s how we’ve kept the boutique hotel going since 1959. The Thurm family’s thinking has been future-proof for three generations - economical energy usage, regional produce sourcing, resource-saving construction, catering to their loyal hotel guests, treating their long-standing employees with respect and cultivating cordial relations with local people. In a nutshell, we look out for each other and act responsibly. And these remain the basic pillars of sustainability and the family philosophy today.

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Our aspirations

Just a few examples:

Energy

Since 2021, we’ve been generating 90% of our electricity needs via photovoltaics or a state-of-the-art combined heat and power plant
Before that, we sourced 100% green electricity
We attach great importance to energy-saving devices and primarily use LED lamps with timers and motion detectors
Heat recovery: our cold stores generate a lot of thermal energy, which we use to heat our pool and whirlpool, for example

Climate-friendly holidays

Conserving resources

Water-saving devices reduce conventional consumption by up to 15% per year, e.g. we colelct rainwater to use for flushing toilets or watering flowers
Schwangau mountain spring water in our restaurants: we take the water from a spring directly below the Schwangau mountains and filter it. This saves 100,000 transport kilometres every year. Why should we have our water delivered here from France or Italy?

Consumption

Wherever possible, we source our products directly from regional producers and use regional food in all areas
We cook regional and seasonal produce and we reuse, recycle or repurpose everything, which has unfortunately become a rarity
We actively order in bulk from our suppliers and request resource-saving packaging
In our Beauty Alm we value the power of nature, which is why we use pure and natural cosmetics

Mobility

Of course, we’ll be happy to collect rail travellers from the station
Five e-car charging stations are available for use by our guests
Free rental bicycles as well as e-bikes are available for a small surcharge
Hotel guests can use the local public transport network free of charge
More than half of our company fleet is already electric or hybrid powered
Our guests are welcome to hire an electric Porsche Taycan 4S

Biodiversity

Six bee colonies with around 300,000 bees tend our naturally wild compensation area with its rare wild herbs, orchids and other protected plants - and all with a view of Neuschwanstein Castle (approx. 15 minutes' walk from the hotel)
Sebastian, our beekeeper with a passion, offers highly informative weekly guided tours on the life of bees (approx. May to October)
Special flower and herb meadows are welcome extensions to our wellness garden with space for threatened species and those that are important to the natural cycle
Our active guide Basti leads regular tours into the mountains, where he explains the local herbs and plants to interested listeners
Together with the German Association for Nature Conservation, we are a founding member of the Rothwiesen project, which is "converting" former farmland and pastureland - directly below Neuschwanstein Castle - into biodiversity areas. To the detailed information (in german).

Employees

The entire Rübezahl team has regular year-round employment, with a four to five-day week, flexibility for families, further training, bonuses and much more.
On average, our employees have been part of the team for 4.3 years (as at December 2021)
Trainees are our future: approx. 10% of our team are apprentices. We also hold the “TOP training company"seal from the DEHOGA (German Hotel and Restaurants Association)
Employees are given a free bicycle on request to keep their commute climate neutral
We value integrity, loyalty and a fair working partnership!

Bavaria Environment & Climate Pact

We have been certified as part of the Bavarian Environmental and Climate Pact with more than twice as many points as the 100 sustainability points required.

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Really low Co2 footprint

Our carbon footprint was analysed and calculated using scientific methods by the Viabono Institute. We are proud to say that we are one of the most climate-friendly hotels in the industry.

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Member of Green Pearls Hotels

Green Pearls® Unique Places is the world’s leading association for sustainable hotels. Hotels are selected for their sustainable expertise and green projects.

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Climate protection partner

We offer climate-neutral holidays! For a small donation to reforestation projects, you can completely offset your already small CO₂ footprint. In 2022, our dear guests helped us to offset 4 tonnes of CO₂.

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