Enable Holidays reaps benefits of ‘strong’ trade engagement

Accessibility specialist Enable Holidays has seen “a notable increase” in agent enquiries and bookings after pledging to boost its trade engagement last year.

 

In spring 2025, the accessible travel specialist celebrated its 21st anniversary and embarked on a year of “significant” industry engagement, product expansion and continued advocacy for more inclusive travel experiences.

 

Its accessible travel training sessions for travel agents have been well attended, increasing awareness of its specialist support and helping agencies offer barrier-free travel experiences for clients.

 

Enable Holidays has also expanded its distribution network, working with more travel agents and securing agreements with more than 12 major travel groups and consortia.

 

Furthermore, it has worked with tourism boards, accommodation partners and accessibility advocates, to promote greater awareness of inclusive tourism and encourage higher accessibility standards.

 

Partnerships and lobbying activity with organisations including Spain For All, Visit Flanders and the Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions have helped support industry-wide conversations around accessibility, while Enable Holidays has also contributed to wider discussions regarding accessible aviation.

 

The company said agents now account for “just a whisker” below 50% – up from 40% a year ago – and it is getting closer to pre-Covid business levels.

 

More: Enable Holidays banks on trade to spur growth in sales

 

Recent additions to its growing accessible touring programme include Thailand, Colombia, China and Costa Rica, while dozens of new accessible hotels have been added, with destinations including the Flanders region of Belgium, Dublin, Rome, Sicily, Corfu and various regions of Spain. These are further supported by new accessible villas in Turkey, Crete and Andalusia.

 

Ben Kirby, Enable Holidays’ chief executive, said the year-to-date performance has reflected a mixed trading environment.

 

“The start of the year was slower than anticipated, with ongoing unrest in the Middle East inevitably having an impact on consumer confidence and booking patterns,” he said.

 

“This was followed by a particularly strong period of bookings, demonstrating the resilience of demand for accessible travel.

 

“More recently, however, the latter part of April and May has seen softer trading, which appears to mirror wider market trends and may in part be influenced by the unusually favourable weather experienced across the UK.

 

“As we move into the late booking season, we continue to have availability at a number of popular adapted accommodation properties and destinations, and we expect to see increased demand from last-minute bookers over the coming weeks.

 

“At the same time, we are receiving a high volume of enquiries for 2027 and beyond.

 

“This reflects the advanced planning cycle preferred by many disabled travellers, who often require additional time to research accessibility requirements and secure suitable accommodation and support services before committing to travel.”

He said the operator remains “optimistic” about the long-term outlook for accessible travel, “supported by growing consumer awareness, increasing trade engagement and continued industry efforts to improve accessibility standards across the tourism sector”.