Receiving specialized training is a key deciding factor for managers and customer interfacing staff in order to offer a high quality tourist service to people with special needs. Communication and/or mobility impaired customers have the same requirements as other customers, quality products and services that meet their needs, as much as reliability, and competitive market prices. It is not sufficient for staff to simply know the basic demands of laws/regulations and the location of the accessible toilet, they must be aware of the broader needs of a wide range of disabilities and the appropriate etiquette and language which accompany them.

Most tourism service providers do not yet recognize the importance of this issue, by training for disability awareness in tourism education (and training for use by the tourism industries tourism personnel) and demystifying disability issues will lead to removal of stigmatisation.

Excellence in Tourism goes further than featuring designed for all premises: an intended high quality tourist service should be able to offer services that meet requests, needs and expectations of one and every customer; obviously it's a must to know and understand those requests, likes, demands and expectations, something which scarcely happens when it comes to clients with mobility and/or communication impairments.

February 2007. We have been:

-Encuentro Internacional sobre Accesibilidad y Ayudas Técnicas para todos España-Guatemala
From 12 to 15 February
Organizaded by: Real Patronato sobre Discapacidad, Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional, Fundación ACS y CONADI.
www.rpd.es
La Antigua (Guatemala)

-"Encuentros con el Turismo '07"
22 February
Organized by: Observatorio de Turismo y Cultura del Ayuntamiento de Ibiza, Plan Excelencia Turística.
www.eivissa.org
Ibiza

 

- Curso de Formación en Turismo Accesible
13 and 14 February
Organizaded by: Alava Incoming
www.alavaincoming.com
Vitoria-Gasteiz

-Conferencia Práctica de Acercamiento y Sensibilización. Turismo Accesible
Escuela de Hostelería de Mendizorroza
15 February
Organized by: Alava Incoming
www.alavaincoming.com
Vitoria-Gasteiz

March 2007.We will be:

-I Jornadas Internacionales sobre Turismo Accesible
15, 16 and 17 March
Organized by: Ayuntamiento de Cardeña
www.turismoaccesiblecardena.com
Cárdeña - Córdoba

 

-I Congreso Nacional Turismo y Deporte Adaptado
16,17 and 18 March
Organized by: Asociación Promoción del Turismo Adaptado Asturiano (APTAA)
www.asturiasadaptada.org
Gijón

-Curso de Formación en Turismo Accesible - Jornadas Accesibilidad.
21,22 and 23 March
Organized by: Cabildo Lanzarote
www.cabildodelanzarote.com
Lanzarote

-Jornadas Ocio, Turismo y Discapacidad
22 and 23 March
Organized by: A.M.I.F.P.
http://www.amifp.org
Madrid