With 1.3 billion people globally estimated to have a significant disability, UNWTO has again joined with key partners to make tourism more accessible to all.
The UNWTO Conference on Accessible Tourism was held for the second time in San Marino (16–17 November 2023). It was powered by the Ministry of Tourism of Italy and in partnership with the European Accessibility Resource Centre (AccessibleEU), a flagship initiative of the European Commission. The conference produced the San Marino Agenda, a clear action plan for disability inclusion in every part of the tourism sector.
Advancing accessibility for destinations, companies and people
Since San Marino first hosted the conference in 2014, many destinations and companies have made great strides to improve accessibility, bringing tourism closer to Tourism for All.
At this year’s two-day event, over 200 delegates discussed policy advances such as the international standard ISO 21902, which caters both to host communities and visitors and covers the entire tourism value chain. The event featured a Ministerial Roundtable, bringing together San Marino, Italy, the Republic of Korea, Uzbekistan, Czechia, and Israel to discuss governments‘ roles in advancing accessibility through policies, strategies, and standards.
Innovation in accessible tourism was one of the key themes, with speakers presenting new solutions for access to transportation, leisure, MICE, and tourism services. These included SEATRAC, which helped wheelchair users to first certified city-wide Braille touchpoints, the first certified blind tour guides in Cape Town, and the fully accessible waterfront in Rimini.
The conference has strengthened international networks and showcased San Marino as an inclusive destination, a point of reference for accessible tourism, and the only UNWTO Member State to have hosted two International Conferences on Accessible Tourism.
