10% off your next stay!
Join the Saintlo adventure and enjoy 10% off your next stay in Montreal and Ottawa.
saintlo is much more than a youth hostel.
It’s also a social economy business and a not-for-profit organization.
Taking action for ecological transition
Through innovative solutions and partnerships, we want to make Saintlo an influential actor in how to green transition and an example of sustainability for other establishments in the same sector.
Our vision is threefold, based on environmental, social and economic pillars.
Environment-wise: we’re a circular hostel!
Saintlo is working to move away from the planet-harming linear economy of extracting, producing, consuming and throwing away. At Saintlo Montreal, our ambition is to run all our operations according to the 3Rs: Reduce / Reuse / Recycle. In other words, we’re a circular hostel.
Packaging and waste
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- Breakfast in bulk: we’re making a transition to a zero-waste breakfast of local and/or organic ingredients entirely purchased in bulk.
- Maintenance products: our cleaning-product partners take back the empty bottles and fill them anew.
Resource consumption
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- Water: we use only low-flow shower heads and sink faucets.
- Electricity: our signage around the hostel guides how to keep green every day with gentle reminders like: turn off the lights, turn off the taps, be indulgent with thermostats, and so on.
Procurement
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- Our responsible purchase policy: at Saintlo Montreal, we choose to stock up responsibly, preferring products with guarantees on repair or return (such as printers and computers), products with no negative impact on the environment, (such as maintenance products), and products made of second-hand materials or bought second-hand.
Furniture and decor
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- We strive to reuse all our special-event decor, and we absolutely avoid buying single-use products.
- Our maintenance team repairs our furniture in-house and even builds it whenever they possibly can!
Renting out
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- With us, there’s no need to buy some items new, as locks, travel adapters, umbrellas and more are available for rental at the hostel reception.
We’re really into sorting stuff out!
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- We make recycling convenient in every area of the hostel.
- We help our travellers to better understand recycling with explanatory signage; and from the moment they’re hired, we train our employees how to sort properly.
If we can’t reuse, we recycle!
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- We give objects from the hostel’s lost and found to organizations like the Salvation Army.
- We make our used objects available on donation platforms and to businesses that reuse materials (for example, our used sheets are sent to Les Affutés).
Social-wise: an inclusive haven
Our team
We offer the members of our Saintlo family
- Insurance for all
- Outings that foster team spirit
- Free travel in the Saintlo Collective
- Access to Francisation
- Flexible scheduling
- Free breakfasts
Travellers
We offer our guests the opportunity to discover…
- Other cultures by meeting travellers in our shared spaces and taking part in our activities.
- Iconic sites through our program of free activities.
Economy-wise: local partnerships
We prioritize partnerships with local organizations:
- Breakfasts: on the menu, you’ll find Fairmount bagels, Kujira coffee, and zero-waste products from VRAC&BOCAUX.
- Cleaning products: all our products come from Larose, a local supplier (-25km), with whom we have implemented a container pick-up and refill program.
- Engagement with associations: Saintlo Montreal is a member of many local associations, like the AHQ, Québec Vert, Tourisme durable Québec, and hostel manager Nicolas Lemaire sits on the board of Montreal’s social economy council (CESIM).
- Beds and curtains come from the social economy organizations Formetal and Mains Utiles.
- Local goods for sale at the reception: night masks come from Unel, a fabric revaluation artist. The postcards are from Paperole and showcase Montreal artists.
- Festivals and partners: every year, we’re a tourist partner to many festivals, including Piknic Électronik, Igloofest, and Montréal en Cirque.
$1 per night is donated to the foundation
Would you like to help young people who don’t have the opportunity to set off on adventure? Us too! That’s why we give $1 to the Saintlo Youth Travel Foundation for every night spent at a Saintlo hostel*. If you’d like to help out even more, you can also contribute in another way. Contact us to find out about the options.
*Saintlo Montréal and Saintlo Ottawa jail
Tips for more sustainable travel
Measure how big your traveling carbon footprint is
Discover how the province conserves its fauna and flora
Memo – Sorting materials
BLOG
How to be a Sustainable Traveller
It’s easy to become a sustainable traveller, it just takes some thought and planning. Sustainable travel involves avoiding negative impacts when possible, making choices that positively impact communities, and looking for ways to be more eco-responsible in terms of the products you buy, how you get around, and where you sleep at night.
ACHIEVEMENT
Green Key
We are proud to announce that 70% of our activities have been recognized as being sustainable by acquiring a GreenKey, a benchmark sustainability certification in the hospitality industry, symbolized by the awarding of 4 keys.
Together, we’re building a more peaceful world.
Where ya wanna go?
Our territory follows the Saint Lawrence, a seriously endless and not always gentle river. From the Gaspé Peninsula through Ontario and the Great Lakes, we love hosting you at our youth hostels so that you can see the country. We want you to experience our big cities and epic nature like a local.
