From airlines to hotels, Aussie holidays need to be more accessible

Disability advocates call on the government and tourism industry to ensure travelling is accessible for everyone.

Transcript

00:00that they might say that their tour is wheelchair accessible, however you may need to negotiate

00:04a two or three steps up into the bus and I mean that's just not a realistic ask for someone who's

00:09in a wheelchair. Fiona Donaldson is a wheelchair user and while traveling the world she's had her

00:15fair share of inaccessible holidays. I've been putting goods lists before in restaurants to get

00:21or had to go through the kitchen to you know to to um look for access for me just to go and have

00:26a meal it's just crazy and that's Australia. It's inspired her to work as a disability

00:32travel advisor for supported travel experiences. One in five Australians have a disability let's

00:38get together and make it easier for everyone. I mean it's not about just putting in an accessible

00:44toilet or a ramp it's about also educating staff to be disability aware at the same time.

00:51She is calling for a national framework for businesses to ensure that they are accessible.

00:58So if you're a wheelchair user and you want to go and enjoy the pool

01:02well you can't unless you can walk and walk over steps. I set up a travel blog called

01:07Wheel Around the World and some of the videos have had up to 10 million view.

01:11I can roll into the bathroom.

01:14You got no idea how happy this makes me. And it highlights the challenges of people with

01:19disabilities traveling with disability from flying to accommodation to footpaths and even

01:24cruise ships. Meanwhile Shane is calling on the Australian government to mandate minimum

01:30airline accessibility standards. I want to see the government set a minimum standards for how

01:36people with disabilities book how many wheelchairs gets go on a flight and mandate that they have

01:40how many wheelchairs gets go on a flight and mandate that there's a hoist at every gate

01:45training for airlines and airline staff about how to interact and support people with disabilities.

01:52As advocates call for change Mrs Donaldson said it's best to contact properties or tourism

01:58operators to check that they are accessible. Everything from door widths to toilet heights

02:05things like that. I ask for photos as well so that's a really good thing to do is to ask

02:10the hotels for photos and then you can make a judgment yourself whether that's

02:14going to be suitable for you or not.