The Biocity dream: a story of family and nature
The inspiration: New York, 2000. At a time when the word ‘organic’ wasn’t yet in vogue, I found myself, almost by chance, at an organic market in New York. Stalls bursting with colour, intense aromas and a revolutionary idea: making us and the planet feel good at the same time. It seemed like a dream. And I wanted to bring that dream to Milan.
Biocity history
The tin box. As I was walking home, my thoughts turned to the doodles I used to draw as a child: ships with wings and motorised skates. My mother had given me a tin box to keep them tidy, with an inscription I would never forget: ‘A dream remains a dream until you decide to make it come true.’
From dream to reality (or rather, to wood and greenery).
Biocity emerged from that box in 2011. I didn’t just want a hotel; I wanted a living organism:
Living materials: Natural insulation and CO₂-absorbing paints.
Clean energy: Only sun, wind and water (solar, wind and hydroelectric) to power our spaces.
Zero Impact: We’ve eliminated plastic and chosen only eco-friendly cleaning products.
Authentic flavour: A 100% organic breakfast to start the day.
Today: The first and only EU Ecolabel-certified hotel in Milan. Today, Biocity is exactly as I had always dreamed it would be. We were the first in Milan to achieve EU Ecolabel certification, Europe’s highest green accreditation. We are proud of this. We hope that many others will follow in our footsteps, because making the world a better place is a journey we take together.
EU Ecolabel: the guarantee of a genuine commitment.
IT/051/081
Beyond ‘Green’ labels: Many establishments claim to be eco-friendly, but the EU Ecolabel is different. It is the mark of environmental excellence established by the European Union, which does not merely reward good intentions but certifies actual results. Choosing an EU Ecolabel hotel means you can be sure that every aspect of your stay has been designed to minimise environmental impact, whilst ensuring the highest level of comfort.
What we actually do for the planet:
To maintain this prestigious accreditation, the Biocity Hotel adheres to strict protocols that are constantly monitored:
Adopt procedures that encourage the re-use of bed and bath linen
Adopt recycling and waste separation practices
Use energy-saving light bulbs and appliances
Stronger together: the Fivecostars network
More than just a hotel: a shared philosophy. The Biocity Hotel stands alone, yet it is part of FivEcoStars, a ‘tribe’ of friends and entrepreneurs united by a single goal: to demonstrate that high-end hospitality can (and must) be kind to the planet.
Sharing Innovation: we exchange ideas and technologies to reduce the environmental impact of our facilities to almost zero.
Ensuring Authenticity: every member of the group holds rigorous and authoritative environmental certifications.
Constantly Improving: we inspire one another to offer you an ever healthier, more ethical and unforgettable stay.
Choosing us means supporting an economy that respects the health of people and the Earth.
Our guidelines: a shared commitment.
A desire that becomes action. Respect for the environment is not just a word, but the guiding principle behind everything we do at the Biocity Hotel. Our passion drives us to constantly seek new solutions to reduce our environmental impact, whilst ensuring you enjoy a stay characterised by comfort and wellbeing. Together for a greener future. Holding the EU Ecolabel involves undergoing rigorous audits, but for us, true success lies in involving you in this journey.
Here’s how we make your stay in Milan a sustainable experience:
Environmental communication and invitation to the active participation of guests
🗺️ Routes of excellence: we suggest unique itineraries to help you discover the city’s environmental, artistic and gastronomic wonders.
🚴 Sustainable transport: you’ll find all the information you need on public transport, bike hire and secure on-site parking for your bike.
💬 Join us: in your room, you’ll find handy tips on our green policy and how to minimise your environmental impact during your stay. Your opinion matters: please share your suggestions with us via our questionnaire!
Environmental communication and invitation to the active participation of guests
- Suggestions of itineraries to discover environmental, artistic, historical and gastronomic excellences;
- Information on the use of public transport, on bicycle rental, on-site parking for bicycles;
- Installation of information panels in the rooms on our environmental policy and on what guests can do to help reduce the negative impact on the environment, inviting guests to fill out a questionnaire and make suggestions.
Healthy and natural food
- The products offered to customers are oriented towards seasonality, organic and Km 0.
Healthy and natural food
🍏 Locally sourced and organic: our breakfast and the products we offer follow the rhythm of the seasons, prioritising organic, locally sourced ingredients that are prepared by us.
Water and Energy Saving
☀️ Solar energy: a solar thermal system generates around 10 per cent of our heating requirements.
⚡ 100 per cent renewable: all the electricity we purchase is certified and comes exclusively from clean sources.
💡 Smart lighting: we use only energy-saving bulbs and an automatic switch-off system when you leave your room.
🌡️ Energy-efficient climate control: heating and cooling are managed by state-of-the-art heat pumps to minimise energy loss.
🧺 A small gesture: you can choose to opt out of daily linen changes: a simple action that saves thousands of litres of water.
Waste Management and No Plastic
♻️ Easy recycling: you’ll find recycling bins conveniently located in the hotel corridors.
🚫 Goodbye to plastic: we only serve water in reusable glass bottles and have replaced single-use bottles with stylish eco-friendly soap dispensers.
Waste management
- Presence in the corridors of containers for separate waste collection by guests;
- To reduce plastic we offer customers water in reusable glass bottles and we have installed dispensers with ecological soaps instead of single-dose products.
Use of eco-sustainable products
🧻Certified products: almost all chemical products are eco-sustainable, the quantities used are reduced; paper products (toilet paper, office paper, napkins, rolls) are also eco-labelled
Constant monitoring of results
📊 Environmental indicators: we constantly monitor our water and energy consumption, waste and laundry figures to assess and improve the Biocity Hotel’s performance year on year.
Environmental performance monitoring
- The company has a collection system of the main environmental indicators relating to energy and water consumption, waste production, use of chemical products and use of linen in order to evaluate the environmental performance of the Biocity Hotel over time.
