The needs of disabled travellers will be the subject of a debate at World Travel Market on Wednesday.
Lynne Kirby, managing director of accessible overseas holidays provider Enable Holidays, will be one of the panelists in the debate to be chaired by On Holiday Group chief executive Steve Endacott.
Other panelists at the Amadeus-sponsored session include Simone Buckley, chief executive of the Institute of Travel & Meetings, Carol Hay, UK and Europe marketing director at the Caribbean Tourism Organisation, Advantage Travel Centres managing director Julia Lo-Bue Said and Heathrow chief executive Colin Matthews
The debate will explore whether the global travel industry is keeping pace with changing traveller expectations.
It will focus on how travel companies can provide a superior service to match travellers with the experiences they desire, including the integration of smarter technology and examples of best practice.
Kirby said: “The UK’s estimated 10.6 million disabled people have a combined annual spend on goods and services of up to £80 billion.
“Disabled travellers are a sizeable yet poorly addressed segment of the market and the industry needs to do more to meet their requirements.”
The session, Amadeus Travel Insights: Connecting with the 21st-century traveller, takes place at 3.30pm on Wednesday at the Travel Tech Theatre at WTM.