Accessible Glasgow

Glasgow recognises the importance of accessibility and is working hard to support the city to be an Accessible Destination.

There are many good reasons for businesses to think about accessibility or inclusive tourism, not least of which is the bottom line. The demand for accessible tourism is growing and provides a major opportunity for businesses.

It is not just a ‘nice to do’ but takes in the practical, often simple requirements of a broad range of visitors including people with hearing, sight or mobility needs, senior travellers and families with young children. The spending power of disabled people in the UK is estimated at £249 billion so presents a significant economic opportunity.

There are good financial reasons for considering inclusive tourism:

• Disabled travellers and senior travellers spend significantly more when they go on holiday than other market groups.
• Inclusive businesses have higher occupancy rates and a more loyal customer base
• The market is set to increase as the UK’s population ages.

There are simple steps that you can take to make your business more inclusive. 

54% of people with access requirements will avoid you if they can't find accessibility information about your business - use VisitScotland's free, quick and easy tool to create your bespoke access guide for your business and take the first steps in ensuring your business provides a warm welcome to all.

72% of disabled customers are more likely to visit new places if they feel welcomed by staff or venues appears to care about accessibility. Glasgow Convention Bureau and city partners run training and awareness sessions for hospitality and tourism staff in relation to conferences coming to the city where attendees are living with the condition. Making sure staff and managers in your venue are trained and confident in inclusive tourism will make a huge difference to your customer service.

VisitScotland now provides a one-day course to help businesses improve their customer service for disabled customers.  For more information please contact them on [email protected] or Tel. 02380 625 533.

For more information on Glasgow's accessibility visit the VisitScotland accessibility guides.