2023 declared the ‘year of accessible tourism’ by QLD Government

A recent partnership between the Queensland government and non-for profit ‘Spinal Life Australia’ (SLA) was launched this month as ‘The Australian Accessible Tourism Alliance’ with $12 million invested so far in related initiatives.

Mark Townend, SLA chief executive officer told the ABC he would make sure the process was well informed from those in the disability sector.

“Inclusion — that’s the key difference,” Townend said.

“We’ll have a joint team of minds to put ideas together and get the message out there … so that people can enjoy venues, entertainment places, eating houses, the same as everybody else.”

As part of the new partnership, SLA has created resources to support tourism business make changes that will have a positive impact, such as an accessibility checklist with tips for venue access and placement of goods and service counters as well as training to help staff recognise customers who need extra assistance.

Steve Richter, a Bundaberg father who was diagnosed with paraplegia in 2008 said he hasn’t let that some him holidaying with his daughter.

“I didn’t want her experience on holidays to be restricted because her dad had a disability,” he said, but noted to the ABC it’s often hard to find a suitable holiday experience.

“Most hotels may only have one or two accessible rooms … and they might already be booked.

“Or they might say, ‘We’ve got disability parking’, but then you get there and it’s not as wide as it should be, or it’s not in the location it should be. They’re all things that you constantly come up against and you’ve got to be prepared for.”

Kate Dufty, a community advocate and member of the Queensland disability network, audits venues accessibility in regional areas and said the partnership was, “a really important change” when speaking to the ABC.

“There are some really good databases that specialises in disability accommodation and activities, but it would be really nice if people could actually trust [information from] the booking companies,” she said.

“More often than not, you turn up and find out it’s not actually accessible.”

Dufty was also excited about the potential overhaul.

“The most rewarding thing for me would be to see people with a disability able to travel without the constant anxiety and stress that they have from the moment they start making bookings.”