An accessibility programme launched by Ocean Holidays to support holidaymakers with disabilities has been a “roaring success”, according to the company’s co-chief executive.
Speaking on a Travel Weekly Future of Travel webcast, Harry Hastings said the programme had received “rave reviews” and was bringing in new customers as well as supporting existing clients.
The programme was launched by the US specialist in November, following a survey of more than 1,000 people with a disability which revealed 51% found holidays stressful and 36% found them frustrating to plan and book.
Hastings said: “We are so pleased with how it’s worked out. We had people booking and travelling with us who had special needs requests and we didn’t know about it, so now they’re having a much better experience.
“We believe one in five people that travel are registered disabled and one of our concerns was that we might get overwhelmed, but we’re finding about in one in 20 are asking for help, whether it’s to do with a visible or hidden disability.”
Hastings said Ocean Holidays had put accessibility specialists in place to service enquiries, with conversion rates for those enquiries roughly four times better than for others.
He added: “It’s working via the trade as well. Agents know they can speak to us about accessible holidays for their clients. It’s great for customers and it’s been great for business so will certainly continue it.”
Hastings said the company now needed to ensure it fulfilled its commitment to customers, adding: “We need to make sure we deliver on our promises , and we’re working very hard on that in the background.”