Examples of our day-to-day commitments: sustainability, quality, social responsibility
Our priority is your satisfaction : fostering personal connections with our local experts, meeting your needs through our various contact channels and a consistent visitor service model: in person, at 10 Tourist Information Offices – one per village – open all year round, as well as our three mobile visitor service points on bikes during the summer. Remotely by phone, email, via Messenger or on our website’s online chat. We aim to provide you with personalised, expert and up-to-date information, and to ensure you receive a warm, genuine and friendly welcome. Our goal is to help you discover this magnificent region and its unique features, so you can appreciate and help preserve it better: heritage and history, local producers, flora and fauna, water sports, well-being, sustainable transport, local events and community organisations are at the heart of our daily work.
Since 2020, we have removed all flyer displays from our reception areas, which accounted for over 160 different items and more than 153,000 flyers in 2019. At the same time, we have significantly reduced the print run of our paper publications and introduced a limit on postal mailings (a maximum of five brochures per year). These are still available, but only on request from our advisors! We therefore offer digital and up-to-date recommendations via our digital visitor guide, Roadbook, which we co-developed in late 2019. The removal of flyers and the introduction of Roadbook have resulted in an estimated GHG saving of around 2.4 tonnes of CO2e per year. These emissions are equivalent to a 11,000 km journey by private car (source: QuantiGES analysis, Eco2 Initiative/Destination Ile de Ré 2023, taking into account all impacts including the digital purchase of PCs, servers and the use of terminals).
Paper posters replaced by screens displaying events, ticket offices, upcoming boat departures and the weather.
Outdoor weather displays using QR codes rather than the almost daily paper printouts previously used.
New Instants magazine in 2024 (FSC, Imprim’vert), undated for a collectable edition, more durable, with no waste (2nd place in the ‘Best Information Magazine’ category at the 2024 Communication Awards). We also work with local stakeholders (LPO, ecoguards, ONF) for the drafting of certain texts in our publications, on our website or on awareness-raising signs.
Our 10 offices also hold the ‘Tourisme et Handicap’ certification, our accessibility registers are available, and our establishments are listed on Accesslibre. We offer a full range of tailored services and advice: trained staff, an accessibility guide, a hearing loop, adapted reception desks, a video presentation of the island in French Sign Language, an MP3 with a presentation of the village, a presentation of the village in Braille or large print, a heat-sealed map of the island, a shop catalogue in large print, FALC documents, easy access routes and all the recommendations from our team. We have also designed one PRM-accessible route per village, available on our website and in the accessibility guide, and we offer a guided tour in French Sign Language (LSF) certified by Tourisme et Handicap.
In our shops, you’ll find a range of iconic local products and a shop policy that prioritises: products made in France with a local connection; products made from local raw materials (France, Europe) or processed on the Île de Ré (local products: salt, honey, caramel, etc.); and eco-labelled products.
We also work, for example, with the ‘La Matière’ Association, which has produced some furniture using reclaimed wood: For example, the production of two reception desks made from reclaimed solid oak for the La Flotte office, a desk in Sainte-Marie, a disabled access ramp made from reclaimed oak for Saint-Martin, and shelves made from reclaimed wood for the shop in Les Portes.
We also work with ‘La Verdinière’, a social enterprise providing work-based integration (various jobs, installation work, etc.), as well as with ‘IRIS’, a company specialising in employment for people with disabilities.
All waste streams from our offices are sorted, quantified and recycled thanks to a partnership with ‘ARC Environnement’.
Reuse of paper for drafts, use of recycled paper.
Our teams are trained and made aware of environmental, social and societal issues; we have an internal eco-friendly charter, car-sharing schemes and monitoring, an environmental assessment to be carried out in 2023, and the implementation of numerous initiatives following the action plan (with Betterfly Tourism, the Passeport Vert tool).
Raising awareness among visitors and local service providers about protecting the local area through all our communication materials.
Creation and hire of awareness-raising signs for socio-professionals (forest, dunes, foreshore).
Purchase of reconditioned equipment, repair of equipment by our local service provider, monitoring of the repairability index.
Reduction in general public newsletters (10 per year in 2024, 3 in 2025) and partner newsletters (4 per year in 2024, 3 in 2025).
Target RGAA for the website and a charter on the use of AI currently being developed.
Digitisation of meeting minutes, schedules, communication books, payslips and other documents, as well as online payments for as many suppliers as possible.
Support for social and professional organisations in certifying their services: classification of furnished rentals, charter for responsible operators, recommended guesthouses, cycle-friendly accommodation, and family-friendly accommodation.
In terms of customer feedback, we collect and analyse the opinions, comments and complaints of our visitors and service providers. This information is highlighted in our monthly and annual reports, in our activity reports, and is shared at least annually with local authorities and transport companies.
Internally, we have a comprehensive onboarding process for new arrivals (welcome booklet, training, surveys), a QVCT barometer, and regular meetings and training sessions.
Compliance with the Destination d’Excellence, Famille Plus, Tourisme et Handicap and Accueil vélo standards, as well as the Tourist Office’s Category I classification.
Monitoring of our actions through our numerous quantitative and qualitative indicators.
