About

Tourism today is an extremely important social phenomenon that mobilizes millions of people around the world, especially in Europe, constituting not only a driver of economic development but also a critical element in improving knowledge, communication and the degree of relationship and respect between citizens of different countries. Within the European social model, tourism can be seen as a social good that should be available to all citizens, without the exclusion of any group of people, regardless of their personal, social, economic or other life circumstances.

One of the key areas where the tourism sector in Europe can increase its offerings of sustainable and higher quality products and services, with greater value for customers, is by making tourism offers and services “accessible for all”. This objective, when pursued effectively by destinations and businesses, can improve not only the national but mostly the regional and local tourism sector’s competitiveness and lead to increased market share. In particular, the provision of accessible tourism products and services opens up the market to the growing numbers of older visitors, disabled persons, people with long-term health conditions and families.

In parallel to the demand for Accessible Tourism, it was calculated that the market size in Europe was around 780 mill. trips in 2012. Yet the demand far outweighs the present market supply, creating opportunity for “early adopters”, relative to the inbound tourism market.

Looking at the European Disability Strategy 2010-2020, accessibility, participation and equality are three of the eight priority areas for the EU. Those three areas aim to make goods and services accessible to people with disabilities, allow them to enjoy all benefits of an EU citizenship, combat discrimination and promote equal opportunities. Making constant improvements in these areas will enable full and effective participation. This signals the political imperative of businesses enabling disabled citizens in the EU to participate fully in tourism, thereby allowing them to exercise their rights to choose travel destinations, without hindrance.

Through the analysis of the needs expressed by tourists with disabilities and access requirements, there is a clear and growing demand for accessible tourism products and services. This fact is confirmed by a growing awareness on the part of some tourism operators who are providing some of the new offers to cater for the demand coming from seniors and the segment of people with disabilities.

Accessibility, aside from the dimension of physical access, also encompasses the dimension of functionality, communication and it is related directly to autonomy and safety. The CB area combines favorable natural resources, climate conditions, and cultural assets providing opportunities for sustainable development of tourism, with respect to the environment.

However accessibility problems create difficulties for tourists with disabilities to enjoy equal benefits and services. Touristic services are not well organized for groups with special interests, while joint efforts to create attractive itineraries and common branding are missing. Touristic facilities and their management need to be improved substantially. Access to tourist sites needs to be extended together with the development of the new forms of tourism products. Even though tourism is a growing sector in the CB region, the area itself is not promoted as a popular tourism destination. On the other hand, there is an untapped potential and underestimation of niche tourism prospects, such as tourism for people with disabilities etc. Such potential is significantly correlated with the urgent need to use opportunities that the cross border region has to present. Although some important steps have been taken in recent years concerning legal and institutional framework, much remains to be done for making a destination truly accessible, attractive to national and international customers who today still prefer destinations most tested from the accessibility point of view. The actions taken by the central government and local / regional authorities are usually not part of a strategic plan to improve services for people with disabilities, as potential consumers of the tourism product, but are mostly confined only to few private initiatives