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.
Under the Specific Programme: Preparatory Action "Tourism and accessibility for all", the European Commission has issued an Open Call for projects that will foster accessibility in local tourism development agendas, strategies and practices.
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.
25 June 2013. At the ENAT Annual General Assembly held in Ávila, Spain, the Full Members of ENAT approved the transfer of the ENAT Presidency to Mrs. Annagrazia Laura, Italy. There were no other candidates for the post.
The European Commission seeks destinations to test and report back on ETIS, a system to manage and improve the sustainability of tourism destinations. Apply before 1st July 2013.
The municipality of Marathon was voted as the leading Greek tourist destination, for the period 2012-2013, within the framework of the European contest Accessible Tourism, of the European Destinations of Excellence- EDEN project.
Agrotourism Stancija 1904 has recently been awarded the European Destinations of Excellence (EDEN) 2012/2013 accolade, which this year focused on accessible tourism. The cities of Daruvar and Varaždin, and the spa hubs of Jezerčica and Tuhelj were selected as runners up in this Croatian round of the competition.
29 January 2013, Madrid. International travel expanded in 2012, with the number of tourist arrivals across the whole world exceeding the one-billion mark for the first time ever, according to figures released by UNWTO at the Spanish FITUR tourism trade fair.
The project "Development and marketing of accessible facilities and services within the meaning of Tourism for All in Germany" is a collaborative project funded by the Federal Ministry for Economy and Technology of the German Department of Tourism (DSFT) Berlin eV and the National Coordination Office for Tourism for All Association (NatKo).
Since its launch in 2006, Jaccede non-profit association has spear-headed an online, collaborative guide of accessible places which any Internet user anywhere in the world can consult and contribute to with the aim of providing essential information about the accessibility of public places.
T-GuIDE is an initiative of nine organisations supported by the European Union’s Lifelong Learning Programme, ”Leonardo Da Vinci”. It addresses two of today’s major societal challenges in Europe: to increase opportunities in the job market and to increase social inclusion. The aim is to produce an EU training model and Manual for training Tourist Guides in guiding people who have learning difficulties or other intellectual impairments.
