Assessing accessibility
Sarah visiting the Wieliczka Salt Mine
This has been an excellent experience for the students. I'm sure it will have provided them all with great awareness, appreciation and understanding of disabled customers within the tourism industry.
”Asia Alder Travel and Tourism Management lecturer and PhD student.
Sarah Robinson is studying Travel and Tourism Management. She went on the overseas trip to Poland.
Challenges for disabled travellers
We visited Poland to learn about the obstacles that are faced by disabled travellers and how tourism professionals can manage challenging situations.
Before the trip we were asked how accessible we expected Poland to be. Initially the most of my class felt that I would face few issues as a wheelchair user in Poland.
Many students assumed that, as a member of the EU, cities in Poland would comply with official legislation on disabled access and the built environment.
Before the trip
Before I went on the trip I had to prepare my journey carefully. I worked on planning the trip with the trip leader Asia Alder, a lecturer in Travel and Tourism Management and a PhD student in the department.
The reality
The visit was a real eye-opener for everyone. By being aware of my requirements, the group was able to look at the whole experience in a different way.
Despite weeks of careful planning and frequent communications with the hotel where we stayed, we could not predict and plan for everything.
What we learned
We were all able to experience and appreciate the impact that a lack of accessibility had on the whole group, as well as on me.
Whenever a problem arose, we were able to see the issue unfold and learn from it as a way to manage a challenging situation.
Find our more about the overseas trip to Poland.