There was a time when "Las Vegas" was synonymous with "wasteful"--and with just cause. Built in the desert and celebrating all things excess, the Vegas of yesteryear did not seem to care about sustainability in the slightest.

Well, I'm here to report that those days are officially coming to an end. This past weekend I took a green getaway to Sin City and was delightfully surprised by how easy it was, thanks to a growing number of innovations and eco-friendly hotels.

I sat down with Fox Business for a segment on last-minute Labor Day weekend travel deals. Watch and enjoy!

Follow me on Twitter @gsbrown.

If you're anything like me, you want to make more sustainable choices, but you're also on a budget. Plus, you don't have time to search high and low for greener travel options.

Well, Travelocity has heard your pleas! We've just launched a green travel deals page. This one-stop shop showcases all of our best savings on green hotels site-wide and even allows you to book a vacation package, a hybrid car rental, a carbon offset, and more. You can save up to 40% on your green globetrotting!

Step aside, Seattle. Portland? Please! Grand Rapids, Michigan is going green and gaining on you.

Fact: Grand Rapids has more LEED buildings per capita than any other U.S. city. And it ranks fifth nationally in the number of LEED buildings overall.

Photo courtesy of the Hyatt Place Grand Rapids South, a LEED-certified hotel.

Whenever I imagine myself on vacation (which, given my line of work, is every single day), I'm most often relaxing on a beach or sitting in front of a fire. In all cases, I’m sipping a glass of wine. So when I found out about The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay’s new Fire & Wine Butler Service, I was transported from my desk in New York City overlooking the Hudson to a cliff in Northern California overlooking the Pacific.

Over the past few months, I've booked four star hotels in Las Vegas for $32 per night, in Portland for $89 per night and in New York City for $212 per night - all through Travelocity's Top Secret Hotels. This has become my first stop when I'm looking for a hotel deal - usually.

Being a Travelocity editor, you may expect me to unabashedly sing the praises of our product, but I realize hitting that buy button before you know the exact name of the hotel isn't right for every single trip. While everyone's comfort level is different, I've found the Top Secret Hotels offering helpful in a number of circumstances.

Consider booking a Top Secret Hotel if...

When people ask me for advice on reaching the "green segment," I always say the same thing: green consumers still want a good deal. When eco-friendly products first hit the market, there was a misguided belief that customers were willing to pay a "green premium" for a more sustainable product.

At Travelocity we believe that you should be able to go green and save some green while you're at it.

Right now, we're running a green hotel sale that highlights eco-friendly hotels with great customer reviews. You can save up to 30% on these green hotels that dazzle their visitors with luxe amenities, personalized service, and gorgeous rooms.

The JW Marriott Tucson Starr Pass Resort and Spa is offering a $600 per night resort credit when you book a $600 per night room rate starting August 1, 2010. The resort credit can be used to enjoy all the resort has to offer including drinks, dining, golf, the spa and gift shop.

The resort is nestled in the Tucson Mountains and surrounded by Saguaro cactus, hiking trails, horseback riding trails. There's a complimentary Tequila toast in the bar every night. The 4.5-star resort gets great customer reviews.

Click here for more deals on Tucson hotels.

My dream trip changes according to my mood. Sometimes I dream of seeing the Northern Lights—from a hot tub near the Arctic Circle. Other times, I imagine myself staying in one of those glass-bottomed bungalows in Tahiti, a giant sunset touching upon the waves in front of me and a school of fish swimming beneath my feet. But I’ve got to admit, once I saw the five amazing dream trips that Travelocity is giving away right now, I’m considering changing my mind to riding a wine train through Chile, exploring New Zealand’s fjords, shopping atop the Alps in Switzerland, taking photographs along the beaches of Cape Town in South Africa, and experiencing what a space shuttle launch might be like at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

There’s a lot of buzz here in New York this week about a newly passed bill that makes renting an apartment for less than 30 days illegal. Other than possibly being a small triumph for hotels, it seems like a lose-lose law; certainly travelers looking for an affordable place to stay, and New Yorkers looking to rent out their places while they travel, are out of luck.

I’ve never rented out my apartment, preferring to remain in the good graces of co-ops and roommates, but I’ve stayed in rentals in other cities, and as a budget traveler, I wonder: what would I have done if the only option was a hotel? At times, most likely I would have skipped to the next destination. And that isn’t even in places where hotel rates come anywhere close to those in Manhattan.