Under the theme, "Tourism, Culture and Transportation. A Common Strategy at the International Level", the 1st World Summit on Destinations for All will be held in Montreal in October 2014. The Summit aims to establish an international strategy to develop inclusive tourism.
The UNWTO "Recommendations on Accessible Tourism for All” (2013) have been approved and endorsed by the General Assembly. Updated from the 2005 version, the recommendations outline a form of tourism that involves a collaborative process among stakeholders to enable people with access requirements to function independently through universally designed tourism products, services and environments. These recommendations were developed within the framework of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities of 2007.
The Association of British Travel Agents, ABTA, takes action against "Flight Centre" following a Reduced Mobility Rights report on the travel agents’ websites missing mandatory information for disabled passengers.
Travelling by air with a disability is becoming increasingly popular, hence the need for airports and airlines to provide high quality accessible travel services. A recent visit to Virgin Atlantic Airways headquarters located near London Gatwick airport presented the perfect opportunity to interview the airline's Passenger Accessibility Manager.
More and more people are discovering that accessible hotel environments make their stay more comfortable and convenient, but many find it hard to track down the accessibility information they need. Scandic has expanded its website to gather as much information as possible in one place.
A new call for proposals aims to support National Tourism Administrations in setting up national awards to reward best practices implemented in the tourism industry that have improved access to all visitors, particularly to people with disabilities.
In Autumn 2013 two volunteers from Jaccede, the Eurotrotters, are coming to Europe to spread the accessibility message and create a human platform for exchange to complement the virtual tools offered by Jaccede to all people with limited mobility and concerned citizens.
The ITA project will contribute to developing a new direction in the tourism sphere in Georgia. It aims to benefit, in particular, persons with disabilities and elderly citizens and contribute to the economic development of Georgia by involving directly civil society organisations, small and medium-sized enterprises and public sector bodies in training, development and dissemination activities.
This 12-month research study, which started in January 2013, will map the staff skills needs to improve accessibility and safety in the tourism services and analyse the availability of corresponding training in Member States.
This research study, which started in February 2013, will assess the presence and the performance of accessible tourism services and facilities along the tourism supply chain, examining best practices and tools to foster tourism accessibility.
Trailblazers is a national network of more than 400 young disabled people who work together on a national and local level to highlight and address the issues that are important to them. We aim to fight the social injustices experienced by young disabled people and to ensure we can gain access to education, employment and the services we require. We are part of the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, the leading UK charity focusing on muscular dystrophy and other related conditions.