To mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities, UN Tourism has joined with its partners to highlight the immense economic and social benefits of increasing the accessibility of tourism for persons with disabilities and specific requirements and seniors, against the ISO 21902:2021 Standards on Accessible Tourism.
Globally the demand for accessible travel is growing, with 1.3 billion people already experiencing significant disability 1 in 6 of the population set to be aged 60 and over in 5 years’ time Travellers with disabilities being accompanied by 2 to 3 additional clients. many destinations and tourism businesses are still failing to embrace the many benefits of welcoming these travellers.
Within the European Union, more than 70% of the 80 million persons with disabilities can afford to travel and enjoy tourism. In Asia and the Pacific, the potential market size is 690 million people; in Latin America and the Caribbean, this figure reaches 85 million people.
UN Tourism Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili says: “Everybody should be able to enjoy tourism. At UN Tourism we have been advocating for accessibility for many years, and the benefits have never been clearer. The new guidelines on accessible tourism, produced by UN Tourism and our partners, set out how destinations and businesses can harness the power of innovation and investment to boost accessibility in every way.”
Accessible tourism is a game-changer for improving mid- and low-season performance; its customers are extremely varied and loyal; it creates jobs and significantly improves the reputation of destinations and businesses welcoming all visitors, with or without disabilities
To help destinations and businesses tap into this potential, UN Tourism and its partners have released six sets of guidelines Produced by UN Tourism, ONCE Foundation and the Spanish Association for Standardization (UNE), in collaboration with the European Network for Accessible Tourism and many other partners.
The guidelines put the International ISO 21902:2021 Standard on Accessible Tourism in the spotlight and target National tourism administrations and destination management organizations, Accommodation, food & beverage and MICE companies, Travel agencies and tour operators, Transport sector, Heritage sites and cultural institutions, Organizations and companies working in protected nature areas.
All these guidelines offer strategic and actionable recommendations to provide accessible tourism experiences, so every person can enjoy travel and tourism on equal terms. Accessibility put in place, brings improvements in comfort, service and the quality of life of visitors and host communities alike. The forthcoming Madrid International Tourism Fair FITUR 2025 will serve as a meeting point to discuss different ways of putting these recommendations in place.
The 15 partners of UN Tourism in this collaborative effort are the European Accessibility Centre-Accessible EU, European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT), Turismo de Portugal, Ministerio de Turismo y Deportes de Argentina, World Sustainable Hospitality Alliance (WSHA), International Association of Executives & Hotel Managers (CIDH), ICOMOS-International Cultural Tourism Committee, IUCN-Tourism and Protected Areas Specialist Group, National Forest Corporation of Chile, International Air Transport Association (IATA), International Union of Railways (IUC), Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (IUC), Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), Sage Accessible Travel Solutions and Impulsa Igualdad-Tur4All.
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