Viajes 2000, firmly committed to Accessible Tourism, participates in the National Congress on Accessibility and Tourism without Barriers, organized in Candeleda (Avila) by the Spanish Royal Board on Disability along with the City council, as well as in Expotural ' 05.

The Ministerio de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales (Ministry of Social Affairs) through the Royal Board on Disability (Real Patronato sobre Discapacidad), and the City council of Candeleda (Ávila) organized in this town, at the beginning of October, a National Congress on Accessibility and Tourism without Barriers , whose aim was to bring the managerial class of the sector the need to start up a kind of tourism accessible to all the people, including those people with impairments. The Diputación Provincial de Ávila, the Federación Española de Municipios y Provincias ( FEMP ) -Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces- y la Asociación para el desarrollo integral de personas con discapacidad y con necesidades especiales del Valle del Tiétar, ADISVATI -Association for the integral development of people with disabilities and special needs of the Valley- have collaborated as well in organizing this Congress.

The opening session was presided over by the secretaria de Estado de Asuntos Sociales, Familias y Discapacidad (Secretary of State of Social Affairs, Families and Disability), and Secretary General of the Royal Board on Disability, Amparo Valcarce, and by the Mayor of Candeleda, Eugenio Miguel Hernández Alcojor.

In her speech, the Secretary of State made an appeal for the need of standardizing the right of any person to enjoy tourism, emphasizing efforts made by the Government in surpassing all the physical and economic barriers in order to warrant that people with any kind of impairments can enjoy their leisure time. In this Congress, Tourism for All was discussed from many points of view: travel agencies, associations/organizations, industrials of the sector, Administration's representatives, etc. The project Centro de Ocio y Turismo Inclusivo en Candeleda (Inclusive Leisure and Tourism Center in Candeleda) was deeply discussed, and musical-therapy workshop offered to attendants as well as several experiences of adapted leisure (horse-therapy, outdoors leisure and art in the diversity). Natividad Enjuto, technical director of the Real Patronato sobre Discapacidad, offered a communication on "Disability and Inclusive Tourism".

The managing director of Institutional Coordination of the travel agency Viajes 2000 , Jorge Antonio Piñeiro, took part in this Congress with the communication: "Travel Agents and Tourism for All". Piñerio, reaffirming their commitment to tourism for persons with impairments, stated in Expotural'05 ( during the Technical Sessions of XI National Fair of Development and Rural Tourism), that this group constitutes a market sector of more than three million people, being "an important incentive" to encourage travel agencies getting specialized in the so called "tourism for all", and making special emphasis in the must that tourism staff reports "honestly" about their accessibility, since "it's more than common that the disabled client discovers upon arrival to his/her destination that accessibility is not that one expected".

Viajes 2000 , is part of the ONCE corporation (National Board of Blind People), having as their customers Spanish Paralympic Team and the National League of Wheelchair Basketball clubs. This agency "strives to become the referred to one among other Spanish agencies in the field of Accessible Tourism", according to the words of the director of Viajes 2000. Thanks to an agreement subscribed with the Diputación of Palencia, Viajes 2000 is commercializing "The Accessible Route of the Romanesque Palentino ": monuments like the Monasteries of San Andrés de Arroyo, or Santa Maria the Real one, the Colegiata of San Miguel, the parish of San Juan Baptist or Santa Eufamia de Cozuelos, in addition to an accessible itinerary to main monuments of interest in the city of Aguilar de Campoo, are visited.

The Plataforma Representativa Estatal de Discapacitados Físicos ( PREDIF ) took part in these Technical Sessions held at Expotural, launching the guide "How to make rural houses accessible to persons with reduced mobility" . This guide, which has been made with the collaboration of Fundación ACS, explains how an accessible rural house must be made: from parking, ramps, stairs, doors, corridors, reception areas, elevators, to rooms and bathrooms. In addition, in the guide the characteristics that obligatorily must fulfill the lodgings of rural tourism are listed, according to each Autonomous Community, as well as the obligations in the matter of accessibility for buildings of public use and centers/services of tourist activity.

The aim of PREDIF in Expotural has been trying to obtain tourist normalization, contributing to help that people with impairments can exert their right to be tourists avoiding the construction of "exclusive" destinations, i.e., avoiding "ghettos".

Viajes 2000
Main Office, Pº de la Castellana , 228-230. 28046 MADRID
Tel.: +34 91 323 25 23 / Fax:+34 91 314 73 07
Email: com.viajes@once.es Web: www.viajes2000.com

Real Patronato sobre Discapacidad
Serrano 140. 28006 Madrid
Tel.:+34 91 745 24 44 / Fax: +3491 411 55 02
email: sgrealpatronato@mtas.es Web: www.rpd.es

PREDIF
Avda. Doctor García Tapia, 129. 28030 Madrid
Tel.: +34 91 371 52 94 / Fax: +34 91 301 61 20
email: predif@predif.net Web: www.predif.org

Rebecca Arce

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