Authors

Yu-Ling Wong

Document Type

Conference Paper

Publication Date

2010

Subject Area

Mobility - Disabled, Population - Elderly, Population - Ageing of the Population, Transport planning - Accessibility planning, Mobility - Accessible footpaths, Transport accessibility - Access to Information

Abstract

A report publish by UNWTO in 2009 indicated that the number of international tourists worldwide has decreased 4% to 6% and this is no exception in most Asian countries. However, Taiwan has successfully marketed itself with its “Travel in Taiwan Year” campaign and attracted about 4.4 million inbound tourists. This further shows that Taiwan is a very appealing destination among tourist sites around the world. As a popular destination for tourism, a country must do all it can to improve the accessibility of the tourism environment and provide detailed and complete information regarding accessible tourism. This is key to unlimited business opportunities for countries aiming to develop the tourism industry, because senior and mobility challenged tourist take up one-fourth of the total economy. As a consequence, the requirements of accessible tourism, such as the safety of scenic spots, suitability of hotels, traffic access, are very important criteria in determining the destination of travel for senior and mobility challenged tourists. NGOs in Taiwan are working to voice out the real demands of disabled tourists, as a way to supervise and help the government agencies and related tourism industry to pay attention to the rights and needs of recreation of senior and mobility challenged tourists. A detailed check-up will be conducted in major tourism sites, hotels and restaurants and suggestions presented afterwards. In addition, they will assist the tourism industry in organizing and providing “Accessible Tourism Packages and Services,” as well as giving the senior, disabled, children, and pregnant women a sustainable developing friendly city. At the same time, the accessible tourism environment will be improved to attract more international tourists to Taiwan, making it a leader in the promotion of accessible tourism in the Asia-Pacific region. This will set an example in the promotion of national tourism.

Rights

Permission to publish the paper has been given by TRANSED 2010, copyright remains with them.