[Travelandtourism] Italy: Manifesto for the Promotion of Accessible Tourism

[cheryl echevarria]

Hey Scott thank you.

If at all possible you can just cut and paste the article that would help 
also.

the link breaks up.

I am posting it here for all.


By Scott Rains on September 14, 2011 7:00 AM

Manifesto for the Promotion of Accessible Tourism
Putting into effect art. 30 of UN Convention concerning disabled people
rights ratified by Law n.18 of 24/2/09

1. People in the most complete meaning of the term, with their specific 
needs resulting from personal and health conditions (for example: motor, 
sensory, intellectual disabilities, food intolerances, etc.), are citizens 
and customers who have the right to autonomously make good use of all the 
tourist services on offer, being supplied with suitable services with a just 
quality/price ratio.

2. Accessibility involves the whole tourist service chain, both at national 
and local level, starting with:
   a. Transport network;
   b. Accommodation capacity;
   c. Restaurants and cafés;
   d. Culture, leisure and sports.

3. Location accessibility shall not be the decisive factor when planning 
holidays: it should be possible to choose a destination or a tourist 
facility because it is where we want to go and not because it is the only 
accessible one.

4. It is necessary to think of accessibility as access to life experiences, 
that is overcoming the concept of "standard", enhancing the value of the 
person/customer, who has specific needs.

5. Information about accessibility cannot be reduced to a mere symbol, but 
has to be objective, detailed and guaranteed, to allow each person to 
certainly evaluate by himself which tourist facilities and services are able 
to meet his specific needs.

6. It is necessary to promote positive communication, avoiding the use of 
discriminating words. It has to be distributed in formats that everybody can 
use, and through all tourist information and promotion channels.

7. As accessibility does not concern only structural and infrastructural 
aspects, but also the services offered to tourists, it is necessary to 
promote quality reception for everybody, that is to encourage a cultural 
change, that can result in changes in organization and management models, 
even before structural ones.

8. It is necessary to encourage skill and professional training, based on 
Universal Design principles and involving the whole tourist and technical 
professional profile chain: managers, employees, companies, public and 
private enterprises. It is also necessary to update curricula in all Schools 
for Tourism, Technical Schools, Universities, Masters and Academic Centres 
of all grades.

9. Local Authorities, according to their competences and functions, shall 
implement the accessibility of towns, public buildings and local transports, 
and shall also plan periodical control and promotion operations for tourist 
offers for everyone.

10. In order to implement and promote accessible tourism in a system logic, 
proactive collaboration among tourist Operators, Local Authorities, Public 
Bodies, disabled people Associations and social tourism Organizations is 
encouraged.



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