Spatial, social and organizational aspects of accessible tourism

Abstract

Tourism has many dimensions. Travelling provides a huge opportunity for people with disabilities. Disabled people often feel the most comfortable in their place of residence, place of work, natural environment associated with their routine. This is due the fact that said environment has already been accessed and personalized to their special needs. The farther from their natural environment, the more barriers a disabled person faces. Tourism has a spatial character, therefore it is related to movement. People with disabilities have the same motivation for travelling as healthy people, however, their full participation is often limited by numerous architectural, organizational, or even mental barriers, connected with their own concerns. Meanwhile, the number of people with disabilities is growing. Disturbing is also the increasing number of people temporarily disabled after strokes or hearth attacks. Tourism by movement allows to eliminate the unpleasant consequences of disability in both physical and mental terms. The purpose of this article is to present the spatial aspect of tourism of people with disabilities, the barriers that they face while travelling and leaving their customized environment. Additionally, the paper presents the role of tourism in the process of social rehabilitation of the disabled and their activation with the rest of society.