Best access guide yet to London’s hotels
02 July 08
Noothing will be left to chance for disabled visitors to London with a new guide launched this week by Visit London to over 800 accessible hotel rooms in the capital – the most detailed such guide to any city anywhere.
The guide, which is based on an independent audit of every hotel, describes the visit from arrival by car or public transport to reception, the restaurant, other public areas and the rooms and bathrooms.
Available through www.visitlondon.com/accessible, the guide also notes services such as low level counters, hearing induction loops, facilities for visually impaired guests and adjoining rooms for carers.
One of the most useful features is a set of photographs for individual routes through each hotel, showing for example how to get from the car park to reception, or from there to the rooms or to the restaurant. Alongside the photographs are details of surfaces, distances, light levels, signage and door widths.
The guide is easy to use. Visitors can search for a hotel by general area (north, south, east, west and central London), by postcode or by hotel name, or search for specific facilities and services by clicking on the icons. Any of the hotels audited which offers those facilities in the area selected will be shown.
In total, 114 hotels were audited around the city, at all price ranges. Premier Inn, Travelodge, and Holiday Inn and Express by Holiday Inn, both part of the InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG), offer the largest selection of accessible rooms.
Liz Sayce, Chief Executive, RADAR said, “The new hotel portal is very thorough and a great asset to anyone with an impairment. It is helping to break down barriers disabled people may face when visiting London.”
James Bidwell, Chief Executive of Visit London, said, “This hotel guide is of great value in helping make London a truly accessible city. Our “accessible London” pages on visitlondon.com also suggest how visitors can use London’s public transport, theatres, attractions and shops more easily.”
Says Carolyn Smith, director of visitor economy for the London Development Agency, who sponsored the research, “As host of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, we want London to be a truly accessible city, and to provide complete reassurance to our disabled visitors. The best way to do this is to give them a completely objective assessment of facilities which leaves nothing to chance and makes their visit as stress-free as possible.”
Any other hotels which wish to be audited and be listed in the guide should contact Deborah Evans at the LDA on 020 7593 8163 or email .
Travellers with disabilities are a lucrative and growing market. The Disability Rights Commission estimates that there are around 10m disabled people living in the UK and that their consumption is worth over £50bn a year to the UK economy. As our population ages, the demand for accessible facilities will increase further.
The project is the latest in the “London Open to All” programme, helping London’s accommodation become more accessible to its visitors. For more information on London Open to All see www.lda.gov.uk/tourismsupport
The hotel audits were conducted by Direct Enquiries Ltd, an access specialist and publisher of the Nationwide Access Register. The Register, on www.directenquiries.com, also includes disabled access information on many leading high street stores.
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