Best Practice in Accessible Tourism

This book brings together global experts in planning, design and management to inform and stimulate providers of travel, transport, accommodation, leisure and tourism services to serve guests with disabilities, seniors and the wider markets that require good accessibility.

This volume presents an international selection of invited contributions on policy and best practice in accessible tourism, reflecting current practices across a range of destinations and business settings. It brings together global expertise in planning, design and management to inform and stimulate providers of travel, transport, accommodation, leisure and tourism services to serve guests with disabilities, seniors and the wider markets that require good accessibility. Accessible tourism is not only about providing access to people with disabilities but also addresses the creation of universally designed environments, services and information that can support people who may have temporary disabilities, families with young children, the ever-increasing ageing population, as well as creating safer work places for employees. The book gives ample evidence that accessible tourism organisations and destinations can expand their target markets as well as improve the quality of their service offering, leading to greater customer satisfaction, loyalty and expansion of business.

1. Ivor Ambrose, Simon Darcy and Dimitrios Buhalis: Introduction

2. Ivor Ambrose: European Policies for Accessible Tourism

3. Pieter Ghijsels: Accessible Tourism in Flanders: Policy Support and Incentives

4. Peter Neumann: Accessible Tourism for All in Germany – A Case Study

5. Nikos Voulgaropoulos, Eleni Strati and Georgia Fyka: Accessible Tourism in Greece: Beaches and Bathing for All

6. Laurel Van Horn: The United States: Travelers with Disabilities

7. Simon Darcy, Bruce Cameron and Stephen Schweinsberg: Accessible Tourism in Australia

8. Sandra Rhodda: Accessible Tourism in New Zealand

9. Mike Prescott: Universal Tourism Networks

10. Huong Le, Yuka Fujimoto, Ruth Rentschler and David Edwards: Tourism Victoria, Australia – An Integrative Model of Inclusive Tourism for People with Disabilities

11. Lilian Muller: Accessible Tourism in Sweden – Experiences – Stakeholder Marketing

12. Philippa Hunter-Jones and Anthony Thornton: The Third Sector Responses to Accessible/Disability Tourism

13. Caroline Walsh, Janet Haddock-Fraser and Mark P. Hampton: Accessible Dive Tourism

14. Andrew Wright: Tour Operating for the Less Mobile Traveller

15. Simon Darcy and Ravi Ravinder: Air Travel for People with Disabilities

16. Roland Krpata: Accessible Public Transport: Vienna City Tourism

17. Katerina Papamichail: Accessible Hotels: Design Essentials

18. Bruce Cameron and Simon Darcy: Wheelchair Travel Guides

19. Shane Pegg and Norma Stumbo: Accessing Desired Heritage Tourism Services

20. Bodil Sandøy: Norway VisitOslo: Supporting Accessible Tourism Content within Destination Tourism Marketing

21. Jesús Hernández Galán: Accessible Tourism in Spain: Arona and Madrid

22. Andrew Daines and Chris Veitch: VisitBritain: Leading the World to Britain

23. Tracey J. Dickson and Simon Darcy: Australia: The Alpine Accessible Tourism Project and Disabled Wintersport

24. Susana Navarro García-Caro, Arno de Waal and Dimitrios Buhalis: Special Needs Customer Care Training for Tourism

25. Ivor Ambrose, Dimitrios Buhalis, Simon Darcy: Conclusions: Best Accessible Tourism Practice