ENAT (European Network for Accessible Tourism) reports that TRANSED 2010 will include a technical session on accessible marine travel featuring cruise ship, ferry vessel, and terminal design as part of the Accessible Tourism Track.  In view of the recent passage of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the construction, acquisition and operation all cruise and ferry terminal and vessels of signatory nations (including New Zealand) should comply with its accessibility provisions.

The following are keynote speakers:

• Katherine McGuinness (Kessler McGuinness and Associates, LLC, Newton, MA):  expert in accessible ferry transportation; will discuss key issues in accessible ferry docks, and a successful negotiated rulemaking process that resulted in state and national standards for accessible water transportation;
• Douglas Playter, (Principal Project Manager, CH2M HILL, Seattle): prominent US cruise and ferry terminal designer/manager; will outline factors in accessible cruise terminal design and operation. Drawing on his extensive experience in over 35 ferry and cruise terminal improvement projects in North America, he will provide examples of cruise terminals embodying system-wide and intermodal transfer accessibility in accordance with the applicable ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) standards and guidelines;
• David Chapman (Program Manager, AMSEC LLC, a naval architecture and marine engineering design firm): expert on passenger vessel accessibility: will provide the companion technical piece on accessibility factors in cruise ship design, describe cruise ship universal design and construction features in adherence with the applicable US ADA accessibility standards and guidelines;
• Wanda Harbin (Customer Relations Officer, Marine Atlantic, Canada):  will discuss the importance of staff and personnel training to enhance accessibility in the marine transport systems;
• Clement Lau (Assistant Commissioner (Tourism), Tourism Commission, Commerce and Economic Development Bureau, SAR Government of Hong Kong): will discuss “The Hong Kong Cruise Market and the New Cruise Terminal at Kai Tak”

There will also be many tourism related presentations and numerous conference papers on the demographic profile and travel patterns of the well-travelled baby boomers and persons with disabilities. Greater understanding of this emerging market segment will help the marine transport industry respond to their growing needs through adopting innovative designs, products, services and staff training.  The main conference and exhibition will be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, 1 Expo Drive, Wan Chai, Hong Kong, June 5-8, 2010.

The Australian Disabilities and Development Consortium (ADDC) will be discussing accessible tourism at their upcoming conference (Darwin,15-17 September 2010). The discussion will be included in a session that looks as the ways in which leisure activities can improve empowerment and social justice. As well as tourism, such leisure activities include sports, involvement in the arts, music, dance, and drama. The ADDC is an international network focusing attention, expertise, and action on disability issues in developing countries and so the conference is very firmly based in providing better access to services and social justice in developing countries – specifically the Pacific Islands and Asia.

Brian Seaman of Tourism for All UK reports on the ENAT website:  On Friday the 12th March, ITB Berlin, the largest tourism trade exhibition of its kind, hosted a two hour workshop on accessible tourism. In front of an audience of 80 trade representatives, panellists discussed how Europe is meeting the needs of disabled visitors, followed by an in-depth Questions and Answers session hosted by SAT 1 TV presenter Bettina Cramer. Principally this session was about good practice and how the requirements of disabled people are being met in Europe, the barriers to tourism for disabled people and how these might be overcome.  Participants included:  Dirk Janczewski, Founder of Barrier-Free-Tourism.eu,  Lillian Muller, President of ENAT (European Network for Accessible Tourism), Mohammed Al-Tarawneh Vice-Chairperson of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and Honorary ENAT Member,  Dr Rudiger Leidner – President of the Coordination Board on Tourism of the German Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired, and Angel David Herrera González – Counsellor of Tourism for Arona in Tenerife.         In her opening speech, Muller pointed out that:

• Access Tourism is the fastest growing market in tourism
•  the Access Tourism market is equivalent to at least 630 million overnight stays in Europe per year (European Commission figures)
• 130 million in Europe alone want Access Tourism products
• Access Tourism visitors are willing to spend more money on their holidays, like to travel in the low season, are more loyal to destinations, and often travel accompanied by family and friends
• Catering for the Acces Tourism market can lead to increased turnover, a prolongeds season, and new job opportunities

Auckland’s newest railway station has won high praise from blind and partially-sighted people.   ”The Newmarket station’s only one week old and so it’s great to get such positive feedback from the blind community so early on. They are an important part of Newmarket and so we’re delighted they’ve give the station the thumbs up,” says Cameron Brewer, chief executive of the Newmarket Business Association.

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e-Travel Blackboard reports that Jetstar, which recently apologised about  its wheelchair policy, has now had to apologise to a visually impaired couple who were not allowed to book their guide dog onto their flight. 

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Attendees at World Travel Market’s first-ever session devoted to the disabled market heard from a leading specialist tour operator and web design agency.

Amar Latif, founder and director of specialist tour operator Traveleyes, said that his business targeted destinations on their appeal rather than their accessibility. “We choose interesting destination and tailor the trip to make them more sensory,” he said.

Latif is well known for his appearance on the BBC2′s documentary series Beyond Boundaries, which followed a group of disabled people crossing jungles in central America.  Latif said that Traveleyes is the first commercially-driven business to operate in this sector, rather than a charity.  Traveleyes tours have an equal number of blind and partially sighted people, with the sighted people getting a discount on the cost of the holiday in return for acting as a guide. He was quick to point out that the sighted persons are not intended to act as “carers” for their companions. “All they do is help them experience the destination.”  To see a clip about Traveleyes that appeared on television in New Zealand, click Traveleyes

Lee Rotbart, director of marketing for web design agency Reading Room, said that businesses which didn’t make their websites accessible were “shutting the door on up to 10 million UK customers”. Disabled people are also more likely to shop online that the general population, she said.  She argued that all web sites should be accessible because web sites should be simple and straightforward. “Take your mouse out and see if you can navigate around with tabs. If you can’t, then neither can a lot of your customers,” she said.

Similarly, images need to be tagged in order for screen-reader software to work, so co-ordination between the various departments involved in designing a site is essential.  But the overwhelming reason for making a site accessible, she said, “is that they get ranked higher in Google, and that is how 90%+ of customers will find your web site.”

News and views about  tourism, travel, and leisure that is accessible to people with disabilities, seniors, and Baby Boomers who will experience increasing disability as they age.

Blog developed by Sandra Rhodda, Director, Access Tourism New Zealand

Views are strictly my own