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

Tourism South East (TSE) in the UK – which covers eight counties – has over 2000 industry and 70 local authority members.  Tourism in the region is worth in excess of £13 billion and supports over 300,000 jobs.   TSE estimates that the disabled market is worth £40 billion per annum, and that over 2.5 million disabled people travel regularly.  As they often travel with families and carers the number of access tourists increases dramatically.   TSE has funding to deliver a series of subsidised Destination Access Audits, mini audits, bespoke access workshops, and Welcome All courses across the South East over the next four years.  It also used funding from the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) to undertake some  Accessibility Case Studies to understand how businesses have benefited from making their properties more accessible in the run up to the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics in London.   These include:

• Heath Farm, Lewes.  A four star self- catering property that has achieved the National Accessible Scheme Mobility Grade 2 award, is a TSE member and whose owners have benefited from Welcome All training. 
• The Roald Dahl Museum, Buckinghamshire.  Won the Enjoy England Award for Small Visitor Attraction Of The Year 2008, is a TSE member, has taken significant steps towards welcoming all customers and has benefited from signing up to Hosting The World.
• Holiday Inn, Windsor/Maidenhead. The Holiday Inn Windsor/Maidenhead has achieved the National Accessible Scheme Mobility and Hearing Grade 1. The Holiday Inn Accessibility Manager recently presented at a Tourism South East and Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead accessibility seminar at Legoland.
• Winchester Cathedral, Hampshire. Winchester Cathedral is Winchester’s principal tourist attraction and has dominated the city for nearly a thousand years.  Visitors to the city are largely drawn by its well-preserved historical centre and making its key attractions accessible to everyone is important for the city’s ambition to be a world-class visitor destination. Winchester Cathedral is a Tourism South East member and staff have benefited from Tourism South East’s Welcome to Excellence and e-animation training courses.

Videos of some of these case studies can be found here.

TSE also conducted text case studies to provide an insight into the benefits of businesses becoming more accessible in the run up to 2012.  Continue reading:

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A just-released report commissioned by the UK Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills, and the Office for Disability Issues presents arguments for why business should improve access for people with disabilities.   The “2012 Legacy for Disable People: Inclusive and Accessible Business” is the result of work by Atkins Management Consultants who reviewed existing messages and communications to SMEs about people with disabilities, developed more compelling messages, and looked at the case for focusing on the disabled as customers.  In summary, the report found that:

• Disabled consumers in the UK are a significant (10.6 billion people) but poorly addressed market worth £80 billion p.a.
• 83% of disabled people have to take business to more accessible providers
• Disabled customers may account for up to 20% of the customer base at an average business
• The risk of losing business to a more accessible competitor is high as consumer experiences of disabled people affect the choices of family and friends
• Business benefits associated with better accessibility include a rapidly expanding customer base, increases in revenues and profits, loyal customers, improved reputation, and a distinct competitive advantage

 The report notes the strong link between age and the prevalence of disability and that, as the population ages, there will be more disability in future.The main barriers to SMEs improving access include low levels of awareness about the business opportunities of improving access, misconceptions around the cost of improving access and what access means, misconceptions and discomfort about disability and awareness, fear of getting it wrong, dominance of legal compliance issue.

 UK Ministers have urged business to see improving access as a way of becoming more profitable in preparation for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in London in 2010. One million disabled visitors are expected in London for the games bringing with them millions of pounds in business.

The Algarve Tourist Board (ERTA) has appealed to regional Town Halls to collaborate in helping broaden the scope of what can be offered to disabled tourists in order to elevate the region as a point of reference within that particular market.  To achieve this goal the ERTA has appealed to regional Town Halls to “co-finance a study that will analyse the destination in terms of being an ‘Accessible Destination’, therefore allowing, “by the end of the year, for the ‘Accessible’ brand to be implemented” throughout the region, under the slogan “One Algarve For All”.   Almeida Pires, Vice President of ERTA told the European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT), “We want an inclusive Algarve where accessibility is a key concern. Therefore, we have launched a challenge to the public sector to become an example to the private sector, by taking stock of what is on offer in each area in terms of accessible tourism and creating across the board attractions within all tourist products.  The study will culminate in the preparation of interventions to be applied on the ground, for the benefit of people who have special needs”.

This will include the creation of special access paths that allow wheelchairs to be used on beaches; the availability of specially-adapted wheelchairs that move on sand and by the water’s edge, as well as re-organising car parks and adapting toilets.  “But these measures can only be implemented after existing problems have been detected and solutions found, to adapt tourist products and services so they have the appropriate conditions for universal access”, Pires stressed, highlighting that there is  “urgency in moving forward with this technical study, as part of the Strategic Plan for Promoting Accessibility in the Algarve”.

A two-day international seminar on marketing Access Tourism, and Access Tourism development will be held in Hyvärilä, Nurmes, Finland on the 15th and 16^th September.  The seminar will concentrate on providing information about accessible tourism businesses to  consumers, and the use of classifications and standards as a solution to information transfer challenges will be discussed.  The programme includes a tour of North Karelian resorts which have invested in accessible tourism services, including the Lieksan Matkakaverit resort in Ruunaa, Lieksa and the gorgeous Neitikoski rapids and to the Erä-Eero wild animal observation hut in the Lieksa wilderness. Park Superintendent Kyösti Tuhkalainen will accompany the group in Ruunaa and demonstrate accessible solutions of Metsähallitus.

About 50 people attended a seminar on Access Tourism given in mid-May by Sandra Rhodda of the New Zealand Tourism Research Institute (NZTRI)and Director of Access Tourism New Zealand.  The seminar was held at Auckland University of Technology.  (AUT).    Audience members included tourism operators, business people, academics, and individuals from local councils, Qualmark, a government member, and people from a variety of NGOs.   Rhodda gave a summary of why New Zealand needs to develop an Access Tourism sector, mainly from the perspective of the economic imperative to do so.  She also gave examples of developments in Access Tourism in the rest of the world, pointed out how New Zealand is lagging in this area, and discussed the kinds of research that New Zealand needs to do to get such an industry sector going.  To see the presentation, go here. 

The seminar was a prelude to the up and coming one day conference on Access Tourism - also to be run by NZTRI/AUT at the central Auckland campus – on October 4th.  The conference will look at various aspects of Access Tourism, including some of the following: the current situation NZ and worldwide, website access and information best practice, government strategy, policy, and obligations, best practice in transport , accommodation, and attractions access, legal aspects, and quality rating for Access Tourism products in New Zealand.  It will also include brainstorming sessions on strategies for advancing the development of Access Tourism in New Zealand and developing collaboration as a tool to advance that development. These topics are based on those most popularly picked from a list of possible topics in an online survey. Registration and programme details will be available shortly on this website and on the NZTRI website.

Research which led to the setting up of the Sydney for All website has been described by Simon Darcy of University of Technology Sydney in an article for eTurboNews.  The article – and an accompanying video – focus on experiencing Sydney from the point of view of the Access Tourism market.  The research looked not simply at what tourists with disabilities  ‘can’ or ‘can’t do,’ but at the quality of experience they have when they partake of Sydney’s quintessential tourism attractions.  The starting point of the study was to consider what any tourist visiting Sydney would  want to experience.  The next step involved discovering 20 accessible destination experiences that could be accessed by tourists with disabilities.  The Sydney For All website was created to provide quality information for visitors with access needs.  The website has received 20,000 hits from 110 countries in the last 18 months.  The report arising out of the research – Visitor Accessibility in Urban Centres – points out that tourists with access needs already account for 11% of tourist spending in Australia.

The report also uncovered opportunities for deeper understanding of the experience of tourists with access needs and to improve the service offerings. One bugbear, particularly for mobility-impaired travelers is finding suitable and enjoyable accommodation.

The USA National Centre on Accessibility, based at Indiana State University, promotes access and inclusion for people with disabilities in parks, recreation, and tourism.  The Centre was established in 1992 through a cooperative agreement with the National Park Service (with some functions similar to NZ’s Department of Conservation).   The Centre carries out research, training, technical assistance, and consultation.  The Centre focuses on universal design and practical accessibility solutions creating inclusive recreation opportunities for people of all abilities. Accessibility guidelines for outdoor developed areas managed by federal agencies are one step closer to becoming standards in the U.S.  Recently, a Draft Final Accessibility Guidelines for Federal Outdoor Areas was released by the U.S. Access Board, bringing the adoption of accessibility guidelines for outdoor areas closer to finalization and implementation under the Architectural Barriers Act.  This Act requires access to facilities designed, built, altered, or leased with Federal funds. Passed by Congress in 1968, it marks one of the first efforts to ensure access to the built environment. The Access Board develops and maintains accessibility guidelines under this law. The guidelines will apply to sites developed or altered by Federal land management agencies, including the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, and Army Corps of Engineers.  The Board intends to develop similar guidelines for outdoor developed areas controlled by non-Federal entities at a future date.

Scott Rains, Access Tourism hero, is featured in this month’s Universal Design Newsletter. In an article subtitled “Building the Case for Inclusive Tourism” (Access Tourism), Lindsey Scherloum describes how Rains, founder of the Rolling Rains Report, has brought together people in the field from across the world, and how he has been  a key player in developing Access Tourism nationally and internationally.  For the full article, read on…………………..

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A German study has revealed that people with physical disabilities – who already take 1.95 million trips per annum in Germany – comprise a considerable customer potential. Because of the ageing population and the increase in disability with age, the study predicts an increase in people with disabilities travelling, especially as future older generations will “place a far higher demand on their holidays and (will) perceive their personal mobility to be far more important than did previous generations” (Case study). The report encourages the German tourism industry to develop accessible tourism products and services in order to take advantage of this high growth market.

Simon Darcy

Dr. Simon Darcy has created a new blog on Accessible Tourism Research.   Simon is Associate Professor at the University of Technology, School of Leisure, Sport and Tourism, Sydney, Australia.  He has a worldwide reputation in the field of Access Tourism research, and in the fields of disability, ageing,  sport tourism, and diversity management.  An experienced mixed method interdisciplinary researcher, he seeks to apply the most appropriate research methods to the problem at hand. He has a significant publishing record.  All Simon’s research is industry linked. He is also involved in community advocacy projects and passionately believes in the rights of all people to fully participate in community life.

 The new blog seeks to explore the complexity of Access Tourism by presenting a brief history of the field through key documents and by presenting new research as it is published.

The upcoming 17^th International Conference on Information Technology and Travel Tourism (IFITT) in Lugano, Switzerland (10-12 February 2010) has a session devoted to Access Tourism.  The session, Accessibility, Inclusion, and Tourism Information, will be chaired by Franz Pühretmair (KI-I, Linnz).  Dr.  Pühretmair will also give a talk entitled  Enabling and Supporting Accessible Tourism is a Chance and not an Obligation: Areas of Support, Prospects and Advantages.  Other speakers will include Shadi Abou-Zahra of World Wide Web Consortium (Accessible Web Design: Opportunities and Business Benefits), Elina Michopoulou of University of Surrey (Addressing Disabled User Requirements: A Destination Perspective), Anja Lenz of Blue Bird (Developing Packages for Accessible Holidays – a Practical Approach), and Markus Lassnig, of eMotion, the Competence Centre for ICT-Research for the Tourism, Sport and Leisure Industry (An Initiative for Accessibility in Austrian Tourism Bringing together the Tourism Industry, Disabled Stakeholders and the Political Environment: Achievements, Lessons Learned and Pitfalls).

A second session, Sustainability and Inclusion through ICTs, will include a talk by Wolfgang Drews, University of Trier (eTourism for all? Online Travel Planning of Disabled People), and other talks about ICT and Sustainable Tourism.  Papers of interest to Access Tourism in other sessions include Testing Silver Surfers (Mirski, Groth, Zangerl, and Leahr), and  MediaTurDownloader: an Accessible Tourist Assistant Application (Roig, Pérez, Bibiloni, and Palmer).

The UK Department for Culture, Media, and Sports has launched “Accessible Tourism: Making it work for your Business” on behalf of the Accessible Tourism Stakeholder Forum for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

It sets out the business case for Accessible Tourism and the economic potential in providing better services and encouraging more tourism from people with disabilities (PwDs). It was launched by Margaret Hodge, Minister for Culture, Creative Industries, and Tourism who in the Foreward points out that

“No sensible person in business makes life more difficult for their customers. The most successful businesses make life easier.  By making your own hotel, guesthouse or tourist site more accessible, you are instantly making your business more attractive to at least 11 million potential disabled visitors from here in England, and millions more from abroad.” 

In fact the the number of PwDs worldwide is currently about 600-900 million, which represents a significant market

According to the report, there is a huge economic potential in providing better services and encouraging more tourism from PwDs. New figures from the UK Tourism Survey highlight the importance of this sector: 12 % of all overnight domestic trips in England between January and June 2009 were made by visitors with access needs, or those accompanying someone who had access needs. This amounts to 5.7 million trips, contributing almost £1bn to the economy in just six months.

PwDs tend to take longer holiday breaks than the average – four days as opposed to the average length of stay of three nights – and therefore tend to spend more money per trip (£216 as opposed to £197 overall). Once PwDs have found accommodation that suits their needs, they can be loyal customers returning year on year.  They tend not to travel alone and are often accompanied by carers, family or friends. Over 50 per cent travel with a partner, 20 per cent with a child and between 21-25 per cent with a companion2. This will increase occupancy and bring in extra revenue.

Operators are reminded that with an increasing number of customers likely to be of an older age (and therefore increasingly disabled), they may need to make some improvements to their facilities. “The over 50s buy 40 per cent more holidays than the under 30s, averaging five or six breaks per year.”  

The potential is great. “Nearly half (48.6 per cent) of those with a limiting disability and just over a third (34.6 per cent) of those with a non-limiting disability did not take a holiday that lasted at least a week in 2007/08, and that when asked 15 per cent and 23 per cent respectively said that they would consider going on holiday in the UK if the conditions were right. If all of those who said they were prepared to take a holiday were encouraged to do so then this would also boost volume and value of tourism for UK businesses.” (DCMS)

A bibliography of “Disability and Tourism” (third edition, May 2005), compiled by Simon Darcy is available on the University of Technology Sydney (UTS, Australia) website. The bibliography includes material on tourism demand, supply, regulation, and coordination perspectives found in theses, market research reports, academic refereed journal articles, texts, and conference proceedings, and government policy/reports and third sector reports.  Professor Darcy is an Access Tourism New Zealand hero.  An Associate Professor in the School of Leisure, Sport, and Tourism, UTS, he teaches and researches in sport, tourism, and diversity management, is author of the website “Accessible Tourism Research“, and has been involved in, for example, the setting up of the website “Sydney for All”.

In September 2007 The Department for Culture, Media and Sport, U.K. (DCMS) published Winning, A tourism strategy for 2012 and beyond. This sets out an ambitious programme of work to increase and improve access to services and create a warm welcome for disabled visitors in the UK. In April 2008 DCMS set up the Accessible Tourism Stakeholder’s Forum DCMS to help achieve these goals. Members represent a wide cross-section of the industry: central and regional government and partner organisations, visitor accommodation, visitor attractions, passenger transport, the hospitality industry and disability charities and organisations – including the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

The Forum is closely connected to the objective of the Government Olympic Executive (GOE) to deliver an accessible Olympic Games and a lasting Paralympic legacy. It has links with London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) and Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA). It fully supports the Government’s framework for a legacy for disabled people announced by the Rt Hon Tessa Jowell MP and the Minister for the Disabled Jonathan Shaw MP on 3 December.  

DCMS has an on-line survey on behalf of the Accessible Tourism Stakeholders Forum seeking information from disabled people in the UK about their tourism experiences. They will for instance be able to say exactly what they expect when they stay overnight in accommodation or take a day trip to an attraction such as an historic house, garden and zoo and give details of any problems faced. If you have a disability and are interested in taking part in this important work to help businesses to improve tourism services for disabled people the survey can be found at www.online.qfrs.co.uk/dcms.

The questionnaire will be analysed electronically so it is important that it is completed on-line but if you cannot use a computer or are unable to enlist the help of a person who can, call 0121 344 4848 and ask for Ian Clarke who will send you a copy of the questionnaire in the post.

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) is targeting Baby Boomer and retiree travellers because they have the time to travel.  So writes Nanchanok Wongsamuth in the Bangkok Post.  It will also go after young travellers who visit more than one country.  ASEAN is attempting to redefine the collaborative marketing of the region as a tourism destination with support from the United States.  A new strategy was developed after previous attempts to promote  as a holiday destination had poor results, said R.J. Gurley, the director of  ASEAN Competitiveness Enhancement (ACE).  ACE was set up by Nathan Associates, a consulting firm hired by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to help the regional bloc achieve its goal of establishing the  Economic Community by 2015.

The ACE programme identified tourism as the second core sector for development after textiles and clothing.  The ACE project is fully funded by USAID with a total budget of US$7.9 million over five years, split between textiles and apparel and tourism. ACE is planning to put $500,000 into online marketing in the first year, said Mr Gurley.

In January 2009, the ACE project signed with the ASEAN Travel Association (ASEANTA), to co-operatively develop a new research-based marketing strategy. A new website, southeastasia.org, will be formally launched at the  Tourism Forum, which runs from Jan 21-28 in Brunei. Its tagline – “Southeast Asia: Feel the Warmth” – and logo will be based on the theme of cultural diversity and warm hospitality.

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Biliotheca Alexandrina, Egypt

The Anna Lindh Foundation sponsors cultural exchange between disabled persons in the Euro-Mediterranean region.  It is an organisation shared and resourced by over forty Euro-Mediterranean countries, to bring people together as a way to promote dialogue between cultures and respect for diversity. To fulfill this objective, the Foundation leads regional initiatives in the Euromed space and supports local activities carried out by organisations based across civil society.

The Foundation is supporting the project “Rights of disabled in tourism, recreation and cultural exchange“, by the Egyptian organisation Caritas – Egypt Center for Training and Studies on Disability.  The project will be inaugurated at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Alexandria on 2 December 2009 under the auspices of the governor, Adel Labib.  In attendance will be over 150 officials and experts in the field of disability, culture and tourism.

The Project Coordinator, Alfred Georges, said: “The project aims to strengthen the rights of disabled people in tourism, culture and knowledge through a range of cultural and artistic activities, which promote cultural exchange, tourism and recreation between disabled people in four Egyptian provinces; Cairo, Alexandria, Minya and Qena, and four different Euromed countries; Lebanon, Jordan, Tunisia and France “.

Takayama

The UN has sponsored Access Tourism New Zealand director Sandra Rhodda to speak about accessibility and tourism in New Zealand at the upcoming Economic and Social Commission for Asia Pacific congress (ESCAP) in Takayama, Japan.  The three day congress (24-26 November, 2009) will explore ways to create and sustain development of inclusive and accessible communities in Asia and the Pacific by learning from the experiences of the City of Takayama and other communities in the region. 

ESCAP has promoted Access Tourism in the region at several regional meetings before (Bali, Indonesia, in 2000, Hainan Islands, China, in 2006 and Bangkok, Thailand, in 2007).  This year, the city of Takayama will act as a model for the congress because it has been successful in adapting for and promoting Access Tourism.  It is recognized nationally and internationally as a leading barrier-free city, attracting visitors from around the world and enjoying the economic impact of becoming an accessible tourism destination for an increasing number of visitors.

An assessment of 34 tourism-related businesses in Osoyoos, British Columbia Canada found that over half are not accessible for the disabled ( Paul Everest, Osoyoos Times, September 2009).    A similar study in New Zealand (Rhodda, 2006 ) found that one third of such businesses were not accessible.  However, the New Zealand study looked only at wheelchair access to businesses.  It is probable that if access for people with sight, hearing, and other impairments had been studies, as they were in the Osoyoos project, more would have been inaccessible.

The Osoyoos study involved a member of the Accessible Tourism Strategy audited 34 businesses in towns that are involved with the tourism industry.  Each business was rated on a three-point scale based on accessibility for people with mobility challenges, people who are visually impaired and people who have hearing impairments.  The strategy was spearheaded by 2010 Legacies Now, a provincial non-profit organization established in 2007 with a mandate to promote tourism in B.C. in the time leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver.

Richard Molyneux, a co-director for 2010 Legacies Now’s disabilities initiative, said 65 businesses in Osoyoos were approached for the audit and agreeing to participate was on a voluntary basis. He said 17 of the 34 businesses assessed were accommodation properties such as hotels and six of them received a rating of one or more.

One of 2010 Legacies Now’s goals is to promote B.C. as a premier travel destination for people with disabilities, Molyneux said, and 3,000 accessibility audits have taken place across the province since the project began.  Roughly 650 million people across the globe could benefit from accessible businesses, he said.  In North America alone, 58 million people could benefit from accessible businesses.