Access Tourism NZ TOURISM FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, SENIORS, AND AGEING BOOMERS IN NEW ZEALAND AND WORLDWIDE

The New Zealand Tourism Research Institute at the Auckland University of Technology is conducting research for the New Zealand National Foundation for the Deaf about the tourism, travel, and hospitality experiences and needs of people with hearing impairments. There are two surveys in this research, one for residents of New Zealand and one for residents of countries other than New Zealand who are deaf or have hearing loss and who are 20 years old or older.   The aim of the research is to find out what it is like to travel with hearing loss, and how the travel experiences of hearing impaired people can be improved.   There are a number of questions where participants can simply click on an answer from a range of options given. Other questions ask participants to type comments in their own words into a box provided.  The survey takes about 20 minutes to complete, and all answers are confidential and can in no way be linked to any person.  

To take the survey, go here:  http://www.tourismandhearingsurvey.co.nz/

Bill Forrester, of Travability Australia, who gave a presentation at the first New Zealand conference on Access Tourism (AT) in October 2010 about how tourism businesses may comply with access legalities, but not promote this fact, also spoke recently on this topic at the Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality (SATH) conference in Florida.  Forrester thinks that we are at a critical turning point in the future of AT.  Over the past 20 years the advocacy concentration has been on breaking down the physical barriers that prevented People with Disabilities (PwDs) from accessing holiday destinations.  Now the problem lies in the fact that the travel industry has failed to move beyond a compliance model.  Facilities are built but are poorly understood if they are understood at all, and even where facilities are excellent the accessible tourism sector is not regarded as a valuable market segment, or not understood as a market segment at all. “The result is that those facilities are never disclosed, never advertised and never published in a way that the travellers who need those facilities ever get a chance to know where they are.”  Now, it is recognized that progress will result if the mainstream industry understands the economic benefit AT can bring the tourism sector.  Forrester cites The Shotover Jet in Queenstown New Zealand as an example of a business that accommodates PwDs by offering accessible services but which does not publish this fact.   “….they are providing a service because they believe “it is the right thing to do” not because they see a valuable market. It is accommodation of a traveller with a disability not true inclusion.” 

Forrester points out the current and growing economic importance of the PwD market, and the folly of continuing to treat it as disabilities rights issue.   “Too often the provision of accessible information, like the provision of the facilities themselves, are regarded as an afterthought or part of a special marketing project to provide information out of a perceived community service. The results are often “special” brochures or special web portals that are forgotten about or become out of date once the project that created them has finished. While the intention may good the results will always fail as that information is not mainstream, further unless the person for whom it is intended actually knows about it, then it can be as hard to find as the actual facilities themselves” (Travability).  He cites another New Zealand example where this type of thinking fails. “The Department of Conservation in New Zealand recently produced two guides to wheelchair accessible and easy walks, one for the North Island and one for the South Island. Both of those brochures were never properly displayed and hence most people didn’t realise they existed. The far better solution would have been to incorporate the information into the mainstream trail information in their main National Parks brochure.”  Elsewhere, Forrester sees things improving. “The tide is changing and a great example of a truly inclusive culture is Parks Alberta with their “Push to Open” initiative, but unlike a lot of other disability projects this one is embedded into the vision statement of the organisation.”

Accessible Options was set up in 1993 by Alexia Pickering to provide a range of services to commercial, government, tourism, community and private bodies. Alexia and Accessible Options provide consulting and advisory services for optimising new premises for accessibility, access audits on existing premises, and information valuable to travellers with disabilities travelling to or in New Zealand. Alexia is currently focusing on providing a mainstream solution for accommodation providers to enable them to display on their website, a standard set of information on the accessibility of their premises for guests with disabilities. The “Accommodation Accessibility Appraisal” is already in use by several accommodation providers in New Zealand, however it is a long way from being standard information provided for disabled travellers. Read more about Alexia and Accessible Options

Alexia has developed an Accessibility Questionnaire that is becoming more accepted by the accommodation industry in New Zealand. The information derived from the questionnaire provides a quick reference for visitors on the website about their specific accessibility requirements. Time spent searching and phoning the establishment to understand their facilities can be shortened by them having this information on their website. Alexia is currently campaigning to have her Accessibility Questionnaire adopted as a standard information service by the accommodation industry in New Zealand. Read more about Alexia’s Questionnaire and how to support it’s progress into the mainstream.

Tourism New Zealand, which markets NZ to the world, continues to ignore the older market.  At least, that’s what it seems like on looking at the three videos being used in their latest marketing campaign (“100% Pure You”) in Australia.  The videos feature three young women, a young couple, and a young father with his son.  Not a silver hair in sight.   This in spite of the fact that according to our own research figures, almost 50% of visitors in and to New Zealand are 45 and older.  It is also in spite of the fact that the demographic reality is that populations are ageing worldwide.  In Australia for example, our most important international market and the one this campaign is initially aimed at,  the only age group increasing is that of people 65 or older, Baby Boomers are turning 65 at the rate of 200,000 a year,  and the population over 65 is predicted to double over the next 40 years .  

And it is older Australians who are predicted by social researchers to be the ones who will spend on travel.     In caravan parks around the country they are known as the SKI Club – Spending the Kids’ Inheritance – and their vans have bumper stickers saying exactly that.  In fact, in a 2009 report informing the Australian national long-term tourism strategy, it is predicted that to 2030, the only source of increased domestic tourism activity will be in the 50+ age group, and the only increase in dollar value will be in the 60+ age group.  Why is New Zealand not targeting this growing demographic by having at least some older models in the video promotions released in Australia?

Tourism New Zealand intends to broaden this campaign to other countries.  Populations are ageing in our other traditional target markets also.  In the UK for example, it is estimated that the population of those 65 or older will grow from 16% currently to 23% by 2034, while in the USA, more than 7000 will turn 65 every day for the next 20 years.  In Japan, the population over 65 is currently 22% or about 27 million, those aged 61 to 63 number 18 million (Invest Japan), and ageing in Japan is happening at a greater rate than elsewhere (Reuters).  The mean and median age in years is about 44.5 (IPSS). According to an article in the Nikkei last year, Japanese aged 60-70 are emerging as an important source of economic vitality, as they are proving to be active spenders keen on making the most of their post-retirement years (Silver Group Asia). Data clearly shows that older consumers are more eager to spend than those younger than them.

Even in markets that Tourism New Zealand has only recently begun to turn their attention to, like China and South America, populations are ageing.  When will New Zealand begin to consistently appeal to the older demographic in these markets by at least showing them in our promotions?   Surely it is an economic imperative to do so in order to maintain a sustainable tourism industry.

On the official Rugby World Cup 2011 website (RWC2011), it states on a page headed “Accessible Information” that the cup “will be an event for everyone to enjoy and as such we want to make it as easy as possible for fans to find the information they need on this website.”  However, there is no facility on the RWC2011 site to search for information about access, and there are other problems with access information on the site and with access to the games.  Now to make matters worse, taxis and private vehicles will be banned from Wellington’s Westpac Stadium during the games because they are considered a security threat. Wellington Combined Taxis GM Kevin Braid says the company is concerned for elderly and disabled people trying to get to the stadium.  New Zealand Taxi Federation secretary George Tyler has said the decision is ridiculous and bad news for the elderly.  ”On a cold and wet day when you’re 83 like me, it’s a bloody long way to walk [to the stadium].  I don’t think it is a best image for New Zealand or for Wellington.”   Information about this ban has already appeared on international websites.  Taxis and private vehicles are already also banned during some other events, such as the AC/DC Black Ice Tour later this month.  Wellington buses are not accessible for mobility scooters and not all bus stops are wheelchair accessible.  There is as yet no information on the NZ Tourism Guide website on how mobility scooter users, or wheelchair users near inaccessible bus stops are to get to the games.   In fact, the NZTG site states that “most urban transport buses are not equipped to cater for the disabled.”  Hopefully, this will change before RWC2011 so that people with disabilities can partake of the games as is guaranteed in NZ’s disability legislation and in international instruments that we have signed, such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Person with Disabilities (CRPD).  CRPD specifies that States Parties shall “ensure that persons with disabilities have access to sporting, recreational and tourism venues”, amongst other things (Article 30).  Clearly, this is not happening yet.

The New Zealand Historic Places has just released a draft for consultation for “Providing for Accessibility in Heritage Places”.   This guide focuses on providing links to other guidance sources, updating legislative provisions and providing a guidance framework for the assessment of proposed access related work involving heritage buildings.  The guide concentrates almost solely on physical access to heritage places for those who cannot walk or who rely on walking aids and wheelchairs. It briefly mentions people with learning difficulties, and gives references to a couple of relevant publications about heritage sites and the learning disabled, mentions also that many heritage buildings were not built for diverse needs including those with vision impairment, but nowhere mentions access and the hearing impaired.   This is in spite of the fact that about 41% of disabled New Zealanders have sensory impairments.  Comments and feedback can be provided to the NZHPT until 28 February 2011 about this publication (Email: information@historic.org.nz).

Recently, Access Tourism in NZ has been mentioned several times in Parliament.   On the 8^th December, the Minister for Disabilities Issues – who  opened the first Access Tourism NZ Conference in October – launched the “Report on the Human Rights of Disabled People in Aotearoa New Zealand”.  In her introductory speech she said the following:

“The Office for Disability Issues is currently asking for feedback on what changes can be made that would enable disabled people to live independently, be able to move around their communities and be able to provide better work opportunities for disabled people.   As a very topical example, the Ministerial Committee on Disability Issues recently heard from Martin Sneddon CEO of Rugby New Zealand 2011 about the dedicated booking system for disabled people and how seats for disabled people at all grounds are all priced on the lowest category seats regardless of the location of the seats. They are reviewing all grounds to check wheelchair accessible seating and services to support this seating. And they are also ensuring that shuttle buses and disabled parking will be available at all venues.

I am really passionate about Access Tourism and so I was really interested in your recommendation that an industry standard should be developed to signal a non-disabling environment and universal design features of accessible accommodation and tourism features.”

Access Tourism NZ applauds the Minister’s interest in Access Tourism.  As to the Rugby World Cup however, we hope that with less than a year to go to kickoff, the official RWC2011 website will soon have individual information about access at venues.  RWC2011 will be the largest international sporting event in the world next year and is expected to draw 85,000 extra visitors to NZ, some of whom are bound to have disabilities.  At the moment on the RWC2011 website, the same information appears on each venue page (including an icon of the wheelchair symbol with a slash through it) and is of little use to a person with a disability hoping to plan a trip to the RWC2011, especially as tickets are on sale.  The disabled always need plenty of time to plan trips, accommodation, and activities because these are always more difficult due to access issues.

On the “Accessible Information” page is the statement:    “If you are unable to complete your application online or require wheelchair accessible seating, please email specialneeds@rwc2011ticketing.com to request an application form. Alternatively, please call 0800 RUGBY11 (0800 784 2911) or +64 9 367 2011 from overseas or mobile and our Customer Service Representatives will assist you with your application.” Access Tourism NZ  hopes that the information needs of people with disabilities will be met as quickly as possible on the RWC2011 website so that the disabled do not need to fill in “special needs” forms which they must post or scan and email (unlike the non-disabled), and that they do not have to call from England or France for assistance, as this does not look good for New Zealand.   

In the “Report on the Human Rights of Disabled People in Aotearoa New Zealand” itself,  tourism is mentioned in the following context:

Conclusions and recommendations, p. 15 and p. 64: Leaving home for short or extended periods of time remains an issue for disabled people with discrimination unlikely to be reported in this area. The final recommendation is that an industry standard (similar to the tourism industry’s Qualmark) signalling a non-disabling environment and universal design features be developed.

 Subjects like travel, transport, accommodation, restaurants, clubs, bars etc are mentioned several times in the report, and “social participation” is cited as the most significant single issue for PwDs (p. 41).

Sandra Rhodda of Access Tourism New Zealand gave an invited presentation at the Third International Congress of Accessible Tourism for All in Valladolid Spain in November.  She spoke about people with disabilities, access tourism, and arts and culture in New Zealand.   The congress – held over three days – was attended by more than 300 people from Europe, the U.K., Asia, and the Americas, and comprised a number of presentations and concurrent workshops on progress and business initiatives in developing Access Tourism, professional training, employment, and research in Access Tourism, presentations on access, culture, and the environment, disabled students as access tourists, Access Tourism and technology, and Access Tourism rating, standardization, and labeling systems.  The Congress was backed by Fundacion ONCE, the largest disabilities NGO in Spain, and the European Network for Accessible Tourism.

 The main theme of the congress was cultural tourism and was therefore aimed at professionals in the cultural sector wishing to enhance their participation in the tourism sector.  It had as a main goal that of establishing Universal Accessibility and Design for All, with which to promote inclusion of people with disabilities.  One of the main goals of Fundación ONCE is to ensure the full inclusion of disabled people in all areas of society. Making access to cultural tourism easier for disabled people helps them get to know the culture of the place they are visiting. On the other hand, incorporating Design for All into the new cultural tourism offerings makes more people aware of the importance of Design for All and Universal Accessibility.

A timely presentation was that given by Juan Aljama from the Accessibility Commission of Spain, who spoke about the work of the Group of World Heritage Cities of Spain (Accessible Heritage and Tourism section).  The Group was created to preserve and promote thirteen historic cities in Spain, and the access section is involved with assessing and improving access for locals and visitors with disabilities.  One of the thirteen cities – Avila – this week won the first-ever European Commission award for improving access for the disabled (The Access City Award 2011)

In a first for New Zealand, The New Zealand Tourism Research Institute at Auckland University of Technology has created a Research Programme Area in Access Tourism headed by Sandra Rhodda. 

 NZTRI’s Access Tourism programme aims to research and develop Access Tourism in NZ.  Access Tourism is tourism, travel, and hospitality for people with permanent or temporary disabilities, seniors, parents with strollers, and any person with a need for improved access.  This is an interdisciplinary research area that addresses the challenges and opportunities presented by Access Tourism.

The Access Tourist already represents a sizeable proportion of our tourism markets.  Between 17 and 20% of the population in our main markets already report a disability, and this percentage is bound to grow because the large Baby Boomer cohort is ageing and disability increases with age.  Those aged 45 or older already comprise almost half of our domestic and international visitors (and over 70% of our cruise ship visitors).

Areas of interest include:

• Research and policy development
• Understanding the Access Tourism market
• Awareness promotion and education of government and industry to the potential of Access Tourism
• Access Tourism product development and marketing in NZ
• Promotion of cooperation in a developing Access Tourism sector, including in the public and private sector
• Access Tourist satisfaction and motivation
• Economic and social benefits of Access Tourism
• Access Tourism as an important factor in tourism sustainability
• Relationship of Access tourism to Health, Wellness, and Medical Tourism
• Opportunities for Access Tourism legacy development around major events such as RWC2011

Bill Forrester, of Travability, has posted a response on Tour Watch to the article yesterday on this website about Access Tourism being mentioned in the NZ House of Commons.  Here is Bill’s  post:

“Sandra Rhodda recently posted an extract from a speech in the New Zealand parliament  which acknowledged the infrastructure built in Australia for the 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Unless the underlying culture of both the Tourism Industry and the Tourism authorities changes during the lead up to these events to embody an inclusive philosophy then at the end of the event we will still be left with just a collection of accessible infrastructure.  While New Zealand acknowledges that Australia has a plethora of accessible built infrastructure where we are failing is in the promotion and understanding of its use and the growing significance of the market. It is one thing to build the infrastructure for events like the Olympic Games or Rugby World Cup but a totally different thing to incorporate Access Travel into the mainstream. That is where Australia has failed and where New Zealand faces potentially the same problem. Once the Rugby World Cup is over the the focus will be lost unless the operators of the Accessible Infrastructure realise its market potential and adopt a truly inclusive attitude to all travellers regardless of their ability. Australia still relies on third party NGO’s to maintain databases for the access tourist because it hasn’t taught the industry itself how to incorporate accessible information into their mainstream advertising and information sites.  The debate has to shift away from access to true inclusion and as I keep saying Tourism Authorities need to lead that push not abrogate their responsibility to the disability sector. The Rugby World Cup affords an opportunity to start taking about inclusive experiences not about just creating an accessible environment.”

We could not agree with Bill more: there is also in NZ a lot of accessible infrastructure (see Bill talking about it here and here), but unless the industry adopts an inclusive attitude and promotes this infrastructure, it may as well not exist.  An examination of websites for access information for 42 of our most important museums and galleries, for example, shows that 69% have no access information, and most of the others have inadequate  information .  As to Rugby World Cup 2011, a number of cultural events have been planned to coincide with this sports festival.  An examination of the 45 websites for these events shows that 86% have no information about access.  Does this mean that 69% of our museums and galleries, and 86% of cultural events coinciding with RWC2011 have no access for the disabled?  Surely not!

During a speech in the House of Representatives this week (Third Reading of the Rugby World Cup 2011 Empowering Bill, 16/11/2010) Rahui Katene, MP for Te Tai Tonga, who had discussed Access Tourism in the house before, again spoke on this subject. She said: 

We have spoken about the need for the Rugby World Cup to be accessible and leave New Zealand with a legacy of accessible infrastructure for the growing access tourism market.  And I want to refer to our partners across the ditch, who have led the way in respect of access tourism.  Australia was left with a legacy of an accessible environment after it hosted the Olympic Games in Sydney in 2000. Australia now has the ability to cater for the growing access tourism market, estimated to be worth $A4.8 billion a year. The access tourism market in New Zealand is estimated to be worth $NZ1 billion a year.

 Access tourism is tourism, travel, and hospitality which takes account of the access needs of all people with permanent or temporary disabilities, older people, and anyone else who needs improved access (such as parents with prams). Access tourism presents a major economic opportunity and is growing in popularity in many parts of the world because of increasing numbers of post World War II baby boomers wishing to travel who are ageing and therefore experiencing a degree of disability.  An accessible event needs to be accessible at every point of the journey. It starts with being able to confidently book on-line in the knowledge that the details on accessibility are reliable and consistent. Poor information acts as a barrier and discourages people with access needs to travel. Every aspect of transport and accommodation, as well as the event itself, need to be accessible.  So, finally, the opportunity exists with the Rugby World Cup to create an accessible environment for all to enjoy a great game of rugby.

The New Zealand Government and Air New Zealand are to pump another $1.2 million into promoting New Zealand as a tourist destination in the wealthy Japanese market, which has seen numbers decline sharply since a peak 10 years ago writes Vernon Small in Tokyo. At the same time the big Japanese tourism operator JTB is planning to lift the number of charter flights it operates to New Zealand from 14 to 60.  Numbers of Japanese visitors to New Zealand have dropped from more than 180,000 a decade ago to 88,000 currently. Hopefully, New Zealand will target the older age group in this, the world’s oldest country.  The population over 65 in Japan is currently 22% or about 27 million, those aged 61 to 63 number 18 million (Invest Japan), and ageing in Japan is happening at a greater rate than elsewhere (Reuters).  The mean and median age in years is about 44.5 (IPSS). According to an article in the Nikkei in August, Japanese aged 60-70 are emerging as an important source of economic vitality, as they are proving to be active spenders keen on making the most of their post-retirement years (Silver Group Asia). Data clearly shows that older consumers are more eager to spend than those younger than them. In 2009, consumption by people age 60 or older grew 1.2% from the previous year despite the economic slump. But spending by people under 30 plunged 7.3% amid anxiety about the future.

Yesterday, Access Tourism NZ received an email request for information from Paul W for help finding holiday places and accommodation for a wheelchair user planning a trip to New Zealand.  Paul wants to visit the North Island with his wife and two sons.  Therefore, Paul is actually planning a trip for four people, and if he is not satisfied that the trip will be a success for himself as a wheelie, NZ may loose out on four visitors.  Below is our response to him.

Dear Paul,

Thank you for your email asking for help in planning a trip to New Zealand for a wheelchair user.  I am sorry to inform you that there is no comprehensive and reliable information in one place that you need to plan such a trip.   I know that for a person with a disability, planning a big trip is even more fraught than for someone who does not have a disability.  The reason I do not have the information you need is that here in NZ, anyone can say they are wheelchair accessible and there is no quality rating system that ensures that their claims are true.  For example, tourism operators such as accommodation providers often think they are accessible when they are not.  It is not that they are being deceitful; it is just that they have no idea of what true access is, and so I often get emails from people who have turned up at an accommodation provider or eatery they have been told is accessible only to find that it is not.  I also receive email enquiries such as yours from around the world steadily, and have to provide the same answers.  The solution to this problem is that NZ must begin to take Access Tourism seriously if we are to adequately cater for what I believe will be a growing demand.

There are a few sources of information about Access Tourism in NZ, but some of these must be used with caution.  They are:

1. Accomobility, which lists accessible accommodation.  While this is a step forward, I should caution you that all accommodations are self-assessed by the owner/operator, and my research – and anecdotal information from many people – show that operators think their premises are accessible when they are not (this is mentioned on the site).  Therefore, I would advise always checking with operators about your specific needs before booking any of these accommodations.
2. Each of the major centres and some of the smaller centres have general information about access for PwDs – if you hope to visit these, I suggest you look at the council websites or contact the councils involved, or the disabilities NGOs (such as WEKA, CCS Disability Action, Disabled Persons Assembly, which has a number of links, etc).
3. Some centres have specific information about access for visitors.  For example, Wellington has a group of accommodations and a group of sights and activities subheaded “accessible”, but I assume these are self-assessed as there is no information to the contrary.  Wellington City Council also has an access map.    Auckland is, to my knowledge, the only city in the North Island that has begun to actually professionally access visitor features for access on any scale. For example, 15 accommodations are assessed here, and assessment of some dining, entertainment, transport etc occur elsewhere on the website.  Auckland also has an access map (a bit dated and I believe being updated), and there are definitely moves in that city around the whole issue of visitor access.  Kudos to them.  Whangarei, north of Auckland, has access information on the CCS site, and an access map.  I am unsure if the accommodations etc were professionally assessed for access.  The CCS site also has information about access to recreation in Auckland, and Auckland parks.  
4. The New Zealand Tourism Guide – one of NZ’s largest and most important guides – has a page of “Accessible Accommodation”.  However, a random check of a few the accommodations listed shows that their websites have no information about access, or very little.  Again, as the NZ Tourism Guide itself warns you, it is wise to check if booking.  They also tell you that “.. it is important to check whether accommodations welcome your guide dog……..”  This is in spite of the fact that to refuse a guide dog would be in breach of the Human Rights Act!
5. Other websites also list accommodations etc that are accessible, but the same caution applies.

I hope some of this is helpful,

Best regards

Sandra

Auckland City

New Zealand’s first Access Tourism Conference, held by the NZ Tourism Research Institute October 4, 2010 at Auckland University of Technology, had excellent post-conference press and blog pickup, and Access Tourism was mentioned elsewhere.  Pickup included: National Business Review, Business Scoop, Voxy, Silobreaker, the Otago Daily Times, the Rolling Rains Report, the Bill Forrester Linked In discussion group, Travability on LinkedIn and on the Travability website, the Apparalyzed Forums, the Low Visionary website, the Accessible Tourism Research website, Travel Memo, on the NZ Maori Party website, the European Network for Access Tourism website, the eTravel Blackboard website, Accessibility News International, Inside Tourism eZine 14/10/2010 (article by Anne McLaren) (IT807), the Campus Daily website, the American Association of Retires Persons website, and in the Tourism Business magazine (October November 2010, “Could you be ignoring 11% of the market’.  Pp 16-17.  Author: Annie Gray, editor).  In addition, Access Tourism was mentioned in a speech to parliament by Rahui Katene MP  for Te Tai Tonga, and the Minister for Disability Issues includes Access Tourism in two speeches; article here.  These speeches were then picked up by various media and NGO websites.

In a first for New Zealand, McLaren Brown Publishing is now including information on accessibility for people with disabilities in all its tourism publications.  “We see Access Tourism as essential information for all visitors both international and domestic, ” says Publisher Anne McLaren. “ It is a growth market which we cannot afford to ignore. ”  New for the visitor is The Little Green Kiwi guide to New Zealand with a map and useful website links for Access Tourism.   ”There is not a lot of information out there about Access Tourism in New Zealand”, says McLaren, “and some of that which exists is unreliable.  We hope that more tourism businesses in New Zealand will become reliably accessible and that information about access becomes more available so that we can begin to include that information in our publications.”  The Little Green Kiwi is a handbook of information about New Zealand and its region with an emphasis on the eco-friendly.

Order your free copy on www.littlegreenkiwi.co.nz

The International Business Times reports that eight-to-ten years ago, medical tourism was hardly large enough to be noticed. Today, more than 200,000 patients per year visit Singapore alone and nearly half of them are from the Middle East (source: Travel Memo).  This year, approximately half-a-million foreign patients are expected to travel to India for medical care, up from 150,000 in 2002. Factors that have accelerated medical tourism include the high cost of health care, long wait times for some procedures, the ease and affordability of international travel, and improvements in both technology and standards of care in many countries (Travel Memo). 

An Australian report just out (Health Tourism in Australia: Supply, Demand and Opportunities) presents a detailed examination of health and wellness tourism in that country.   The research suggests that Australia would benefit from developing niche medical tourism offerings based on Australian medical strengths/expertise.  Meanwhile, New Zealand continues to lag in even considering the development

Tariana Turia – New Zealand’s Minister for Disabilities Issues – told a meeting in Whanganui that the Ministerial Committee on Disability Issues last week held a “useful discussion about the concept of Access Tourism – that is tourism which enables all people to access accommodation, travel, information, events, without any structural impediments to doing so (New Zealand government website).  She went on to say “The Rugby World Cup provides us with an opportune time to look at how we can make our country a leader in accessible tourism.”  Praising Whanganui for their recent disability strategy, she noted that the strategy had at  least three goals that “are about ensuring accommodation options, recreational and cultural activities, and information about disabled peoples is accessible and widely used throughout the region”.  She also noted that the Horizons Regional Council website has some good information on transport options for disabled people. “It might be an interesting process to go through, to have an audit on the online facility, the signage, the venues, pathways, toilets, transport options and so on. Ask yourself the question: what can Whanganui offer that will make a trip a pleasure rather than a burden?”  Minister Turia also mentioned Access Tourism in a speech to the Disability Support Services Consumer Consortium, and went on to say that she has “asked the group from the Accessible Rugby World Cup to come back to the Ministerial Committee later this month, to really see how we can lift our game to ensure accessibility is a target in everyone’s planning” (New Zealand Government website).  Access Tourism New Zealand hopes that outcomes of the Ministerial Committee on Disability Issues discussions – particularly those related to Access Tourism – will be made known publicly. The committee was formed in 20 months ago in February 2009, and so far, outcomes of discussions around Access Tourism have not been reported in any depth.

The following is from a speech to the NZ parliament by Rahui Katene, MP for Te Tai Tonga about the Rugby World Cup 2011 Empowering Bill

“… the Bill doesn’t mention the whole concept of Access Tourism.  The message from Rugby World Cup advocates is that the provisions in the bill are simply about providing hospitality for the tens of thousands of visitors who arrive. ……….  But hospitality could also extend towards ensuring we are truly prepared for the influx of overseas visitors, through such specific and tangible provisions as:

- Ensuring the Rugby World Cup Website is accessible – by that I mean being able to quickly navigate the Tourism New Zealand site to find out information about accommodation/ airports/ transport and parking which will ensure disabled visitors, the elderly and others seeking to even gain access to the venues will be supported

- We could be creating a common brand – Be Accessible – Aotearoa would welcome all peoples to the world of the 2011 Rugby World Cup

- And we could do all this tomorrow – by auditing the main tourist accommodation venues to ensure we have a set of standards around what you have to have in order to cater for all.

This is a massive area of work that isn’t being adequately addressed and we would like to see that improved.”

Inside Tourism reports that JetStar’s latest TV commercial highlights actors who are older than usual which saw CEO Bruce Buchanan being congratulated. “There are images of an older age group in the ad which is wonderful to see and we request you to have a word with TNZ (Tourism New Zealand, which markets NZ to the world) about it,” he was told by Carolyn Deuchar of the New Zealand Tourism Research Institute (NZTRI). “I’ll take that up,” he replied.   NZTRI has a Research Programme Area devoted to Access Tourism (tourism, travel, and hospitality for people with disabilities, seniors, and Baby Boomers who will experience increasing disability with age).  Guy King of Select Tours said he endorsed the idea of marketing to Baby Boomers. He said “TNZ has failed miserably because you get a lot of advertising showing bungy jumping and skydiving and they have largely ignored the baby boomer market.   Yet that is where a lot of the money is and that is something that needs to be addressed. I would strongly  recommend it.”  Tourism Auckland outgoing CEO Graeme Osborne added: “I can assure you that TNZ has modified its thinking to reflect that. The new broom at TNZ is taking into account those market characteristics.”  Access Tourism NZ is pleased to see that TNZ has modified its thinking and looks forward to seeing the results of this modification.

Access Tourism NZ Conference Photo courtesy Pascal Languillon

The 80 delegates at the recently held inaugural Access Tourism New Zealand conference held at Auckland University of Technology were ask to fill in a short survey to help the New Zealand Tourism Research Institute better plan for subsequent such conferences. The results of the survey are now available.  Delegates came from the private sector (36), NGOs (18), local government (14), the public sector (6), and academic institutions (6). Just over half (41) of the delegates filled in the form in part or in full. Of these, most were either “very much satisfied” or “very satisfied” with the conference content (91%), speakers and presentations (85%), accessibility (91%), and the overall experience (90%). All except one of the remainder were “satisfied”. Eighty eight percent would like to see the Access Tourism conference become an annual event (10% were undecided). More stated that the main reason for attending the conference was for the content (46%) than anything else, although personal and professional development (22%) and networking opportunities (20%) were also important. Delegates learnt about the conference mainly through e-mailed newsletters or referrals (both 40%).

When asked for comments, delegates stated that the most beneficial aspects of the conference were awareness raising, information gathering, and networking, while suggestions for improving the conference included avoiding duplication, expanding the topics covered, having the presentation material available prior to the conference, more time for group discussions and interactions, splitting into streams, and running the conference over two days. Delegates wanted to see more government and industry representation (for example, it was noted by many that no-one from Qualmark, Tourism New Zealand, major industry organizations such as the Tourism Industry Organization, or the Ministry of Tourism – now the Tourism Strategy Group – were there). Themes or topics suggested for future conferences included providing solutions and ways forward, case studies of access improvement at businesses, inclusiveness in the wider community and what that means, best practice in access in the various tourism sub-sectors and on websites, government initiatives and frameworks for coordination, disability awareness training, consumer research, and disabilities segmentation.

For the full list of comments, download the attachment here.  Videos are now available here.